Toilet Paper

Have you ever wondered the origins of toilet paper and how it has evolved to what it is today? The question of when toilet paper was invented, who invented toilet paper and what did people use before toilet paper was invented are not the most pressing questions but maybe this page will answer some of those very questions that have been asked or thought about at some point in time.

Admit it, you have probably wondered what people used before toilet paper was invented. Just as you may have imagined, people used grass, leaves, fur, mussel shells and corncobs. Ancient people used stones and pieces of clay, the Romans used sponges that were placed on the end of sticks that were kept in jugs that were filled with salty water, and in the Middle East they used their left hand.

Toilet paper origin dates back to the 14th century when the Chinese made paper that was specifically produced for that use. Early American folk used corncob or the paper from newspaper, magazines and catalogs. The Sears and Roebuck catalog was particularly popular. The first packaged toilet paper was produced by Joseph C. Gayetty from New York in 1857 and he sold it in the United States. The rolls that pieces can be ripped off easily were invented around 1880. The companies that sourced this toilet paper at that time were the Albany Perforated Wrapping (A.P.W.) Paper Company and the Scott Paper company who followed shortly after. It wasn’t until 1935 that splinter free toilet paper was invented and marketed by Northern Tissue. Can you imagine? Two ply toilet paper was introduced in 1942 by St. Andrew’s Paper Mill in Great Britain. http://nobodys-perfect.com/vtpm/ExhibitHall/informational/tphistory.html

Over the years toilet paper has found many other uses that what is was created for. It has been used in crafts, it has been the "butt" of many jokes and pranks and it has been used in many experiments.

There are some age old questions that you may have asked yourself or others at some time:

• Do you prefer over the top or under the roll?
  • There has been a number of surveys done on this toilet paper question and the results indicate that sixty-eight percent of people prefer the toilet paper sheets going over the top.

• Do you use toilet paper for other uses as well as what it is intended for? **Yes another survey was done on this and sixty-one percent have used it to wipe their nose, seventeen percent use it to remove their makeup, eight percent use it to clean mirrors, seven percent use it to clean their child’s hand or face, three percent use it to cover the toilet seat and to clean their glasses.

• If you were stranded on an island, what would you consider to be something you couldn’t be without (other than food).
  • This survey results showed that forty-nine percent of people said it would be toilet paper.

• • Is toilet paper brand important to you?
  • Fifty percent of people said Yes, thirty five said they didn’t care and fifteen percent didn’t know how to answer the question.

• Are you a wadder or a folder?
  • Forty percent said they fold their toilet paper, forty percent said the wad or crumple it and twenty percent said they prefer to wrap it around their hand. Unbelievably, four percent had no idea what they do with the toilet paper.http://www.rrnews.org/rd010505.htm