A lot was going on in the United States in 1929, and not all of it was good. The stock market crashed, and the country was plunged into the Great Depression. But businessman Earl Fahrney took a gamble ...

The enormous patina-green fountain pen juts over the sidewalk on F Street, two blocks from the White House, its gold nib pointing down at the front doors like a command. “Fahrney’s Pens,” the sign in ...