The Mystery Of Paperclips

As an innovation, the modern paperclip has a peculiar history.

HISTORY OF PAPER

Paper was first created in China during the first century A. Initially made from cotton and linen, these fabric papers were expensive to produce and were generally reserved for permanent writing. Because of paper’s value, more trivial, temporary writing was done on reusable, clay or wax tablets. By the 19th century, the industrial revolution brought about the invention of wood pulping and industrial paper mills, making paper production inexpensive and widely available.

FIRST PAPER CLIPS

By dividing the processes of drawing, straightening, forming, and cutting iron into over a dozen individual tasks, each done by a dedicated laborer, pin production became over 1000 times more efficient. Where a single man could barely create 30 pins in a day, this early use of the assembly lines would easily yield production rates of over 30,000 pins.

WIRE TO CLIPS

Advancements in both metallurgy and mechanization would finally bring about the marvel of modern paper holding technology, the paperclip. The key to this shift from the pins to clips occurred during the 1850s with the introduction of low cost, industrially produced steel. During the last few decades of the 19th century, thousands of patents were issued for almost every shape of formed steel wire that could be conceivably used as a commercial product.

THE FIRST PAPER CLIPS

Among these early steel, wire-based products were the first paper clips. The earliest known patent for a paper clip was awarded in the United States to Samuel B. Some of these designs, such as the bow-shaped Ideal paper clip and the two-eyed Owl clip, can still be found in use today. Many were created to address specific challenges of managing paperwork.

GEM PAPER CLIPS

Among them, the "Gem Manufacturing Company'' had arisen as the namesake behind this design with a reference appearing in an 1883 article, touting the benefits of the "Gem Paper-Fastener". However, no illustrations existed of these early "Gem paper-clips" making it unclear if they truly did invent the modern Gem paperclip. Interestingly, aside from Cushman and Denison’s branding claim, even 30 years after its first appearance, the Gem-style paper clip still remained unpatented. Even stranger, in 1899 a patent was granted to William Middlebrook of Waterbury, Connecticut for a "Machine for making wire paper clips." Within the pages of his patent filing was a drawing clearly showing that the product produced was a Gem-style paperclip.

OTHER CLAIMS

There have been several other unsubstantiated claims to the invention of the modern paperclip. His paper-binding invention was illustrated within his book, though it looked more like a modern cotter pin than a contemporary gem-style paper clip. In 1901, Vaaler was liberally granted patents both in Germany and in the United States, for a paper clip of similar design, though it lacked the final bend found in gem-paper clips. Vaaler would go on to become a national myth posthumously, based on the false assumption that the paper clip was invented by an unrecognized Norwegian prodigy.

The gem-style paper clip would remain mostly unchanged over the next 120 years. It would even become a symbol throughout the century. The paperclip would even be commemorated on the nation’s stamp in 1999. Many manufacturers have even attempted to improve on the design by added ripples for a better grip.

Still, the simple steel wire gem-style paper clip remains a staple of basic office supply needs even today. It’s ease of use, effectiveness at gripping and storing papers without tangling or damaging them have made it one of the few inventions in human history that has proven to be difficult to improve upon.


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