Who Invented Toilet Paper? When & History

Toilet paper is widely used in the world by many people. There are many reasons that lead to the invention of the toilet paper.  A lot of improvements have been made on the toilet paper leading to many types of toilet papers on the market. This article clearly elaborates when the toilet paper was invented, who invented it and the history generally.

Toilet paper was invented in 1857 by Joseph Gayett. Seth Wheeler of Albany was one who initially invented a toilet paper on a roll in 1871.  He also invented the toilet paper holder in 1891. In the beginning of 1800, Americans wiped with pages of the sears Roebuck catalog. Toilet paper is made from trees including paper made from hemp plant. Toilet paper is not made out of cotton because it clogs the water pathways. Charmin was invented in 1928 by the Hoberg paper company of Green Bay, Winscousin. Cottonelle was introduced in Canada shortly after its invention in United States in 1972.

When was Toilet Paper Invented?

Toilet paper was invented in 1857. The first toilet paper was made of Aloe- infused sheets of Manila hemp dispensed from Kleenex-like boxes. The toilet paper invented by Joseph Gayetty was available till 1920s. It was mostly sold in packages of flat sheets that contained his name.

Who Invented The Toilet Paper?

The toilet paper was invented by a New York Entrepreneur known as Joseph Gayetty, who claimed that his sheets prevented hemorrhoids. He was so excited about the invention and printed his name on every sheet of the toilet paper. Later in 1890 two brothers named Clarence and E. Irvin Scott made popular the concept on toilet paper on roll.

Their brand became more popular than Gayetty’s medicated wipes. This was a great improvement that increased the sales on toilet papers in hotels and drug stores. The Americans   were ashamed of publicly selling or buying the product because of its bodily functions. This delayed the innovation until 1902 because the two brothers were ashamed of their work.

How Toilet Paper Was Invented: Brief History and Facts

Before the invention of the toilet paper Romans used an L shaped stick of wood to clean themselves. In public toilets people used sponges and water. People who lived in arid areas used the sand and dirt. In the 15th Century availability of paper replaced the traditional materials.

People started using pages from books, magazines, newspapers and catalogues. In 1880 toilet paper was developed by the British Perforated Paper Company. It was made of a coarse paper than the modern toilet paper. It was sold in boxes of individual squares. Joseph Gayett invented the toilet paper in 1857 which was a modern toilet paper and made available in 1920s in United States.

 In 1890 in America Scott Paper Company made its Waldorf brand toilet paper in rolls. The first rolls were not perforated and people were ashamed of using the same. The toilet paper was sold in packages of flat sheets, watermarked with Joseph Gayetty’s name.

How & Who Invented the Toilet Paper Roll

Seth Wheeler of Albany was one who initially invented a toilet paper on a roll in 1871.  He patented rolled and perforated wrapping paper and his company started selling the same. In 1871, Seth Wheeler of Albany became the official “inventor” of toilet paper. Seth Wheeler patents rolled and perforated wrapping paper.

In 1879, Thomas Seymour, Edward Irvin and Clarence Wood Scott founded the Scott Paper Company in Philadelphia. They came up with the idea of customizing rolls for every merchant-customer they had. They sold small rolls and stacked sheets.

In 1896 Scott Paper Company started manufacturing and producing toilet paper under its own brand name. Scott’s company became the leading toilet paper company in the world. In 2000 the Tama Monosoff discovered a toilet paper roller problem that needed a solution. She found out that small animals like cats and toddlers in the house like manipulating the toilet paper.

 She inventented a product called TP saver which is a special device that clips on the toilet paper roll to prevent continuous unrolling. Toilet paper was sold in perforated rolls around 20 years later. In 1877 Albany perforated Wrapping Paper Company was the first company to sell the toilet paper rolls.

How & Who Invented the Toilet Paper Holder

The toilet paper holder that is also known as toilet paper dispenser was invented in 1891 by Seth Wheeler of Albany, New York. Seth Wheeler was the official inventor of toilet paper and owner of Albany Perforated Wrapping Paper Company that was the first business to sell toilet paper on a roll. The idea was that the toilet paper should go up and over.

The idea of perforated toilet paper was originally patented by wheeler’s Albany Perforated Wrapping Paper Company in 1871 and patented again in 1891 as a way of preventing waste. In many public toilets the holder is designed to make it difficult for customers to steal. The holder was invented so that it could hold a fresh roll of toilet paper to be accessible and ready for use.

 It was to aid the paper till its exhaustion. Some common models include a thicker axle either raced on the wall or mounted on a frame, hinge length mounted on a wall. Initially it was intended to hold a stock of replacement rolls. The vertical holder is mostly used in homes.  Many devises have been designed to prevent wasting of toilet paper but the major efforts are on construction of holders to prevent free unwinding of the roll.

What Did They Use For Toilet Paper in The 1800s

In 1800 before invention of the toilet paper people used different materials to clean themselves depending on the country, social customs, status in the society and weather conditions. People at the coastal region preferred using mussel shells and coconut husk.  Greeks used clay, Europeans used hand with fountain of warm water, People of Islamic culture used left hand with some water.

People all over the world have wiped themselves with dirt and elements surrounding it like grass and leaves. It was common in the 18th century in France and some other parts of the world. In the beginning of 1800, Americans on the other hand wiped with pages of the sears Roebuck catalog.

Roebuck catalog was convenient because you could hang it on a nail in the house and it was in hundreds of pages. Later on in 1930 they started printing sears in glossy paper which made it difficult for wiping. It was layer discontinued in 1993 because some people continued using it even after the invention of the toilet paper.

In 1800, Americans commonly used pages that were from old farmer’s Almanac to clean themselves. The Almanac had a hole punched in the corner making it easy to hang it on the wall of the house. It took a very long time for people to get toilet paper to use.

Is Toilet Paper Made Out Of Trees?

In the 6th Century C.E Chinese invented the paper in 1st Century using the pulp of mulberry trees. The Chinese brought an idea of cleaning themselves with clean old paper that served as a toilet paper. To manufacture toilet paper you must start the process by creating paper. Paper is created from recycled material but some material like virgin tree pulp is also used.

Toilet paper used today is made from trees including paper made from hemp plant. We get paper from hemp’s fiber and pulp. Trees are one of the basic materials which are needed to make toilet paper. Trees are combined with chemicals for extracting fiber, water and bleach like chlorine dioxide to make toilet paper.

In as much as toilet paper is made from trees it is not made from any type of trees! It is made from “virgin” paper, using a combination of softwood and hardwood trees which is a combination of 30% soft wood and 70% hardwood. Manufacturing toilet paper, the manufacturer needs trees, water, chemicals and bleaches.

The manufacturer then starts the process by combining soft and hardwood trees stripped off the bark. The logs are debarked with a machine to leave wood, the logs then pass through a machine that chips them in small pieces then the chips are separated into batches.

 The batches of wood chips around 50 tons are mixed with 10000 gallons of cooking chemicals and sent in a 18.3m tall pressure cooker called digester. After lasting for three hours of cooking, much moisture is evaporated. The mixture is reduced to 25 tones of cellulose fibers, lignin and other substances. As a result 15 tons of usable fiber results from each cooked batch.

Is Toilet Paper Made Out Of Cotton?

African cotton industries launched new tena facial tissue that is made from African  cotton and is super soft and gentle. Cotton is mainly used to make wipes, pads and pumpers. It is not advisable to make cotton tissue paper because it is not easy to flush from the toilet.

A family cloth made of cotton is a reusable alternative to toilet paper but it is not advisable because it needs a lot of cleaning. At times you may think that Cottonelle brand toilet paper contains cotton but to the contrary it does not contain cotton. Cotton was a term that was used in the cottonelle toilet paper to convey the term soft.

Cotton swabs made from cotton are not used as toilet paper because they have a disposal issue. After flashing them out of the toilet they tend to block the water ways and some end up in the bellies of aquatic animals and birds hence hazardous to the environment.

When Was Charmin Toilet Invented

In 1928, the Hoberg paper company of Green Bay, Winscousin tried a different approach, it introduced a brand called Charmin and fitted the same product with a feminine logo of a beautiful woman. This was mainly done to avoid talking about toilet paper’s actual purpose which was still being marketed as a medicinal item.

The company rolled out a much softer addition to the paper game. Charmin was successful and helped the Americans to get over the discomfort of speaking about bodily functions hence enabled the brand to succeed. The toilet paper was described by an employee as “charming” and that’s how “Charmin” was invented.

Decades later, the logo of a woman was replaced by babies and bear cubs to symbolize softness which are still used today. In 1932 Charmin introduced its 4 roll package to provide their consumers with more softness home.

When Was Cottonelle Toilet Paper Made

Cottonelle was introduced in Canada shortly after its invention in United States in 1972. During 2004 Scott Paper Limited transitioned and named it in Canadian branding as Cashmere. Kimberly-Clark, the spokes person for the company behind cottonelle states that cottonelle first introduced cotton in the brand’s Cottonelle Clean Care Paper in March 2013.

The company started conveying the message of how cottonelle is soft like cotton to consumers. Cottonelle is a brand of Toilet paper produced by Kimberly –Clark. This company has different types of toilet paper which include cottonelle Double, regular, Cottonelle Aloe & E, cottonelle Extra Strength and cottonelle Ultra.  It is mostly sold in United States and Australia under the Kleenex brand.

In conclusion toilet paper is used by many people in the world hence we should always recycle the papers to limit cutting of trees. Many trees have been cut down for manufacturing of toilet papers but only a small percentage ends up being used.  Many trees should be planted to replace the trees that have been used for manufacturing toilet papers.

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