Someone recently asked me what people used before the invention of modern toilet paper rolls. Being a survivor, this question has been posed to me many times and I always try to answer it as honestly as possible.
It is logical to assume that our modern toilet paper did not exist before the 19th century. The notion of Charmin or Cottonelle is a fairly recent concept. Although when it was first introduced it was more of a novelty than a necessity, as it is now our current contemporary home.
Original items previously used for our cleaning pleasure ranged from various sticks and leaves to ears of corn and pieces of linen cloth. Before the first known toilet paper product was introduced in the late 1800s, people searched for items that were commonly found in their environment.
It is rumored that people living in the northern parts of the world generally used tundra moss during the summer and turned to handfuls of cold snow during the winter months. For those who resided within the tropics, coconut shells and mussels were commonly used.
The Greeks used pieces of clay and stones, while the Romans had the most logical cleaning method I have found. In ancient Rome they used a sponge that was glued to a stick and then dipped in a bowl of salty water.
In the 14th century, Chinese emperors used rice paper scrapes and Europeans began using hay, grass, straw, and old rags. Many primitive Far Eastern societies used the left hand to cleanse themselves. This was considered an acceptable practice and has led to the theory why the right hand reaches out in friendship and not the left.
During our own colonial era, the ear of corn was a popular item found within the common home. The first paper products used for personal cleaning were mail order catalogs that were posted in the private area. The Old Farmer’s Almanac had special holes so that it could be hung neatly in bathrooms.
The first real toilet paper product is attributed to the German Hans Klenk, an American named Arthur Scott, and a British gentleman named WC Alcock. History has dedicated the toilet paper to these three men.
In 1928 Hans Klenk became the first European to roll paper bands, however the American Arthur Scott had achieved the same effect in 1890. WC Alcock created an alternative to today’s popular newspaper use in the 1880s.
Definitely, the modern roll of toilet paper has made our life much easier and hygienic. At the latest count, there were more than 5,000 companies producing toilet paper in various parts of the world.
The same person asked me how much toilet paper they should store for emergency use. As survivors, we believe in storing food for up to a year and as such we should also store extra toilet paper. You can roughly base your storage on the rate of 1 roll of 1000 sheets per person every three days. So a rough count would be to store 100 rolls for one year per person.
Every family is different and these figures may very well change from one family to another. When in doubt, store more, as it will be a great business material when needed.
Copyright @ 2008 Joseph Parish
