January 22, 2024 - Thinking back on my “schooling” in San Augustine, Texas, I recall that I was not allowed to use anything except a #2 lead pencil in my studies. At least, not until I entered the fifth grade under Mrs. Margaret Wade. Of course, I was allowed also to use crayons to produce several colorful drawings during these early years. In Mrs. Margaret’s class, things changed.
It seems that the traditional thought of the teachers was that by the time a student entered fifth grade, it was time to introduce him/her to the fountain pen. From that time on the use of a fountain pen became mandatory in English classes. While using the #2 lead pencil, an error could be erased by the handy rubber tip, then a correction made. Not so with the fountain pen.
It was about that time, 1947, that I was introduced to the ink blotter. This was a needed device when one used the fountain pen. I never thought much about them, except that the blotter was a great advertising medium for funeral homes, churches, and local businesses.
I was also introduced to the “ink well” found in each desk. This round two-inch diameter hole was standard, and was designed to hold a two-ounce bottle of “writing fluid” to use in our fountain pens. I recall that Sheaffer produced “Skrip” washable #42 blue writing fluid. The bottles had a small “well” near the top of the bottle in which to stick the nib of the pen and refill the pen’s bladder. Girls with long pig tails faced a real threat of having them stuck down in an ink bottle by the boy sitting behind them. Blue tipped pig tails were a fairly common sight on the play ground.
The ink blotter has disappeared from our schools and offices because of the invention of the ball point pen in the early 1960s. The ink blotter was a device that held blotting paper. This blotting paper contained a layer of something akin to felt and absorbed the excess ink on a document.
Blotting was needed ever since dipped ink was used. Originally this was done by the use of fine sand or salt poured on the wet ink. However, this procedure did not work very well, and salt was especially expensive.
To use an ink blotter, a writer would finish a document, pick up the blotter, and roll it gently across the surface of the document. This rolling motion would allow the blotter to pick up excess ink without causing the ink to smear during the blotting process. If the ink was left too long without being blotted, it would bleed through the paper and ruin the page.
Blotting paper was first mentioned in the English language as far back as the 1400s, and was a common staple of every desk. No smudging or smearing of ink was allowed, thus the need for the ink blotter.
From Mrs. Margaret’s fifth grade and thereafter, the ink and blotter were required for most courses. If one made an error, it was marked through with only one mark, then rewritten correctly. Of course, back then, we were graded on our penmanship and neatness. Excessive errors were not tolerated.
The ink blotter has not completely disappeared from the scene. People who work with traditional quill pens still use ink blotters for their original purpose. People who work with ink drawings or watercolors, still need the blotters, and a few art supply stores carry them. Some people collect vintage ink blotters, viewing them as interesting mementos of a bygone era. Ask any school student today what a ink blotter is and you will probably get some strange looks. Maybe this article will help enlighten them.
