In 1827, Joseph Dixon began his business in
Salem, Massachusetts and, with his son, was involved with the
Tantiusques graphite mine in
Sturbridge, Massachusetts. Dixon discovered the merits of graphite as a stove polish and an
additive in lubricants, foundry facings, brake linings, oil-less bearings, and non-corrosive paints. He also refined the use of graphite
crucibles,
refractory vessels used for melting metallic minerals. A heat-resistant graphite crucible he invented was widely used in the production of iron and steel during the
Mexican–American War. This invention's success led Dixon to build a new mill in what is now the
Van Vorst Park neighborhood of historic
Downtown Jersey City, New Jersey in 1847. The
Dixon Mills complex has subsequently become residences. During the 1860s, people typically wrote with
quill pens and ink even though Dixon introduced graphite pencils in 1829. But the
American Civil War created a demand for a dry, clean, portable writing instrument and led to the
mass production of pencils. At the time of Dixon's death in 1869, the Joseph Dixon Crucible Company was the largest manufacturer of graphite products in the world. By 1870, The Joseph Dixon Crucible Company was the world's largest dealer and consumer of graphite. By 1872 the Dixon company was making 86,000 pencils a day. The Joseph Dixon Crucible Company continued to prosper throughout the 20th century by growing through a series of mergers and acquisitions. In 1982, the Joseph Dixon Crucible Company merged with the Bryn Mawr Corporation, a Pennsylvania transportation and real estate company with operations dating back to 1795. Together, these companies formed the
Dixon Ticonderoga Company, named after Dixon and its oldest brand-name pencil. ==References==