Can you spare a square? Some of you may recall this “Seinfeld” episode when Elaine was in a stall in the ladies’ restroom and found herself without any toilet paper, only to have the person next to her refuse to share. Not even a square.
Maybe some of you have been in this situation. Only those who have can truly appreciate toilet paper. The rest of us tend to take it for granted, except, of course, during the toilet-paper hoarding episodes of the COVID-19 pandemic. I have often been curious about the history of toilet paper and how it came to be such a common household product.
History.com reports that local customs, climate and social hierarchy all impacted toilet habits. “What’s clear is that humans in all time periods have used a variety of natural tools and materials to clean themselves. In very ancient times, wiping with stones and other natural materials and rinsing with water or snow was common. Some cultures opted for seashells and animal furs.”
Seashells? Apparently so, but the “communal sponge” was more common. Yes, a sponge. And, yes, communal. These “tersoriums” were sometimes used once but more often cleaned in a bucket of vinegar or salt water and reused.
The history.com article states that by the early 14th century, the Chinese were manufacturing toilet paper at the rate of 10 million packages of 1,000 to 10,000 sheets annually. But, in the Western world, modern commercially available toilet paper didn’t come about until 1857 when Joseph Gayetty marketed a “Medicated Paper, for the Water-Closet” made of manila hemp paper infused with aloe vera and sold in packages of 500 sheets for 50 cents.
Before Gayetty’s paper product hit the market, Americans improvised with corncobs, hay and newspapers. The Sears catalog and the Farmer’s Almanac also served the purpose, the first with a loop in the corner and the second with a hole drilled through it so they could both hang on outhouse walls. Toilet paper rolls were first perforated in 1890. In 1930, the product was finally manufactured “splinter-free.” Imagine that marketing campaign today. Mr. Whipple would have been proud.
But toilet paper on a roll? Now, that’s a serious improvement. According to toiletology.com, it began in the late 1800s when Clarence and E. Irvin Scott developed toilet paper that “could be rolled onto a small cardboard tube, making manufacturing and packaging simpler and quicker for machines and factories to turn out.” They sold their product to hotels and drugstores around America, and their toilet paper was literally, and figuratively, on a roll.
So, now you know the history of toilet paper — and you may think differently the next time you ask if someone can spare a square.
Have a great week, and thanks for reading.
Shane Goodman
President and Publisher
Big Green Umbrella Media
shane@dmcityview.com
515-953-4822, ext. 305 | 
