Sampson mordan 1898 catalogue

Morden
S mordan & co propelling pencil
Sampson mordan silver marks

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Sampson Mordan

Sampson Mordan (1758–1843) was a renowned British silversmith and inventor, best known for his contributions to the development of pens and novelties.

Mordan began his career as an apprentice to the celebrated locksmith Joseph Bramah. In 1815, he opened his own business, initially specialising in small silver objects and novelties. In 1822, Mordan, in partnership with John Isaac Hawkins, patented the first-ever propelling pencil, a significant invention that revolutionised writing instruments. The partnership between Mordan and Hawkins ended in 1823, after which Mordan formed a new partnership with Gabriel Riddle. This collaboration saw the introduction of the hallmark ‘SMGR’. When the partnership dissolved in 1836, Mordan continued alone under the name S. Mordan & Co.

While Mordan is primarily remembered for his mechanical pencils, he also produced a wide range of other silver and gold novelties, often adorned with intricate, unusual figures. These creations became highly sought after, and his products were retailed by prestigious firms like Asprey & So

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Sampson Mordan was born in 1790. After some years of apprenticeship, he established his own business in 1815, and joined forces with John Isaac Hawkins by 1822; together they filed a patent for a metal pencil with an internal lead propelling mechanism. Unlike the pencil’s popularity and longevity, their business relationship did not last much longer, with Mordan buying out Hawkins soon-after.

Mordan registered his own silver mark in 1823 and then entered into partnership with stationer Gabriel Riddle. Under the name of S. Mordan & Co, and based at 22 Castle Street, City Road, London, they manufactured and retailed many writing and stationery related goods, particularly their silver mechanical pencils.

The name S. Mordan & Co is also associated with lock making. Mordan had apprenticed with the great locksmith Joseph Bramah at the start of the 19th century, and thus he became an expert lock maker in his own right. With Bramah’s lock design patents having long expired, Mordan manufactured almost exact replicas of these locks, known as Bramahrian Patent locks, a

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Sampson Mordan

Co-inventor of the mechanical pencil (1790–1843)

Sampson Mordan (c. 1790 – 9 April 1843) was a British silversmith and a co-inventor of the first patented mechanical pencil. During his youth, he was an apprentice of the inventor and locksmithJoseph Bramah, who patented the first elastic ink reservoir for a fountain pen.

In 1822, Mordan and his co-inventor John Isaac Hawkins filed the first patent in Great Britain for a metal pencil with an internal mechanism for propelling the graphite "lead" shaft forward during use, as an improvement on the less complex leadholders that merely clutched the pencil lead to hold it into a single position.

Mordan bought out Hawkins and entered into a business partnership with Gabriel Riddle, an established stationer. From 1823 to 1837, they manufactured and sold silver mechanical pencils with the marking "SMGR".^[1] After the partnership with Riddle dissolved, Mordan continued to sell his silver pencils as "S. Mordan & Co.", adding many other types of silver and gold items to his product line.^[2] M