In the 1800s, people were wiping with whatever they could find. Corn cobs, newspaper, old catalogs, hay, and even stone. It was rough, painful, and completely unsanitary.
The wealthy used wool or lace, but most people just suffered through it. Outouses were filled with improvised materials that barely worked, and infections were common. Then, in 1857, Joseph Gedi created the first commercial toilet paper in America, sheets of hemp paper soaked in aloe.
He was so proud he printed his name on every single sheet. But people refused to buy it. Why pay for paper when cataloges and newspapers were free?
It failed completely and Gedy lost everything. Everything changed in 1890 when the Scott Paper Company invented toilet paper on a roll. Suddenly, it was convenient and private.
But early toilet paper had a serious problem. Splinters. The paper wasn't processed well enough, and wood fragments [music] caused painful injuries.
In 1935, Northern Tissue finally created splinter-free toilet paper and advertised it as a breakthrough luxury. People finally trusted enough to switch permanently.
