David Souter's Pen

(Please excuse the slightly off-topic nature of this post, but this was too good not to pass along).

One of my hobbies (my spouse would say "afflictions") is collecting and using vintage fountain pens.  In the pursuit of that afflic... er... hobby, I came across this discussion, the central point of which is that Justice Souter is also a fountain pen aficionado; specifically, he uses "an old Esterbrook from forty or fifty years ago."

Fountain pen nuts will immediately know what I mean when I say that I can't think of a more Souter-esque pen than an "Estie."  They have a reputation as "blue collar" pens -- no Mont Blancs here -- but while they're not flashy, they are unfailingly reliable.  (Full disclosure: My very first fountain pen was a red Esterbrook J, purchased while I was still in graduate school; it lives on my desk to this day).

Comments

[College Term Papers]

I read your post with great interest. As you know, I am generally on the other side of you on the issue of Iraq but I respect and find your position very interesting.

[Legal Profession Prof]

Is that the closest that an entity named something like "Esterbrook, J" will get to the Supreme Court?

[Patrick Brandt]

OK, that's a good one for classroom trivia. And the Estie makes much more sense, even when compared to the others available in the era.

If this were a real "litmus" test we would also need to ask the fountain pen purist questions: Bottled ink or cartridges? And, what color ink?

From a grading addled faculty member using two fountain pens to grade papers and exams (one with black ink, another with red)...

[Christopher Zorn]

Hmmm. My own vote would be for a 50s-era Parker 51 (with the "aerometric" filling mechanism, not the "vacumatic"). But an even better idea would be to sign on here:

http://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/

and ask the same question to the hive-mind. As on-line communities go, it's one of the nicest, most supportive ones I've encountered (right up there with the ELSBloggers...).

[Vincent]

Thanks for the post! Very interesting.

I am a grad student whose birthday is approaching, and I might be looking for an entry-level fountain pen. What would you recommend?

Best,

Vincent