The Evolution of the Stapler
Did you ever wonder who created the everyday things we have in our lives, such as the sandwich - - and the stapler?
Well, tracing these creations isn’t as easy as it seems. Take the sandwich. Ask people who put together the first sandwich, and most of them will say the Earl of Sandwich. Here is how the story goes:
James Montagu IV, the Fourth Earl of Sandwich was enjoying a winning streak at the card table, which he refused to leave for 24-hours. To sustain himself, he ordered slices of meat between two slices of bread. Although it’s believed the Earl actually ordered this snack, he really didn’t invent the sandwich.
The Romans ate sandwiches, and so did European peasants. However, it should be acknowledged that the Earl of Sandwich did start this trend, and Englishmen started using the word “sandwich” as early as 1765.
However, if you were a contestant on a television game show and were asked who invented the stapler - a necessary piece of equipment in any of today’s offices - the answer wouldn’t be as concise or as straightforward.
It is believed that in the 1200s, people attempted to fasten papers together with a short ribbon. Each piece of paper had a cut in the upper left hand corner. A process was used to seal and connect the papers with wax and ribbons. Although this method was used for almost 600 hundred years, it is unclear whom to credit for this early fastening method.
Historians know that during the 1700s a stapler machine or fastener was made for the exclusive use of King Louis XV of France. Each staple was handmade and inscribed with the royal court’s insignia. Yet this device was never introduced to the masses.
Staplers - in various shapes and sizes – have been around for approximately 300 years. Yet, the question still remains who should get the credit for them? Some reference books credit an American, Samuel Slocum. In 1841, he patented his invention of sticking pins on paper - a forerunner of the stapler. Other reference materials suggest the first true stapler was the McGill Single Stroke Staple Press, which could load a single staple and drive the staple through two pieces of paper. Patents were issued for this invention in 1866 and 1879.
Better known to many people is the fastener from the Novelty Mfg Co. The company received patents for this product in 1866, with others following in the 1880s and 1890s. Although this fastener loaded one staple at a time, it was recommended for binding books, papers, and pamphlets, as well as for putting down carpets and upholstering furniture.
Charles H. Gould also gets credit for inventing the stapler. In 1868 he invented the wire stitcher for use in binding magazines. Gould’s wire stitcher used uncut wire, which then cut and inserted the wire in the folds of the magazine as well as folding the wire ends over. Gould’s invention is considered the predecessor of the modern stapler.
Nineteenth Century staplers had a typical design regardless of who received a patent for them. The staples, consisting of loose wires, were mounted on cardboard or metal cores and driven forward by a powerful spring. The U-shaped staples, which sometimes jammed, were fed into the machines one at a time.
By the beginning of the 20th Century, different stapling machines were being manufactured in larger quantities. However, all of these early staplers were rear or top loading. In 1905 an American manufacturer, B. Jahn Mfg. Co., developed what would turn out to be the most popular stapler of its time. Twenty-five tin-coated, metal staples were placed in a strip. Nevertheless, it wasn’t easy for a staple operator to put in a staple - - every time a staple was needed, the operator hit the stapler with a mallet.
The actual word “stapler” came into its own in 1909. Before that time, these products were called fasteners or a “Hotchkiss” after the American company that created them.
It wasn’t until 1914, that the stapler gained a presence in American offices. However, companies thought that only one stapler was all that was needed for an office of 500 people! The first office staplers were not easy for office workers to use because they had loose or paper-wrapped staples.
Fortunately in 1923, the Boston Wire Stitcher Co. introduced an easier model. In time, manufacturers also developed another innovation - - staples that were glued in a strip for easy handling.
Then, in the late 1930s, Swingline revolutionized stapling by creating a product in which the stapler would open up on top, and the office worker could drop in a strip of staples. Twenty years later, electric staplers were introduced. Although electric staplers filled the need for faster productivity and accuracy, the basic principle of these earlier staplers remained the same.
As new staplers are invented for 21st century offices, they are making workers’ lives easier and more productive. Today’s staplers have become more powerful, lighter in weight, are easy to use, and are aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Fine-tuned for comfort, staplers have come a long way from their humble beginnings.