Partner Article

Historic pen comes home

In the same month as Pitman Training opened its latest training centre in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, the company, one of the UK’s oldest brands, has bought Sir Isaac Pitman’s gold-nibbed pen, the one he used to create the revolutionary method of shorthand in 1837. 170 years on, the pen will join the collection of Pitman artefacts on display at Pitman Training’s head office in Wetherby.

In 2004 the pen was sold at auction in Bath as part of a sale of items from Sir Isaac’s family home, Eastcourt House near Malmesbury. Pitman Training Managing Director Stan Knights takes up the story, “Unfortunately we lost out on the sale at that time and thought we had missed our chance. But then as luck would have it one of staff visited the home of Commander Peter Duppa-Miller, in Bath, who explained that he owned the Pitman pen. We were delighted when Commander Duppa-Miller agreed to sell the pen to us as it is such an important piece of Pitman Training’s heritage.”

Jill Stevens of the Pitman Training Centre in Newcastle was delighted by the news. “The Pitman name remains synonymous with shorthand and even though our portfolio of courses has been greatly extended, there is still a strong demand for shorthand courses. We are extremely proud of our heritage and have a responsibility to protect and build on Sir Isaac’s legacy.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .