87. The Tin Can

French 1/2 quart self sealing jar

Can Opener late mid 1700's

My mother tells a story about having to go with my grandmother (her mother) to the old gym at Hogansville High School for Canning Day. This is when all the women would bring their can goods and help with canning. I watched my grandmother at a very young age do canning in her own kitchen. She had so many canned goods that anyone in the Walking Dead would be happy to find. When she died I believe we removed close to 150 Mason and Ball jars of canned goods which the contents was grown on her own land and canned for herself, family, and friends. Home canning is becoming a lost art. But a few hipsters are trying to preserve this art today. 

1700's can

Canning using metal cans made of tin and lead, found themselves used on a full scale during the American War for Independence. Glass jars were not ideal for war because they easily broke. Someone suggested using metal to make a can and then seal the can with lead. Lead could easily be opened in the field because of its malleability. The problem is that soldiers often didn't have a way to open these tin-lead cans. They figured out if the shot at the cans, they would open. This worked most of the time, but it also caused minor injury either to the soldier firing or the solider near by. In some cases, it was reported that the cans exploded while being shot. Soldiers also thought if they played the can near the fire, that it would open the can. It did but with an explosion. After the War of Independence the use of metal cans fell into obscurity and it wasn't until the Industrial Revolution that canning began to be used on a mass scale. 

During both the European and American Industrial revolution, canning saw a comeback. The cans were still made of tin, the seal made of lead but they were usually opened using a can opener. This was an easy problem to solve but there were other public safety issues. When canning became more commercial, and production rose and with most food items being about to be canned coupled with no regulation of canning the issues of, leaky lead seals which caused deceases, making people sick, let alone gave people lead poisoning was a growing concern. It wasn't unheard of to find severed body parts such as fingers and also find bugs or first stage development of infestations in canned meat. Trichinosis and other parasites were common to be found in the canning industry. By the late 1800’s most of these public safety issues has virtually gone away. It wasn't until Teddy Roosevelt that regulation of meat packing plants, and other food stuff industries that relieved diseased canned goods. 

late 1800's early 1900's canned goods

Beginning in the later 1800’s and early 1900’s the local general store began carrying commercially canned goods trying to bring the family into modern times. Women found boxed grits and crackers. They began to see canned meats and vegetables, as well as cake mixes, jams, and jellies. Most of these products were home industries. But even then, preserving food has been a forerunner of the human race, finding ways to preserve food for their families. in the late 1920’s and well through the 1930’s America, canning again was a main industry in the home. Families bartered for goods that could canned and stored. Most of the depression era families continued to can and passed the tradition on to baby boomers (like my mother). But it kind of stopped there. Dented cans could not be used due to the fact the contents would more than likely be contaminated with illness. Cans today are made of aluminum. There is no threat of disease unless something when horribly wrong. Today one can by dented cans and still live to tell about it. 

Can Opener

Today, the modern bohemian/hippie, “The Hipster”, have began to can everything. It just part of the renaissance of lost art. Canning is a art which takes patience, and a knowledge of how to can.  I have friends who can and do a wonderful job with it. I am glad they have time to invest in such a venture. 

88: Lite-Brite

This toy did nothing more than help one create a creepy clown face with different color translucent pegs. Nothing more or nothing less, but its simple construction and almost pothead concept was in a word brilliant. Like most objects that have a cult following, it inspired a subculture of Lite-Brite art.

The Lite-Brite is shaped like that the back of an old tube TV, with a removable light socket, a black grid of holes on the front held the white body by 2 screws. One placed a back sheet on construction paper over the grid and began pushing the paper with the pegs to make a picture while the light was on. The colors of the pegs were: red, blue, green, yellow, pink, purple, orange, and clear. The packaging of the Lite-Brite  featured a boy and a girl, working together on a sailboat, which was part of one of the deigns, but the preprogramed designs were somewhat limited, but not limited in ones imagination. Other icons over the years have sold their imagines to be used in add-on designs. those first add-on designs, were Mickey Mouse (Of course), Scooby-Doo, Flintstones, and a host of others. 

SIDEBAR: My brother and I had a Lite-Brite and the box had a creepy clown on the box (see images).

One draw back of the Lite-Brite was losing pegs, swallowing pegs, and getting them stuck in ears and nose. Why is this important? Its one of the last toys to have small parts that can be harmful for children. 

The Lite-Brite is produced by Hasbro and began marketing it in 1967. The Lite-Brite has not gone away but it exist in different forms today. LB comes in a LED version, a Cube version, and also as an app for tablets. One can find a used one in most yard sales, or theft shops, less the legs and the design book, which replacements can be found on-line. The Lite-Brite, like the etch-a-scotch, has created a subculture of LiteBrite artists. Please feel free to visit the Indianapolis Children's Museum for an large scale Lite-Brite interactive. Providence Children’s Museum also has a large scale Lite-Brite as well that is larger than the one in Indianapolis. But locating photographs of it seems impossible. 

Forever project

My Brother's and mind Lite-Brite box

The Lady and The Unicorn Tapestry 15th Century

The Lady and The Unicorn Tapestry (Lite-Brite)

89. The Wringer Washer

The Wringer

The cliche, “You look like you have been put through the wringer” came about because of this most awesome invention; The Wringer Washer by Maytag. Maytag was not the only company that made the wringer washer, but its the one who made the first ones. This post is not about Maytag, but the invention. 

Maytag, 1907

My grandmother used a wringer well into the 1980’s until my aunt and mother bought her a proper washer. I love that old wringer washer. It mesmerized me as a child because I instinctively knew how dangerous it was. The wringer part of the machine, I believed, was the most terrifying of the whole contraption. 

The Wringer of the 1900’s was not the first machines to help with washing clothes and fabrics. Humans have been trying to figure out how to make washing day a bit less mundane and relieve the backbreaking work of using a wash tub, hot water, soap, a paddle, and a wash board. Washing took most of the day, and needed to be started early to make sure the clothes got on the line in time to be dried. The last part of that statement will come along later with a dryer, but these first machines tried. 

Maytag, 1911

The first used hand cranks to agitate the water with the previous mentioned material less the wash board. It still required a lot physical labor. In 1907, Maytag had a wonderful machine which was also hand powered which cut down the washing process down but not totally efficient. The wringer itself was not added until 1909 along with a outsource for power to drive the agitator. A few years later, they were fully electric and washday became a welcomed day. the 1911 models (model 41 and 42) came with a reversible wringer which meant that once an article of clothing was run through one way, then the process could be reversed the other day, wringing out more water. The wringer itself swag over the tub so that the water would go back in the tub and not all over the floor. Because not everyone had electricity in the home, all the models until the 1930’s came in a hand powered model as well. They made the switch from cypress wood tubs to metal proclaim washing tubs in the middle in the 1930’s and solidified the shape of the wringer washer. 

Maytag, 1940, Model 41 and 42

1909, The Hired Girl Model

The later models came with hoses for easy filling of hot water, and a drain hose. All using a pump underneath the outside casing. The agitator had a lever, which dropped the motor to stop the action of the agitator and to switch the motor power to the wringers. The wringer was turned on by disengaging the agitator, turning off the safety switch on top of the wringer and then switching the motor to the wringers. Once one was ready to begin the wringing process, one would left the lever, hit the switch, and begin wringing.

The Wringer is such a marvel. It was a welcomed addition to any home though it could be dangerous. This machine led to the modern washing machine, which replaced the wringer in the 1950’s. But for my grandmother, who used her Maytag Wringer Washer from 1940 to 1986, is a testament to this modern invention. 

LINKS:

For more pictures and information from the Maytag history group visit here 

For a look at one of these machines at work check out this guys youtube video

Here is a 1948 Kenmore

90. The Zipper

This next invention is every important to mankind. It freed men and women (mostly women) from laces, and multiple buttons. The zipper has given a new release on how dressing (and undressing) is performed in the morning, evening, and night. It also allows to keep things in rather than out. 

The zipper can be found on shoes, shirts, pants, jackets, camping tents, couches, and chairs. They main job is to keep fabrics and plastics close with dignity and keeping clothes on taut. Before the zipper, men, women, and children relied on laces, and cords to keep clothing closed. Not only were laces and cords used, buckles and buttons were used on clothing as fasteners. One important contribution from buttons is the name “coppers”, which is slag for policeman. The reason police are still called “coppers” is because of the copper buttons found on English Bobby's wore on their uniforms. 

Howe's design, 1851

The zipper, developed by Elias Howe (the inventor of the sowing machine) in 1851, which he called The Automatic Clothing Closure. it revolutionized the clothing industry giving tailors and hairdressers another option for fastening clothing and other textile items which benefited from the new fastener. Howes deign was much different from the the modern zipper, the concept was the same: being able to close clothes without effort. His design was composed of small clasps that came together with a small string that gave the fabric a gathered look. He didn't develop it any further than this simple design. 

Judson's Design, 1893

40 years later the inventor, Whitcomb L. Judson developed a clasp and hook that was used for shoes. 

Judson's design, 1893

It wasn't until Gideon Sundback developed a hook and oval with interlocking teeth in 1913, that protruded from type that was made of a heavy fabric given it strength to be easily sown into fabric.  It wasn't until 1917, that he developed the eye hook concept with small metal teeth. His last design is what we know today.  

Sundback design, 1917

Sundback design, 1913

The zipper can be made of a heavy plastic or of metal. The concept of the zipper is so simple, its a wonder that it had not been developed before 1851. Each side of the zipper is composed of a metal teeth with interlocks by a simple dimple and tooth that is closed and open by a key that forces both sides together. 

The dangers of the zipper is getting “the boys” zipped up in it for men, and women getting hair caught. An embarrassing aspect of the zipper is standing in front of a crowded room with your zipper down. 

The zipper is on the list at number 90. 

Rik Mayall (off topic entry of the passing of Rik Mayall)

With the passing of Rik Mayall, I have to say that my life has been altered in some way. I didn't know him personally but feel a connection with him because he came into my bedroom so frequently. The "Young Ones" always made me laugh to the point of having to have a respirator to gain air into my lung from laughing disgustingly hard that I would cough up phloem. He shaped my view on life not only as a human but also my humor. The stuffs that people do not find to terribly funny I find ridiculously funny. 

From the "Young Ones" he went on to write and preform in other BBC series suck as the "Blackhadder" and joining forces with his long time writing partner. He made his way into movies, staring as the imaginary friend in "Drop Dead Fred", which still is one of my all time favorite movies. His presence on screen grabbed your attention and never wanted to look away because his train wreck punkish antics that encouraged you to make faces in the mirror while getting ready for school. Rik Mayall had a serious bike accident that left him with a head injury in 1998. Since then he has been braising everyday with life in life. All I know is, the world has lost a very sincere and articulate comic who believed in laughter until you cried. He added catch phrases to a whole disenfranchised youth, The GenX majority and those generations that followed. 

I know I am going to miss Rick the Poet political activist, and Fred, the one that made me do it. I suppose my evening will be made of The Young Ones if anything just to laugh! 

91: Knives, spoons, and forks

Ever wondered where cutlery came from? Or how it came to be? 

Once made of rock, and wood, now can be made of one plastic combination; Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you one of the most under appreciated inventions of all times: the knife, the spoon, and the fork (and I believe that this is the only entry on the list that contains 3 items that are related).

Knives are the oldest utensils in the cutlery arsenal. The knife is known to have been around since cavemen and women. The Knife was used for killing and made an easy transition for cutting meat and tough veggies sitting around the cave, the hearth, or the royal dinning table. It was fashioned out of stone and tied to sticks. Then during the iron age they were made of metal, much into the shape that it is today; a long pointed piece of metal with a rise in the edge. The Knife to royalty was being used much like the fork. The point of the knife was used to left meat to the mouth. The abundance of knives on the royal table were not out of place. During King Louis the XIV the knife was removed by Cardinal Richelieu. He told King Louis that he felt nervous with all the knives laying around. And then the fork was introduced even further through royalty of Western Europe.

The Fork

The fork has been around for at least a 1000 years. the Egyptians are the first to have any record of using the utensil. Actually, it was the Egyptians that appreciated flatware! Buried in the tombs of the wealthy, scientist have found flatware made of gold and decorated. However, the fork did not gain any popularity until the courts of royalty of Europe began to using them. Catherine da Medici was recorded to use the fork at her wedding reception which fell flat on her guest. It was not until Cardinal Richelieu that the fork finally took its place on the dinning room table. The fork cured a few problems: it replaced the knife (which makes paranoid monarchies even more suspicious of their guest), it also picked up other foods. the fork has not lost its shape as well. It has long prongs sharp enough to be stuck in meat. The prongs are not long making it ideal not to be used in assassination attempts at the dinning room table or stab an unruly family member. It was the spoon, however, added versatility in the kitchen as well at the dinning room table.

The Spoon

The spoon is the best out of the three because it really did solve a simple problem: how to eat hot liquid foods. It did not take long before the first man and woman to figure out that humans cannot hold hot liquids with their hands to eat it. The first spoons were contrived from shells. they had the perfect shape for dipping. They were tied to a stick and then used as well. The shell was perfect but what if there were no shells? Man and woman figured out how to fashion spoons from rock and wood. The rock and wood would be carved into bowls  and much like shells, then tied to sticks. When the Bronze Age came around, just like knives, spoons were being pressed from metals. The spoon has not lost its shape and it is much like the same as the shell on a stick. 

Why is flatware important? It helped civilize the world. Like any style or fashion it begins at the top and then filters down to the masses. Just like any other other invention,it took years and years for the knife, fork, and spoon to make it to most tables. Because most people were poor, they would eat with their hands until flatware was inexpensive to afford. During the renaissance an increase of flatware was being bought and sold. 

92: Beer

This was a complete accident. Some say it was the mother of inventions or it was Devine intervention! Others have made the argument that it has saved the world. Number 92, Beer, makes my list.

Back in the cave man days, when men and women were out gathering grains and placing them in an earthen vessel, they would leave these containers outside. After a rain and gathered in these vessels, it made a mash or a mead, which they eventually eat or drank. I am sure they were more concerned about not having much grain left but they had a drink. When man finally had more time on his or her hands, they began to experiment with the combinations and timing of the ingredients to make what will become known as the modern beer. Barley, wheat, hops, and yeast were the final grains used yielding a drink that the whole family enjoyed. In the beginning, the beer was not as alcoholic as the beers of today. 

Beer has been given the credit of saving the world from utter collapse, not as drink to celebrate the signing of a treaty. It was used as an economic source, bringing people together for trade, and as solvent to disputes as well. Beer spread from the fertile crescent to was is now eastern and Western Europe. It even spread throughout Asia. Even the colonists brought it with them to the Americas. Only later to be replaced by whiskey and then being banned constitutionally, which we all know how that worked out. 

Beer became a favorite for monks in Western Europe. One reason being that they had the means to grow the ingredients and had the temperatures in cellars to keep it from season to season. They also saw the profit for their efforts as well. In most European countries, breweries, which began in some cloisters, are still in business today (not all cloisters made beer and not all cloisters that did, are still brewing today). There is nothing in this world than to drink a beer which is still brewed in the same manor since 1100 BCE, 1200 BCE, or 1300 BCE. Beer was a favorite for our ancestors because it was cleaner than water and unknown to them, it killed germs. It was a healthy drink of the day. Nearly every household had beer. Even little Johnny drank beer. Beer also has nutritional value as well and was even used to during the Bubonic Plague as a cure, though not successfully. 

Beer has been hated and loved for many centuries and I am sure it will be for centuries to come. I do find it a bit strange and awesome at the same time that beer was brewed by a religious sect that later would condemn the act as sinful. But what's new, huh? 

Today beer is just beer and comes in many forms, tastes, and catchy names. Beer saved the world and yes, in this posters mind, it really did come from the Devine to save the world! 

Beer Links:

How to make beer -http://youtu.be/oobHoJYRezw

 

How Beer saved the world - http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/how-beer-saved-the-world/

93: Barbed Wire (AKA bobbed wire)

93: Barbed Wire (AKA Bobbed Wire) 

All the inventions so far have been uniquely globe, that is, they are all inventions that were developed in certain regions and

spread quickly through out the world or they were being developed in different areas at the same time. This invention is the first on my list that is uniquely American.

Fencing to keep cattle and other livestock separate in the west was nothing new. In the 19th century, not only in the west, but in other sections of America,. farmers were using hedgerows, stones, and wooden fences. The problem with these methods did not keep cattle and other livestock within the fencing or kept thieves out.

The unique problem of having cattle in the west was to keep cattle separate from cattle drives. Most cattle farmers in the west had the Open Range policy of raising cattle. That is, the farmers did not have fencing and allowed their livestock to graze openly on the land. However, with cattle drives, this caused a problem of mixing one farmers cattle with another farmers cattle. Some cattle farmers did not brand, and it was hard to prove the ownership of some of the cattle and it was stolen either on purpose or accidentally.  New fencing was needed to help with two primary problems: 1. keeping cattle in, and keeping cattle drivers out. Barbed wire was the answer to these two problems. 

Fencing consisted of flat wire, which was easy to break or pass through if animals charged through it. A farmer in Ohio, Lucien B. Smith, developed a new wire which consisted of two flat wires that had barbs (or bobs) twisted into the wire at intervals. With this wire, the animals would be conditioned not to run into it. Likewise, if cattle thieves were out during the night, their horses or themselves were more than likely to be caught in the wire leaving both rider and horse in pain or worse condition. Smith was given a patented in 1863. 

Years later in 1874, an Illinois Farmer, Joseph F. Glidden, made modifications on Smiths design and was given a patent on his barbed wire. The west and most of the United States were revolutionized by barbed wire. Not only did the wire keep animals in and thieves out, it also defined division of land by giving more of a physical boundary, which had been rightfully claimed. 

It was not very long when barbed wire was being used to keep humans in or trap humans within its barbs. During World War I, barbed wire was used to build the boundary of the tops of the trenches to keep the enemy out. During World War II, it was used at concentration camps as well as battle. Modern prisons also use a relative of barbed wire, razor wire, which is made the same way but with razors attached. There are many different types of barbed wire for different uses other than human captivity. 

Barbed Wire makes my list because of the simple genius about it. Before electrical fences were used to keep livestock in pens, it was just simple wire and barbs that did the job. 

Video of a barbed wire machine at slow pace making wire

Video of a barbed wire machine at pace making wire

94: The Candle

        Since man came to earth, we have been trying to see at night. When we discovered fire, this was used to warm foods, and light the way, it wasn't until we could harness the light and that place it in various places in the cave. The candle made that possible and makes the list at number 94.

Candles date back over 5,000 years and they are one of the first forms of artificial light being used in homes and in travel. When we think about the Egyptian and Roman rule, we think about torches and oil lamps, which is true, however, candles were being developed at this time. Animal fat was used to creat the candles waxy, greasy outside while cotton, flex, and other fabrics were used for its wick. The candles were expensive, and they did not burn well by today's standard but their function was more important to produce light in a given area giving the end user light to see by. 

In the Middle Ages candles became more suffocated and were used mainly in religious ceremonies. Remember, the Middle Ages is known as the dark ages because of a plague going on, which killed 1/3 of the population. Candles, by this point, were being made of other materials such as beeswax, and berries. The wicks were composed still of cotton and other fabrics placed in the middle of the waxy, greasy outer layer. Candles were still used by the wealthy and by those who could afford it. Hour candles were also becoming popular to keep time in the night hours as well. Oil lamps, and fire were still being used by most of the population for artificial light in their homes, and huts!

The American colonists found candles to be extremely important. Candlemakers in America used more natural wax such as those found in bay-berries. Not only did the berry have a wonderful smell, they also burned a bit longer. It wasn't until the 1700's that the candle became less expensive finally being mass produced, bringing more light into homes. Whale oil made it possible. Whale oil was cheap, and it was harder than previous candle casings and it held allowed the candle to keep its shape in the summer months.

During the industrial revolution, a candle making machine was developed that used a wax mix made of various waxes, and lipids, which reduced the awful smell of animal fat. The wax is more or less is still being used today. The wick also went under a major change that maximized the usage and illumination from the wick. The wicks has been made from fabrics or threads, which had been twisted together. It wasn't until the late 1700's and early 1800's that the wicks were being made of braided cotton. This technique allowed the wick to curl back under into the flame, allowing i the wick to be burned completely. This braided technique also allowed the wick to burn brighter giving more sustainable light.

Candles were displaced, however, havingcome full circle in the west. The candle holds more importance in religious ceremonies than they do as an artificial light source in homes. I am sure, dear reader, you have candles throughout your home but do you use them everday as artificial light? The death of the candle came with Edison and his electric light. The candle has left its mark. All illuminates are measured in candle strength! The next time you buy a flashlight read the package! 

To watch videos on candle making click the links below: 

Dublin Candlemaker Part One - http://youtu.be/98tTYmbvtcs

Dublin Candlemaker Part Two - http://youtu.be/08b3va22eak

Okay, okay!

Okay, kids! I will start back with my top 100. I have been somewhat busy and kept forgetting about this awesome blog. Look for new post coming soon within the week! 

95: Paper

95: Paper

 

Egyptian Papyrus 

Egyptian Papyrus

You cannot have a list with the pencil on it if you are not going to place its counterpart on the same list. The invention of paper is yet one of those inventions that I believe is taken for granted. Paper is still being used today even in our digital world. (Please don’t start singing “Material Girl”, cause you know I just did.)

Daphne Tree

Writing a record of time has always been one cornerstone of human existence. We wrote on cave walls, drew in mud that hardened only to be found thousands of years later, and we even scribed in stone tablets. It really was the Egyptians that can take create in popularizing paper. The Egyptians used the bark and the pulp the papyrus tree to create a writable surface. This is how we get the noun paper (papyr-us). Papyrus is really in a list of other fibers that were used as paper. The mulberry, fig and daphne trees were also used to create a writable surface. Papyrus was used not only in the Mediterranean region such as in Rome and Greece, but the Chinese also used a form of paper.

Papyrus

The Chinese tradition creates Ts'ai Lun (150CE) as the developer of paper who was deified and is the god of papermakers.

Ts'ai Lun

In our modern world, paper is everywhere. Because of the industrialization of paper making, today we use paper in making cups and plates. We take paper and treat it with a chemical which response to low heat radiation giving use thermal paper. OCR, copier paper, and yes, loose-leaf notebook paper complete with three holes to go into a binder. Its amazing to imagine what the world of yesterday looked like without emptying pockets without little pieces of paper falling out. Think about this: what would gum be packaged in without paper?

How It’s Made: Paper 

96: The Pencil

Millions of school children, accountants, bankers, engineers, artists, and legal secretaries use pencils nearly everyday even in our digital world. The pencil is a simple and one of the most influential instruments that comes in different shapes and sizes, and densities. The pencil is usually the second writing utensil that most of us learn to write with and you can never find one when you need one.

Like most things, the pencil began in Rome. The scribes of the ancient world use a piece of metal inlaid in a wooden case called a stylus. Remarkably, the stylus used on papyrus made a mark, which was readable or on wax filled tablets. From this point, the Europeans began to experiment with lead as a substitute but it didn’t mark as clearly. It wasn’t until the discovery of graphite in England in 1564. Graphite was so brittle and broke constantly until it was then wrapped in string and then was then placed in hollow sticks to have better control of its physical properties. Graphite made darker marks. With this simple action the modern pencil is born. In the 1880’s pencil factories began to print the brand on their pencils.

It was the Germans who led the manufacturing of pencils in Nuremburg in 1662. It wasn’t until Faber-Castell (1762) began mass-producing pencils. Staedtler, who still produces pencils and writing implements joined the game. The wooden pencil did not come painted at this time, to show off the craftsmanship and wood working of the pencils. What about America?

Clark's Pencils

The colonist had to start producing their own pencils because England had cut them off. That’s okay though, we knew what to do. Mills began to pop up all over the place to make pencils. Most of these pencil factories were built in the north until the discovery of red cedar in Tennessee. Once this happened, factories began to be built closer to the source. Red Cedar is hard and it is a smooth wood, which doesn’t splinter easily. For you Georgia people, check out the Atlanta National Pencil Company.

 Where does the yellow pencil come from? It’s not just a clever color to identify it when you need to find it. In fact, pencil factories began to paint pencils yellow because of the Chinese. Yes, its Chinas

Clark's Pencils

fault that we have yellow pencils. When America began to import graphite from China in the 1890’s, the pencil factory owners thought it was fitting to paint the pencils that came from China yellow so that people would know that the graphite was from China. Why yellow? It’s the color of royalty of China. They also believed that this was fitting to show the building solidarity between America and China.

Now you can tell people how the yellow pencil came into being. You will be a hit at your next social gathering. 

To see how pencils are made click here!