History of the Stapler

The first stapler recorded in history was used by King Louis XV. The staple bore the insignia of the royal court and had to be manually bent to clamp onto the paper. These bendable wire fasteners are what would become the modern staple of today. 

The first stapler device was developed by George W. McGill in 1866. McGill developed the bendable fastener that could be inserted into a file of paper, and later that year, McGill invented a machine that could automatically insert the fastener into paper. This device was showcased at the Centennial Exhibition, the first-ever “World’s Fair,” in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Modern Stapler

Many manufacturers and individuals in the office supplies business created different versions of the stapler, improving them as more designs were developed.

One of the most notable improvements of the stapler was the version made by Henry R. Heyl, also from Philadelphia. Heyl created a stapler that would not only insert the staple into a group of paper but also clinch the staple wire closed.

In 1895, the EH Hotchkiss Company invented staples attached in a strip that is fed into the machine that forces the staples into the paper. The design of this stapler grew swiftly in popularity. In Japan, staplers are even called Hotchkiss, as they lack the word for it. Three decades later, an inventor named Jack Linksy came out with “frozen wire” staples, which were basically staples bound in a row by glue. Like the Hotchkiss staples, this row of staples was loaded into the machine. 

During the 50s, Swingline, the staple company established by Linksy, became known as one of the best staple product manufacturers worldwide.