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Pendleton Tag History: Date Vintage Labels by Year

Pick what your Pendleton tag shows and we match it to the label eras in Pendleton's own guide, from the 1924 label to today, with the years and how sure we are.

What is it?
Waiting for your label

Pick what your label shows

Start with the label color, the city and the quote marks. Each one you add narrows the era.

More on the label: Woolmark, "Since 1863", ®, size, care tag, code
Tick what you see

This dates the label, not the piece: a label can be replaced, and specialty lines like Sir Pendleton had their own. It does not authenticate anything.

Pendleton shirt labels by year

These are the labels in Pendleton's own guide, "Date Your Shirt". Pendleton calls them broad guidelines: colors varied over the decades, wear changes how a label looks, and there were many alternates. Where Pendleton writes "c.1950", we read it as roughly that decade. The guide is about shirts, so on jackets and other clothing treat the match as a rough guide.

  1. 1924

    Bright blue with gold

    What the tag shows: Bright blue and gold endfold. Curly P in a slanted "Pendleton" with quote marks, no curl on the lines above and below it, "copyright 1921", "Pendleton, Oregon", and no wool line.

    Pendleton used this label on blankets too.

  2. About 1930

    Navy with gold

    What the tag shows: Navy and gold endfold. Curly P, quote marks around "Pendleton", "Pendleton, Oregon" and "100% virgin wool".

    Pendleton used this label on blankets too.

  3. About 1940

    Ivory or navy with gold

    What the tag shows: Ivory and gold or navy and gold. Curly P, quote marks, a curl on the lines above and below "Pendleton", "Pendleton, Oregon" and "100% virgin wool".

  4. About 1950

    Navy, blue or ivory with gold

    What the tag shows: Navy, blue or ivory with gold. Curly P, quote marks, with or without the curl. "Pendleton, Oregon" changes to "Portland, Oregon", and "PENDLETON WOOLEN MILLS" is usually in full capitals.

    Both city names show up on labels from about 1950 to the 1960s. Pendleton's example label for this era also has a size box.

  5. About 1960

    Ivory or navy with gold

    What the tag shows: Ivory and gold or navy and gold. Curly P, quote marks, with or without the curl, "Pendleton, Oregon" and thicker "100% virgin wool" lettering.

    Pendleton's caption says "Pendleton, Oregon", but its own c.1960 example label reads "Portland, Oregon", so both cities show up in the 1960s. Pendleton says white labels were used until the 1960s.

  6. About 1970

    Ivory or navy with gold

    What the tag shows: Ivory and gold or navy and gold. Curly P, quote marks, "Portland, Oregon", rounder "100% virgin wool" lettering, and after 1977 sometimes the shirt size and the Woolmark logo.

  7. About 1980

    Blue with gold

    What the tag shows: Blue and gold. Curly P, quote marks, a curl on the lines, "Portland, Oregon", rounded "100% virgin wool" lettering, sometimes the Woolmark logo.

  8. About 1991

    Bright blue with gold

    What the tag shows: Bright blue and gold. Curly P, quote marks, squared lettering for the extra text, "100% pure virgin wool", sometimes "Made in U.S.A. Port, Ore." and the Woolmark logo (none after 1992).

  9. About 1995 to 2008

    Blue with orange-gold

    What the tag shows: Blue and orange-gold endfold. A new slanted serif logo with no quote marks and a slanted line from the P under the name, no box around the logo, and "Since 1863" for the first time.

  10. About 2009 to 2013

    Bright blue with yellow-gold

    What the tag shows: Bright blue and yellow-gold endfold, woven in polyester. The registration mark appears, "Portland Oregon" is gone, a new Pendleton Gothic logo with lines above and below it, sometimes the size, and "since 1863".

  11. 2014 to 2017

    Navy with gold

    What the tag shows: Navy and gold endfold, polyester. Code 76A001 (men's) or 76A006 (women's), a large registration mark, large lower text reaching the lines, "since 1863".

  12. 2018 to today

    Navy with gold

    What the tag shows: Navy and gold endfold. Code LBL00011.G17 (men's) or LBL00012.G17 (women's), a smaller registration mark, lower text centered, "since 1863". Polyester, then recycled polyester from 2021.

  13. 2024 centennial

    Navy with gold

    What the tag shows: Navy and gold endfold, code LBL02535.E23. Curly P with no quote marks and "A Century of Shirtmaking", in recycled polyester.

    Based on a 1960s men's ad.

Label codes: a code ending in a dot, a letter and two digits (like .A14) gives the month (A is January, L is December) and the year the label was developed, so the piece was made then or later.

Pendleton blanket labels

Pendleton's first two shirt labels were also used on blankets, and some blankets had white labels until the 1960s. Past that, blanket labels went their own way and give wider dates. Pendleton says it doesn't have the resources to identify older blankets, and points collectors to Barry Friedman's books.

  • "Copyright 1921" label

    1921 to 1930

    What the tag shows: The standard blanket label with "Copyright 1921". Pendleton's 1924 bright blue and gold shirt label, with "copyright 1921" and "Pendleton, Oregon", was also used on blankets.

    The 1921 to 1930 range comes from a collector's guest post on Pendleton's blog.

  • Cayuse Indian Blankets

    1913 to 1934 (originals)

    What the tag shows: Embroidered label, black and red: "Cayuse Indian Blankets, manufactured by Pendleton Woolen Mills, Reg. U.S. Pat. Off., Pendleton, Oregon".

    In 1998 Pendleton announced the Cayuse designs would return under the Beaver State label with a patch explaining the reissue. The Whyte Museum dates its Cayuse blanket only as before 1970.

  • Beaver State Robes and Shawls

    1912 or later

    A blue Beaver State blanket label with yellow lettering: "Beaver State, Reg. U.S. Pat. Off., Pendleton Woolen Mills, Pendleton, Or., Dry Clean, Robes and Shawls".
    Photo: VasenkaPhotography, CC BY 2.0 via Flickr, cropped to the label

    What the tag shows: Blue label with yellow embroidery: "Beaver State Robes and Shawls, Reg. U.S. Pat. Off., Pendleton Woolen Mills, Pendleton, Oregon".

    Pendleton says the Beaver State name dates to 1912. The Whyte Museum dates its blanket with this label (reading "Pendleton, Oregon") before 1970. Pendleton's 1998 Cayuse reissue was announced under the Beaver State label, so the name alone doesn't make a blanket old.

Clues that help on any Pendleton

  • "copyright 1921": A collector's guest post on Pendleton's blog dates the "Copyright 1921" blanket label to 1921 to 1930.
  • Woolmark logo (the wool ball symbol): The Woolmark was created in 1964. Pendleton says it was on its products from the 1970s through 1994 and on no shirt label after 1992.
  • Shirt size on the neck label: Pendleton's c.1970 caption says a size and the Woolmark may appear after 1977, but its c.1950 example label already has a size box, so a size alone doesn't date a label.
  • "Since 1863": "Since 1863" first appears on the label around 1995.
  • Registration mark (the ® symbol, not the words "Reg. U.S. Pat. Off."): Pendleton says the registration mark was added around 2009.
  • A separate care tag (washing or dry-clean instructions): The FTC issued its care labeling rule in December 1971, so a care tag usually points to the 1970s or later. Treat it as a hint, not a cutoff.
  • Says "washable": Pendleton's washable wool shirt went on sale in 1959.
  • Made outside the USA (for example Mexico): Pendleton test-ran women's blouses in Mexico in 1992 and moved men's shirts and jackets there in 1996.
  • "Warranted to be a Pendleton": Pendleton's trademark filings claim this wording from 1895 (blanket version) and 1928 (the "Portland, Oregon" version), registered in 1958 and 1959. It was used for decades, so it does not narrow the date.
  • RN 29685: Pendleton says RN 29685 on the tag identifies it as the maker. The FTC database gives no issue date for it, so it confirms the maker, not the year.
  • "Made in U.S.A.": On its own it doesn't narrow the date. Pendleton's label guide only dates the "Made in U.S.A. Port, Ore." line, to about 1991.

What we couldn't source

  • Union labels: we found no source that ties a union label to Pendleton garments, so the dater does not use one.
  • An RN start year: the FTC pages we read give none, and the RN-to-year formulas on forums cite no evidence.
  • Years for "High Grade Western Wear", "Pendleton Knockabouts" and other line labels: only seller listings and forum posts, so they are not in the table.

From a label era to a sold price

  1. 1Photograph the neck or blanket label, the care and origin tags, and the whole piece before you clean it.
  2. 2Name the piece: Board Shirt, 49er, Topster, Westerley, a named blanket pattern. The model moves the price more than the decade.
  3. 3Measure it. Old tagged sizes are inconsistent and wool can shrink, so list the real measurements.
  4. 4Search sold listings for the same piece in the same condition, and keep moth holes and repairs apart from clean pieces.
  5. 5Take off fees and shipping before you decide the most you would pay.
Build an exact sold search Work out the most you'd pay

For what each kind of Pendleton sold for, see our vintage Pendleton value guide.

How we got this

The shirt labels come from Pendleton's own label guide in its 2024 WOVEN magazine. Blanket dates come from Pendleton's blog and FAQ, two Whyte Museum records and a 1998 Seattle Times report; the dates on the clues come from Woolmark, the FTC, Pendleton's US trademark records and a Gale company history. Where sources differ, we say so on the card. Checked Oct 30, 2026.

Frequently asked questions

How do I date a Pendleton tag?

Read the words first: the city, the quote marks around "Pendleton", the wool line, and marks like "Since 1863" or a registration mark. Then match the label color. Pendleton's own label guide dates its shirt labels from 1924 to today, but labels varied, so you get an era, not an exact year.

What do Pendleton tags look like by year?

In Pendleton's guide, the 1924 label is bright blue and gold with "copyright 1921". From about 1930 to 1980 labels are navy, ivory or blue with gold, a curly P in quote marks and "100% virgin wool". About 1991 reads "100% pure virgin wool". About 1995 brings a new logo with no quote marks and "Since 1863", and from about 2009 there is a registration mark and no city.

How do I date a Pendleton blanket label?

A collector's guest post on Pendleton's blog dates the "Copyright 1921" blanket label to 1921 to 1930. A 1998 Seattle Times report dates the original Cayuse labels to 1913 to 1934. The Beaver State name goes back to 1912 and was used again later, so it gives a wide range. Pendleton says it doesn't have the resources to identify older blankets.

When was "Warranted to be a Pendleton" used?

Pendleton's US trademark filings claim the wording from 1895 for blankets and from 1928 for a label reading "Portland, Oregon", registered in 1958 and 1959. It ran for decades, so it tells you the maker more than the year.

When did Pendleton use white labels?

Pendleton says white labels were used on men's and women's shirts, and on some blankets, until the 1960s. A white label points to before about 1970; the city and the wool line narrow it from there.

How can I tell if a Pendleton tag is fake?

Pendleton says RN 29685 on the tag identifies it as the maker. Check that the label's colors, wording and city fit one era in Pendleton's guide. A tag that fits is not proof on its own, so compare the fabric, stitching and buttons with sold pieces of the same model.

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