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| All these auto repairs found in Nashua, NH |
There's no end to the number of online videos about men and duct tape, but did you know that the mother of two Navy servicemen was behind this invention?
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| Vesta Stoudt |
OK, so maybe it's not her best photo, but Vesta Stoudt is the one to thank. During WW II, she worked at the Green River Ordnance Plant in Dixon, IL, packing ammunition boxes with cartridges used to fire rifle grenades. The cartridges were packed in small waxed, taped boxes to protect against moisture. The tape had a paper tab that a soldier could pull to open it. When wet, the tab was hard to pull off, the box had to be forced, time-consuming in war-time.
Her idea was to seal the boxes with a strong, cloth-based, tearable and waterproof tape, instead of paper tape. Like a good worker, she suggested it to her supervisors, but when nothing changed, she went as high up as possible writing to President Franklin D. Roosevelt in February 1943. Trust a woman to not take No for an answer.
Not only did FDR approve her idea, he fast-tracked it to the War Production Board which wrote Vesta that not only did the Ordnance Department approve her idea, but that it was of exceptional merit. Soon afterwards, the War Production Board selected the Revolite Corporation, a new division of the Johnson & Johnson Company to produce the tape. J&J was chosen because of that company’s experience with surgical adhesive tapes. Wonder what her supervisors thought after that news?
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| army green |
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| Boston Duck attraction |
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| Duct & Duck Tapes |
Today, silver remains a popular color, and the tape is sold worldwide in many colors, patterns and a Duck® tape brand. Annual sales estimates claim the Earth could be wrapped around over 12 times. That's a whole lot of taping.
Back to Vesta Stoudt, who received a letter from FDR and the Chicago Tribune’s War Worker Award for her idea and persistence. But I never learned if her sons, Clarence and Lowell, returned home safely. Thanks to a good friend, who enjoys online sleuthing as much as I do here's ↓ updated information.
Vesta Stoudt died in 1966 and was the mother of 8 children, 3 of whom died at a young age. Vesta was survived by 4 sons, 4 sisters, 20 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren. Navy sons Clarence and Lowell both survived WW II. Clarence died at 83 and is buried in the same cemetery as his parents (Vesta and Harry).
Vesta Stoudt died in 1966 and was the mother of 8 children, 3 of whom died at a young age. Vesta was survived by 4 sons, 4 sisters, 20 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren. Navy sons Clarence and Lowell both survived WW II. Clarence died at 83 and is buried in the same cemetery as his parents (Vesta and Harry).
What’s your favorite use for duct tape?
Enjoy Your Weekend, Everyone
A nice one forecast for Nashua, NH
A nice one forecast for Nashua, NH
18 comments:
Sue is adept with duct tape. When she worked in a bookstore, the owner was said that she could solve the middle east problems with duct tape.
I must be a freak of nature. i have never used duct tape!
I love duct tape. Once I had a favorite shirt that I wore constantly. It started wearing out. I would cover the worn spot on the wrong side of the shirt and keep on wearing it. Pretty soon the whole inside of my shirt was basically duct tape and I had to retire it. You enjoy your day, hugs, Edna B.
OMG....this was HILARIOUS!!!! LOVE the photos! And it's so true!
Love the picture of the Duck Boat because we used to have Duck Boat rides here in Philly (Delaware River Seaport).
I've used duck tape on my winter boots several times. And it worked!
Off topic, I also use a black sharpie for things other than labeling. I often use them to cover spots on all of my black clothing. I just tap the point onto the spot and VOILA...it's gone! Works on black shoes as well. LOL!
Fun post! Enjoyed! Have a superb weekend, my friend!
I am currently using white duck tape on a window that has lost its seal. 😏
'Cherchez la femme' as they say. There's always some woman's great idea
behind things and innovations.
I had to laugh when I read this post because I had just come in from outside and I fought with duct tape trying to tape a screen to the bottom to keep the air from getting out well that doesn't make any sense but anyway I fought that tape because this particular duct tape looks like duct tape but it doesn't say the word duct and it would not tear I had to come in and get the scissors and then the scissors got stuck to it. We use a lot of duct tape will use it for everything and I did not know where it came from
I wouldn't argue with Vesta, if she said it's a good idea then I agree. When I worked in a school for disabled children, the mother of one of the boys informed us on the phone that she'd repaired the wheel of her son's wheelchair with Duct Tape. The physio department was horrified, but when he returned to school I found that the repair had been done very ingeniously and would have probably been good for months.
My boss had some cancerous lesions on his hands. The was a salve made of some plant that was highly toxic that he needed to apply. Then he covered them with duct tape. The duct tape protected him and others from the toxic salve. It also helped to heal the lesions somehow. And he made a full recovery.
How interesting! My hubby uses duck tape for lots of repairing and there's evidence of it in and outside our home, Even on his work boots. I must admit, though, repairing holes in clothing is a new one on me. 💖
Great stuff that duct tape. It comes in different colours these days. When I lived in Alaska, they had Red Green's television show which I've seen. Here's a video (3:52) of one of his episodes. Have a great weekend!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPbubMAYN7g
Beatrice, Thanks for the history re: duct tape. we always keep a roll handy and we even have one that has a metal finish that I use to keep the squirrels away from our grill's propane hose. They'd chewed through 2 of them before we came up with this solution. Stay Safe and Take Care, Big Daddy Dave
I can't think of a favorite use but I do use a lot of it. A critical use I made of it was when I was backpacking and a long way , two days, from the car. My hiker boot came completely apart. Yes, we duct taped it and I travelled for two days.
This is so interesting. I think we've had duct tape in the house/garage/shed for years but never really thought about its origins, it's just been there. Love the top photo, left side!
Dear Dorothy what a beautiful post!
It just uplifted my mood for many reasons ;)
While ago I thought i needed tape which I knew later was not necessary as draining pipe of washing machine can be blocked by switch .
Thank you sooo much for sharing glory of another wonderful lady !
I would have hardly known it.
More blessings to you my lovely friend
As Red Green would say, when in doubt, use duct tape.
I last used it when our suitcase was cracked and split and we needed to use it to get home. Fortunately the case was silver too, so it didn't look quite as awful as it could have.
I thank her. It is currently holding my front bumper onto the car!
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