Is General Pencil Made in USA?
Last checked Oct 13, 2026 · 14 verified products · see the evidence
Yes — Made in USA
General Pencil manufactures its products in the United States — specifically in Jersey City, NJ. Sources: 9 Amazon listings that state US origin. Each is quoted and dated below.
American Score
Average American Score across 14 verified products — scores ≥70% are shown on this site.
Manufacturing Details
- Made in
- Jersey City, NJ
- Headquarters
- Jersey City, NJ
- Location detail
- Specific city confirmed
- History
- Long-established (50+ years)
- Founded
- 1889
How we verified General Pencil
Most recent check: Oct 13, 2026
From the brand's website
We re-read generalpencil.com on Oct 11, 2026 and did not find an explicit statement about where its products are made. This page relies on the other evidence below.Amazon listings
We read the live Amazon listing for 14 of the 14 General Pencil products on this page (most recently Oct 13, 2026). 9 of them state US origin on the listing itself:
- “manufactured in united states” on General Pencil Charcoal Drawing Kit 12-Piece
- “Made in the USA” on General Pencil Cedar Pointe Graphite Pencils with Sharpener
- “Made in USA” on General Pencil Drawing Pencil Kit 10-Piece
Removed products
We have removed 1 General Pencil product from this site after finding it was not made in the USA. Only the products below remain listed.
These checks are run by our software on a schedule: brand websites are re-read about every three weeks, Amazon listings weekly, and news is scanned monthly. Every flag is checked against its original source before anything on this page changes. How the American Score works.
About General Pencil
General Pencil has been manufacturing cedar pencils and artist materials in Jersey City, New Jersey since 1889, making it one of the last American pencil manufacturers and a six-generation family business that has survived the near-total offshoring of the pencil industry.
Heritage & History
General Pencil was founded in 1889 by Edward Weissenborn in Jersey City, New Jersey, entering a domestic pencil manufacturing industry that was then robust and geographically diverse. Over the following century, virtually every American pencil maker closed or moved production to lower-cost countries, leaving General Pencil as one of the only domestic survivors. Six generations of the Weissenborn family have led the company through every disruption the pencil industry has faced — the transition from incandescent to fluorescent lighting, the introduction of ballpoint pens, the digital age — and General Pencil has outlasted all of them.
The brand's artist-grade products — charcoal sticks, compressed charcoal, kneaded erasers, layout pencils — developed a devoted following in art schools and professional studios that no offshore competitor has displaced. General's Charcoal Pencils and Layout pencils became standard materials in fine arts curricula, recommended by instructors who value their consistent behavior and reliable quality. That professional endorsement created a customer base that values domestic manufacturing as a quality signal rather than merely a patriotic preference.
Made in Jersey City, New Jersey
General Pencil's factory is located in Jersey City, New Jersey, across the Hudson River from Manhattan, where the company has manufactured pencils and artist materials for over 135 years. The facility produces cedar-cased graphite pencils, charcoal sticks, and specialty artist materials using equipment and processes maintained and refined across six family generations.
Cedar wood for pencil casings — the traditional material that gives pencils their characteristic smell and workability — is sourced and processed at the Jersey City plant, where the full manufacturing sequence from raw lumber to finished pencil occurs. General Pencil's survival in a category almost entirely lost to offshore manufacturing reflects the compounding advantage of 135 years of process knowledge, loyal professional customers, and family ownership insulated from the quarterly earnings pressure that drove competitors to cut costs by moving production abroad.
American-Made General Pencil Products
View all 14 products →
Frequently Asked Questions
Is General Pencil made in the USA?
Yes. General Pencil is made in the United States, manufactured in Jersey City, NJ. All pencils and art supplies manufactured in Jersey City, NJ since 1889. Oldest pencil manufacturer in the USA. Uses responsibly harvested incense cedar wood.
Where is General Pencil made?
General Pencil is made in Jersey City, NJ. The company is headquartered in Jersey City, NJ.
Which General Pencil products are made in the USA?
We carry 14 verified American-made General Pencil products across Arts & Crafts, Office & School. Every listing links directly to a trusted online store with verified manufacturing evidence.