History of Adhesives

In 1927, Henry Ford has changed the way we got from point A to point B. We replaced the horse and carriage with the model A and then we quickly found a way to turn these contraptions of metal in a new way to express our opinions. Henry Ford did something different for us with the car. He put them off for thousands of people to buy and how people started to have accidents, he added the bumper to provide some protection to the front and rear of the car. Combine this with the desire for America bumper freedom of speech and people have found a new way to advertise their products and ideas.

The first bumper "stickers" were made of cardboard and metal. These were then connected by wire and twine. Actually, more like a license plate sticker. However, these were the precursors of adhesives, as we know them today.

A change to the way in which they were made stickers would come later. In 1930, Forest P. Gill has worked for the Crawford Manufacturing Company in Kansas City, Missouri. The company had made canvas items such as seat and tire covers. The canvas was a sturdy material that was also very versatile in that it could be printed on with ink through the screen printing. These inks were different colors that were used in the past, such as dyes would fade or run in the sun or rain. As a result, the painting has proved an excellent choice for print ads for the outdoors. Soon, the canvas has been used for outdoor advertising on the canvas tents that went beyond the shop windows and then were used to cover replacement tires and turning those in advertising as well.

After the Crawford Manufacturing Company went out of business, Gill has chosen to go into business for himself. Gill has received some printing equipment from his former employer and started a printing business in the basement of his house in 1934.

Gill struggling to make ends meet and printed everything from signs to bumper labels. The prints have been treated with chemicals to prevent them from running and to resist the weather. As Gill's operation grew, he had to hire employees. Gill moved out of the cellar at 906 Central in Kansas City. The shop was just down the block from the Savoy Hotel, where Harry Truman would have had lunch at the Savoy Grill.

Later, in 1946, a new trend was born in inks and dyes. Brother Inc. Switzerland, located in Cleveland, Ohio created these. They introduced new colors that have been called DayGlo because of their shiny appearance and bright during the day. Gill soon began to experiment with these new inks and creating signs with them. These inks were very appealing and the advertisers wanted to use them to attract more attention.

At the same time, another revelation was created. This revelation was a new sticky-backed paper that became available to commercial printers. On the back of these cards, a carrier, could be pulled out and the paper can be attached to a smooth surface. Until then, adhesives screen printing was only be used with water activated gum cards, but they could not hold up in time and collapsed over time.

Elsewhere in Kansas City, said Gill, a printer of a company that uses independent sellers to advertise products that are sold in regional areas traveling salesman door to door. Gill has contacted the National Specialty Advertising Company located in Arlington, Texas. The company Gill has helped to create an ad that would advertise stickers to sales representatives who could then resell them to various places, such as tourist destinations. The adhesive is quickly becoming the perfect souvenir as people bought cars after the war.

The first stickers were printed on blue and black backgrounds. The fluorescent ink, and it was brilliantly announced where the family was on vacation. He soon helped spread the word about tourist destinations located throughout the country. To advertise itself, Gill placed the name of his company at the bottom of the stickers printed. This has launched a product that would soon become part of our democracy and become a symbol of the First Amendment ....