NATIONAL PAPERCLIP DAY
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NATIONAL PAPERCLIP DAY
National Paperclip Day on May 29 celebrates a small but handy invention. Yes, even the paperclip has its own day of honor. This quirky National Day celebrates the well-known piece of curved wire that keeps our papers together and helps us stay organized.
#NationalPaperclipDay
While many may have claimed earlier invention of the paperclip, according to the Early Office Museum, Samuel B. Fay received the first patent for a "bent wire paper clip" in the United States in 1867. The original intention of Fay’s clip was to attach tickets to fabric. However, U.S. patent 64,088 recognized that paperclips could also hold papers together.
As many as 50 others received patents for similar designs before 1899. One other notable name receiving a patent for his paperclip design in the United States was Erlman J. Wright in 1877. At that time, he advertised his clip for use in fastening newspapers.
The Gem paperclip, which was most likely in production in Britain in the early 1870s by The Gem Manufacturing Company, was never patented. However, it is the most common type of wire paperclip we still use today. In 1904, Cushman & Denison registered a trademark for The "Gem" name in connection with paperclips.
5 Other Uses of Paper Clips
Today, paper clips come in various sizes, shapes, and colors and can make your paperwork look more fun and lively. In fact, paperclips are not just for holding papers together. There are many other things that you can do with them! Here are five uses for the paper clip you may or may not have known:
Replace a zipper tab
Unclog a spray bottle
Unclog a single-serve coffee maker
Hem holder
Emergency hooks for broken necklaces
The Paper Clips Project
The paper clip was more than a universal office supply during World War II. This small item provided a visual method of protest during the war when any outward signs of objection could be dangerous, even in familiar company. Norwegians were particularly persistent in their development of using paper clips as a symbol of defiance, particularily against the Nazi's.
Wearing a paperclip represented "sticking together" until the Nazis caught on and banned the wearing of paperclips. According to a March 5, 1941, Provo, Utah, newspaper article in the The Daily Herald, the Norwegians switched to new symbols quickly as the bans could be issued.
Whitwell Middle School
In 1998, Principal Linda Hooper at Whitwell Middle School in Tennessee asked Language Arts Teacher Sandra Roberts and Assistant Principal David Smith to begin a Holocaust education class to teach tolerance and diversity. At the time students were struggling to make sense of the enormity of six million Jews dying during the Holocaust. Truth be told, adults today wrestle with how the Holocaust could even happen. Imagine middle-school students trying to understand the magnitude of such an event on humanity.
Students voluntarily joined an after-school program to learn about the enormity of the Holocaust and how it impacted the world. Inspired by the story of the protesting Norwegians and their paperclips, the Whitwell students decided to collect 6 million paper clips to represent the 6 million people who lost their life at the hands of the Nazi's--one paper clip for each life.
After gaining international attending, the Paper Clips Project gained more than 30 million paper clips by 2001. A German railcar was donated by Peter and Dagmar Schroeder (authors of Six Million Paper Clips) to house the 30 million paper clips. The Schroeders purchased the railcar from a German railroad museum and transported it to Whitwell Middle School. Today, the railcar is the centerpiece of the Children's Holocaust Memorial project at Whitwell Middle School.
For more information on this inspiring story, the book, and the film that followed, visit www.oneclipatatime.org.
OBSERVING NATIONAL PAPERCLIP DAY
How many paperclips do you use in a day? Share your favorite paperclip tips and ideas using #NationalPaperclipDay to post on social media.
NATIONAL PAPERCLIP DAY HISTORY
National Day Calendar continues researching the origins of this paper fastener celebration.