Criterion Fountain Pen c. 1923-1926

by Jim Mamoulides, May 31, 2024, updated August 19, 2024

Criterion fountain pen and pencil set c. 1923-1926

Is This The Standard, The Criterion For All Other Pens?

This is a Criterion machine engraved gold plated lever fill pen and pencil set c. 1923-1926. The engraving pattern is repeating panels of lines and boxes running the length of the cap and barrel. The clip on the pen is an interesting design where the clip appears to have three parts: The flat, ball ended clip, the part that crimps onto the cap, and a wide band that appears to hold the two pieces together. The clip face and the band are stamped CRITERION down the face. The lever is cleverly stamped FILLER, in case the user just might be confused as to what it's for, making those the only two markings on either writing instrument. The nib is stamped WARRANTED over 14K, a nice gold nib on an obviously inexpensively made pen. It’s about 5 1/8" long capped, and the pencil is almost the same length.

Criterion instructions c. 1923-1926

Criterion pens are not common and they were decently, but inexpensively made. The challenge, and the interest to me was trying to identifying the pen or pencil model and who made them. Usually a complete set provides some clues, where the instruction sheet and box labels reveal part of the story. This set came with a single sheet with instructions on one side and warranty information on the other, but there is nothing about the mysterious Criterion brand or the company behind it. The word Criterion isn't on either side. This is very unusual. The instruction side brags about the handy, practical, and reliable “De Luxe” and “Premo” models but is not clear what the names refer to. Is one name for the pen and the other the pencil? The Certificate of Guarantee is even better. What kind of warranty fails to tell the purchaser where to send the instruments if they fail?

Criterion guarantee c. 1923-1926

In researching the brand, I ran across a story in the May 12, 1925 Herald Statesman of Yonkers New York. “Criterion Club Members Frolic” is about the club’s 16th annual dinner held on May 10 at Savigny Hall, No. 229 Lennox Avenue, New York, New York with 35 couples attending. Undoubtedly it was a gala event if it made the papers. The president of the club, Dr. Louis Stern, presented guest Max Klein, a past president, with a silver loving cup, a two handled drinking cup designed for two people to share a drink at ceremonial events like banquets and weddings, and a gold Criterion fountain pen. I’m going to guess that the Criterion pen fit the bill because it matched the name of the club.

A Rexall Connection?

Other than that interesting high society article, I was not surprised that there is very little primary information on Criterion pens and pencils. There are a handful of retailer advertisements and trade enquiries from 1923 to 1926 and there are some existing pens, pencils, and ephemera. The earliest mention of a Criterion branded pen I could find was on the “Stationers’ Information Department” trade questions page in the December 1, 1923 American Stationer and Office Outfitter, where question number 7048 asks if anyone can identify who makes the De Luxe Criterion fountain pen. This question at least reveals that "De Luxe" in the instructions is a Criterion pen name. The question is repeated in the May 30 1925 issue as question number 7377, asking again, “who made Criterion pens?” and indicates that retailers wondered about this even when they were sold new. I could find no published answers to the questions. Couldn't an industry trade magazine give a little help here?

Criterion fountain pen and pencil set c. 1923-1926

Although searches turned up no manufacturer ads, I did find a grand total of ten retailer ads, all but one from drug stores, that offer Criterion pens either in a standalone ad or as part of a listing of a variety of products that included Criterion pens. The earliest is from the Sullivan Drug Store of Greenfield Massachusetts in the January 12, 1925 Greenfield Daily Recorder offering the De Luxe Criterion Fountain Pen featuring a 14 karat gold point for only 98 cents, a real deal, because it says they are “sold everywhere for $2.50.”

Later, on December 12, 1925, in the Forest Park Review, Manufacturer’s Outlet Store of Forest Park, Illinois included Criterion fountain pen and pencil sets with 14 karat gold points for $3.48 in a list of “bargains” advertisement. The latest dates are two joint Rexall drug store ads, one in the March 26, 1926 Salem, Oregon Capital Journal and the other in the April 23, 1926 Coos Bay, Oregon The World. The first ad is from the Capital Drug store and Red Cross Pharmacy in Salem, and the second is from The Busy Corner Rexall in Marshfield and The Everett Pharmacy in North Bend. Each ad offers a $7 “big red” “banker’s pen” for $1.59 and then $1.89 respectively. Those two ads are the only ones that call out the Criterion model type, a large red pen similar to a Parker Duofold.

It appears that Criterion pens were being sold primarily at drug stores, several of which were Rexall franchises. This leads me to believe that Criterion was possibly a short lived brand of the Rexall Drug Company. Louis K. Liggett, along with 40 pharmacist investors established the United Drug Company in Boston, Massachusetts in 1903 to manufacture and distribute products to franchised independent pharmacies in the USA and Canada. The franchised stores and the products were known by the brand name Rexall, a made up Latin+English word meaning “king of all.” According to “Rexall - Then and Now” by John Bachynsky, “By 1929 there were 21 manufacturing plants throughout the US supplying almost 5,000 items.” This included fountain pens, mechanical pencils, and fountain pen ink. This may also explain why there is no pen company information on the warranty. The “Certificate of Guarantee” describes the warranty as:

“In the event of any dissatisfaction, this Certificate entitles you to return this Pen or Pencil to us, and we will adjust same or give you a new one without charge.”

With no manufacturer information for the return, the obvious place to take the pen or pencil for service would be to the retailer. If Rexall was selling these to their franchisees, then I would expect the retailer would return defective items back to Rexall. But were they made in one of Rexall's factories? In Jon Veley's research of Criterion pencils he notes how similar they are to pencils manufactured by the Rex Manufacturing Company of Providence, Rhode Island. I don't have any hard evidence, but this leads me to consider two possibilities: First, Rex either made the complete sets OEM for Rexall or Rexall made the pens and bought the pencils from Rex, or second, the sets were made for Rexall as an additional brand for their franchises to sell. That would explain why the pencils are unmarked and neither have any Rexall markings.

Criterion pencil c. 1923-1926

Other Models

From the examples I’ve seen, there are at least five Criterion pen models. Each pen I’ve seen has the same CRITERION stamped banded clip as this example. Some speculate that unmarked sets found in Criterion boxes are also Criterions, but it's not confirmed that is the case. Again, who knows?

Criterion fountain pen nib c. 1923-1926

Known models include this metal cap and barrel pen and pencil type with repeating line and box panels, and four celluloid or hard rubber cap and barrel models, one in mottled red, one in solid red with black end caps, one in marbled green, and one in chased black with the same chasing pattern as on on this metal pen. Three of the celluloid or hard rubber pens have wide cap bands and FILLER stamped clips. The one mottled red I’ve seen has DE LUXE over CRITERION stamped on the barrel. The black chased pen has a Waterman style lever box. There are a variety of 14 karat gold warranted nibs found on them. All pens are in the 5 1/8 to 5 3/8 capped length range. All the pencils I’ve seen have no markings. The lack of any real pricing and model information precludes any identification guide. I suspect if the pens are named "De Luxe" then the pencils get the "Premo" name as in the instructions.

Criterion fountain pen and pencil set box c. 1923-1926

When I first got this Criterion set I thought it was probably a nice inexpensive set when it was new but it has not aged very well. The light gold plating is showing lots of wear, but the engraving is nicely done and the fit and finish is good. Shiny and new it would have looked pretty good. The the box was on par with sets sold in the 1920s, though it lacks external brand marks. The inside has Criterion over 14KT. SOLID GOLD PEN POINT printed. This set and the hard rubber and celluloid pens were clearly aimed at a buyer who could not or would not spend $7 on a Parker Duofold or a Wahl Eversharp set but wanted something with the same look at a much lower price. I would imagine sets like these at the corner drug store sold to value minded customers.

Criterion fountain pen c. 1923-1926

The apparent short life of Criterion, perhaps only 1923 to 1926, may tell several stories. Maybe they didn’t sell that well. Maybe Rexall decided to try something else or carry other brands. There were already Rexall branded fountain pens, mechanical pencils, and ink being advertised and sold at the same time.

The appeal of the Criterion pens to me was trying to solve the mystery of who made and sold them. I think the answer is a little clearer, but definitely not 100% confirmed. As collectibles, they really aren’t that special or valuable. A completist might be amused to try and get one of every color since it would be a small investment. They are out there but uncommon, and many are not in very good condition, so a little work effort would be needed.

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References

Advertisement, Greenfield Daily Recorder, January 12, 1925, page 5

Advertisement, Greenfield Daily Recorder, January 13, 1925, page 4

Advertisement, Greenfield Daily Recorder, January 22, 1925, page 4

Advertisement, Greenfield Daily Recorder, January 27, 1925, page 12

Advertisement, Greenfield Daily Recorder, January 30, 1925, page 6

Advertisement, Greenfield Daily Recorder, February 11, 1925, page 22

Advertisement, Greenfield Daily Recorder, February 13, 1925, page 10

Advertisement, Forest Park Review, Forest Park, Illinois, December 12, 1925, page 9

Advertisement, The Capital Journal, Salem, Oregon, March 26, 1926, pages 2 and 9

Advertisement, The World, Coos Bay, Oregon, April 23, 1926, page 2

“Criterion Club Members Frolic” The Herald Statesman, Yonkers, New York, May 12, 1925, page 14

"History of Rexall - the short version", Capnrexall blog, © 2023 Frank A. Sternad

“How I Know”, by Jon Veley, The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, Copyright Jonathan A. Veley, 2011-2016

“Nailed It . . . Pretty Much”, by Jon Veley, The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, Copyright Jonathan A. Veley, 2011-2016

“Rexall - Then and Now”, by John Bachynsky, Presented to the Canadian Academy of the History of Pharmacy 1 June 2008, Victoria B.C.

“The Rexall Story: A History of Genius and Neglect (review)”, by Albert J. Beveridge III, Bulletin of the History of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University Press, Volume 79, Number 4, Winter 2005, pp. 845-846

“Stationers’ Information Department” American Stationer and Office Outfitter, December 1, 1923, page 24

“Stationers’ Information Department” American Stationer and Office Outfitter, May 30, 1925, page 22

“Two Cans of Worms ”, by Jon Veley, The Leadhead's Pencil Blog, Copyright Jonathan A. Veley, 2011-2016