We are proud to present the
first of our members to be featured on
www.cpaa.org. Every month this page will
feature another member of the Cultured Pearl Association of America.
Now we present to you
The American Pearl Company®, Inc
Cultured Pearls - The American Story In 1954, John R. Latendresse founded the Tennessee Shell Company in
Camden, Tennessee. It specialized in exporting mussels from the
rivers and lakes of North America to the Japanese (the only market
at the time). At the height of the business in the 1970’s, the
company shipped 23 tons of mussels to Japan to make the nuclei for
cultured pearls. In 1991, he sold the Tennessee Shell Company to a
group of investors so he could concentrate on his passion - Pearl
Farming. Today, the shell company exports our domestic mussels to
Japan, China, Tahiti and Australia.
Then in 1961, Mr. Latendresse founded the American Pearl Company®,
Inc. At that time, it specialized in natural pearls and imported
cultured pearls from Japan and China. In 1963, John Latendresse was
challenged by a group of Japanese pearl exporters. The conversation
was that the finest cultured pearls in the world came from Japan. He
was told he could not grow pearls in the murky waters of Tennessee.
As John would later remark, "It is not the pristine clear blue
waters of Tahiti with half naked women diving for pearls rather its
the muddy rivers of Tennessee, a little bit less romantic, but maybe
more intriguing." Little did they know how determined he would be to
succeed in this project. After testing over 300 bodies of water,
ironically the local river was very suitable for pearl farming and
it was less than 20 miles from his home. It was the only convenience
in his 20 years of research and development. The first few years
were spent trying to attempt the Japanese techniques on American
mussels which were not effective. Latendresse and his wife, Chessy,
developed new techniques after studying the anatomy of the domestic
mollusks. Chessy became the lead technician and taught each new
technician the secrets of pearl culture. After spending over 5
million dollars and 20 years in the making, in 1983 the first
marketable pearls were harvested, but it was not until 1985 that the
company succeeded in cultivating on a large scale the beautiful
American cultured pearls. In August 1985 the company was featured in
the National Geographic Magazine which delivered to the world the
news of the newest addition to the cultured pearl market.
The culturing technique at American Pearl is similar to others in
that all pearl farmers generally use the same technique with their
own variations. Live mollusks are harvested by contracted divers.
These soon-to-be "mothers" of cultured pearls are cared for and
brought to the operation facility. There, a skilled technician cuts
a pearl sac and inserts a mother-of-pearl bead nucleus and graft of
mantle tissue to seed the cultured pearl. After the operation, the
mollusks are placed in the post op tank for monitoring. Soon, they
are taken in nets to the pearl farm on the Tennessee River to be
tied and suspended from PVC pipes-not bamboo as used in Asia. There
are many variables in pearl production. A perfect technician making
the perfect incision will, with perfect weather, produce the perfect
pearl, but if the insertion is .5mm off it will change the shape and
quality of the pearl. American Pearl is not necessarily concerned
with exact shapes and therefore they have been successful at
marketing their pearls which have been fondly called the cultured
pearl with a twist-Beyond Baroque™
Why not culture the round shape?
For several years, the farms
cultured round pearls and they looked like the Japanese cultured
pearls. Mr. Latendresse wanted the Tennessee cultured pearls to be
unique. He wanted to make history with new shapes and new
technologies – the American cultured pearl would forever reshape the
look of pearls worldwide. It was not necessary to continue
cultivating the rounds as we developed a good following with our
fancishapes.
American cultured pearls are available in a variety of sizes from
the 1-2mm seed size and larger up to 30 mm long "Lagniappe cultured
pearls", the 10-15 mm coin shape, to the 10-30+mm navette shapes.
One of their company slogans is "These is NOT your mother's
pearls," indicating to buyers that these are a new category of
pearl. No other farm in the world offers the following traits in
conjunction with each other: They do not process or enhance their
harvests; Their shapes are unusual; and they offer "fair trade
pearls". Fair Trade Pearls is defined by their commitment to
environmental protection, fair labor practices, health and safety
standards, and the insurance that the domestically grown, American
cultured pearls, are never bleached, dyed or enhanced.
As for quality, John Latendresse set his standards high. The three
to five year cultivation period ensures the nacre thickness and with
a little luck, the surface of the pearls is smooth, lustrous and
brilliant with a play of color much like a rainbow reflection. Of
course, commercial quality is available and affordable.
American pearls are available loose to make into jewelry or already
set in 14 karat yellow or white gold designs. The inventory is large
and very unique. Prices range from $50 to $5,000 US dollars. Of
course, the natural pearls are rare and command high prices
sometimes over $50,000 US for one pearl. ;
John Latendresse has been called the father of
the American cultured pearl and is even referred to by the industry
as the Picasso of pearls because of the distinct shapes of his
cultured pearls. He and the family could travel and identify his
cultured pearls based on the shape alone. His intention was to
produce a high quality product with style and distinction from his
domestic waters and before his death in the summer of 2000 his
vision was complete. The pearl farm has been sold to a company,
which promotes it as a tourist destination and museum. It grows
American cultured pearls but in limited harvests.
Notes: Natural Pearls are available from freshwater lakes, ponds and
rivers and from the Ocean’s saltwaters.
Cultured Pearls are available from freshwater
lakes and rivers and from the Ocean’s saltwaters.
Keshi cultured pearls are a variety of cultured
pearl from saltwater mollusks as defined by CIBJO in April 2009.
Lagniappe is a cultured pearl formed as a by
product from the domestic pearl farm; the freshwater equivalent of
keshi cultured pearls.
American Pearl Company®, Inc.
2120 Crestmoor Road, Suite 2004
Nashville, Tennessee, 37215-2613, USA
(615) 298-4111/phone
(615) 298-4222/fax www.americanpearlcompany.com
