Cartoon stick figure holding a yellow pencil having a green and yellow ferrule end — representing a blog post about the Ticonderoga Pencil configuration mark trademark registration.

Trademark: Ticonderoga Pencil

First Used: 1925

Registered: 1927

Current Owner: DIXON TICONDEROGA COMPANY [1]

Trademark Type: non-traditional trademark; trade dress; configuration mark; position mark

Primarily Associated With: pencils [2]

Brief (and likely incomplete) History [3]:

Almost everyone remembers sharpening a bright yellow pencil with a green-and-yellow ferrule and pink eraser during their school days. That classroom staple was the TICONDEROGA®, a pencil so iconic its look has become as recognizable as its name.

The story of Ticonderoga pencils begins in the 19th century with the Joseph Dixon Crucible Company, founded in 1827 by inventor Joseph Dixon in Salem, Massachusetts. Dixon initially focused on graphite crucibles for the steel industry, but his experiments with graphite led him into the pencil business. By the mid-1800s, the company had grown into one of the largest American manufacturers of pencils, producing millions annually at a time when the U.S. was still heavily dependent on European imports. In 1873, Dixon introduced the “Ticonderoga” line, named after Fort Ticonderoga in New York, a historic Revolutionary War site that symbolized American strength and resilience.

The Ticonderoga pencil at first did not feature the instantly recognizable look we know today. In the late 19th century, Dixon’s pencils were painted in darker finishes, often black or maroon, to mimic the European styles. By the early 20th century, the company adopted its now-signature bright yellow barrel to signal quality and visibility. The later addition of the green-and-yellow metal ferrule with a pink eraser further set Ticonderoga apart, giving the pencil a distinctive trade dress that consumers could spot at a glance. Over time, even subtle design tweaks, like the lettering style stamped along the barrel or the shade of yellow used, were carefully managed to preserve brand recognition.

Today, the Ticonderoga pencil is protected by a number of traditional and non-traditional trademarks. TICONDEROGA® [4], DIXON TICONDEROGA® [5], MY FIRST TICONDEROGA® [6], and THE WORLD'S BEST PENCIL® [7] are all registered word marks and the Ticonderoga Logo [8] is a registered design mark. The Ticonderoga Pencil configuration mark [9] protects the yellow color of the pencil contrasted against bright metal eraser end, and the Ticonderoga Green and Yellow [10] position mark protects the green and yellow colored bands positioned on the pencil ferrule.