The lecture at The National Museum of Scotland
(Nappies are called diapers in America)
The Lecture - The Transcript
NATIONAL MUSEUMS OF SCOTLAND
ROYAL MUSEUM AND MUSEUM OF SCOTLAND
Chamber Street
Edinburgh
LECTURES
FROM THE VAULTS: A Curator's choice
27th February 2001
FROM THE BOTTOM UP: - The original disposable nappy
A Lecture by Jennifer Webster
(The invention of the disposable nappy)
'The change that has taken place in the last 50 years, from using washable terry nappies to completely disposable ones is incredible, especially when it is down to the foresight and determination of one woman:
-VALERIE HUNTER GORDON.'
Last weekend when I was sitting on the Edinburgh to Inverness train I noticed a man who made his way past. In one hand he had a small child in the other a brand new Pampers nappy. Now this is not an uncommon or noteworthy occurrence perhaps except that is to someone such as myself who was on her way to meet the woman who, in the late 1940s, invented the disposable nappy. Now I have no practical experience of motherhood and for this reason I have never really considered the impact of disposable nappies on busy mums and dads today. It was only when I was given the opportunity to interview Mrs Hunter-Gordon, the lady in question, that I realised the extent of her amazing achievement. The change that has taken place in the last 50 years, from using washable terry nappies to completely disposable ones is incredible, especially when it is down to the foresight and determination of one woman.
In this short talk I will take you through the story of the invention and the changes that it has brought to our lives. The kinds of environmental issues today are also a consideration for future use of the disposable nappy and that will also be included.
The disposable nappy is not something which immedietly springs to mind when great inventions of the past are considered. Television is perhaps more obvious or the motorcar. Indeed there has been some confusion over how the disposable nappy was created. In a BBC documentary as recently as 1994 it was claimed that no one invented the disposable nappy it was simply a combination of existing inventions. It wasn’t until last year when Valerie Hunter-Gordon visited The National Museums of Scotland that we discovered how exciting the story was.
Mrs Hunter-Gordon, a 79 year old Great-grand-mother wondered if we’d like to have more information to add to our 20th century gallery where we briefly mentioned that disposable nappies were invented in 1949. I did an oral history interview with her at her home in Beauly in Inverness-shire and this talk is a follow on from that.
Valerie Hunter-Gordon had her third child in 1947, her husband had just returned from fighting in Japan (Borneo) and they lived in the hustling army environment of Camberley, Surrey. (where her husband was an instructor at the army Staff College) A very busy young woman, with three young children, she grew tired of the huge amounts of work which washing and ironing nappies created. Constantly on the lookout for something to ease this she tried America and Europe for a disposable solution. It was when she found that there was nothing available that she realised that she would have to make something herself. It took a number of attempts based on trial and error until she created a nappy that she was satisfied was both waterproof and practical for everyday use.
Now I have got a number of originals to show you that she actually made herself:
…………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 1
This is one of the small nappies she made.
Puts gloves on
Show small nappy (now discoloured with brown stains)
From the audience
Question: I see you are putting gloves on. Does this mean it has been used?
Much laughter from audience!
Reply: It is standard museum practise to wear gloves to handle exhibits.
You can see how her idea basically was to have an outer plastic covering into which she would put a separate disposable pad. This was one of the first she made.
The first ones were not too successful, because the plastic she used actually reacted to the baby oil used on the baby and went hard.
(Plastic (PVC) was a recent discovery and not easily available. Before, mothers used rubber pants if they did not want leakage from their babies towelling nappies. Flannel was also used but was not so effective.)
Mrs Hunter Gordon experimented with different types of material.
…………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 2
This one is quite interesting because it is made out of an old army parachute
Show nappy made from parachute
You can see it has some writing. We haven’t been able to identify what that means but I’m told it is possibly American.
…………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 3
This is one of the later ones she made about 1948.
Show nappy made about 1948
You can see she’s stitched around the edges. There are press-studs to do it up (and nylon ribbons to adjust the waist and leg size to prevent leakage).
Its really quite similar to ones that we would find today only now we throw the whole thing away. Here only the biodegradable pad was thrown away. The plastic garment was re-used.
This plastic has gone slightly hard with use of baby oil but it is a different plastic, which she managed eventually to get from ICI and which was much more successful.
Valerie Hunter-Gordon’s friends were also very interested in her new idea. She began to receive nappy orders for children from all round Camberley and beyond. In total she hand made about 400 nappies from 1947 to 1949 sitting at her kitchen table in the evenings. It soon became apparent to Mr Hunter Gordon, her husband that there were exciting possibilities for this product.
A name was chosen for it ‘Paddi’ after much discussion with friends and family.
I have here the original list of possible names, (which was drawn up and discussed at an instructor's meeting with the Brigadier at the Staff College!)
.....................................................................................................................................................................................................
Exhibit 4
Show list
They were quite keen to make it a commercial product and therefore they obviously needed a snappy name. Out of the list of possible names were:
Valette
Snappy
Napniks
Lavnet
Drypad
Drytot
Easynap
Beautykin
Startwell
Paddi
Padinap
Padlet
Padikin
Quicky,
Nappy Knicker
Lifesaver
The name ‘Paddi’ was finally chosen. You can see it on the list just there.
Initial request to find out if they would be interested, were made to companies which made female sanitary products, but these were unsuccessful. They were unwilling to deal directly with private individuals. It wasn’t until, by coincidence, that Mrs Hunter-Gordon’s father was chatting to the managing director of Robinson’s and Sons, now Robinson’s Healthcare, over a business dinner, that interest grew and Robinson’s took a chance on marketing the idea. (On being asked what he did, Mr Robinson said 'I run a company in which we try to market sanitary towels at prices affordable to all women'. Mrs Hunter Gordon's father replied 'Good heavens you must have a mind like my daughter' and explained the situation.) As Mrs Hunter-Gordon told me, ‘They all thought it was a dotty idea but to please me and to please my father they had a go at it and to their amazement all the people who tried it said “YES, COME ON, MORE”’. Relations grew strong between the Hunter-Gordon’s and Robinson’s and Sons and in 1949 an agreement was signed to market the product.
The timing for such a product was perfect, there were thousands of woman who had come through the war much more confident about their right to play an active role in society. The idea that they could rid themselves of the chore of nappy washing was a very attractive one.
(The other change that followed the war was the end of domestic service. Where previously a young mother might have employed amongst other staff a nursery maid who would have washed nappies as part of her duties, the mother would now have to do this herself as well as cook and clean)
I have some photographs to show how the nappy was launched
………………………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 5
This is Mrs Hunter Gordon and her daughter Frances.
This was used in the Daily Express as a feature when they were first introduced in the 1950's
Show
(photo not available)
…………………………………..…………………………………………
Exhibit 6
This is a photograph of one the vehicles which Robinson’s used once they started producing the nappy.
Show photo of Robinson van
As you can see the small baby on the front was actually one of Mrs Hunter-Gordon’s sons, she used her children in a number of pictures which now, I think, they are quite embarrassed about sometimes.
(This is not correct. The baby shown on this van is not Nigel although his photo was used on vans and elsewhere)
……………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 7
This is a photograph of Mrs HG and her husband at the ideal home exhibition in 1952,
Show photo of ideal home exhibition
This gave a tremendous boost to the sales of the disposable nappy, it created widespread interest in it.
……………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 8
This Last photo is of Mr Hunter-Gordon changing his son’s nappy,
Show photo of Mr Hunter Gordon changing nappy
This is quite a rare site in the 1950s we don’t think it often happened. but you can see a watchful eye from his wife behind him so that was considered ok.
………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 9
This is the last exhibit.
This is a packet of the disposable pads that went inside the plastic garment
(The pad was made of layers of paper (cellulose) which was highly absorbent, covered by a thin layer of soft cotton wool which protected the baby's bottom. After use the cellulose could be disposed of down the loo, as it was water-soluble. The cotton wool covering had to be removed and thrown away separately.)
…………………………………………………………………………….
As I mentioned the nappies came at a time when attitudes and rules were beginning to change. Thoughts on child rearing in particular were going through great periods of transformation. Since the beginning of the 20th Century mothers had been bombarded with manuals on infant care and health visitors made routine visits to mothers. The Victorian idea that child rearing was a private activity best left to mothers was now gone. It was redefined as a matter of public and national importance that mothers should produce strong and obedient offspring on whom the future stability of the nation was soon to depend. Dr Frederick Chibby-King developed a new scientific approach that became the standard advice to mothers from the 1920s-40s. This was a highly regimented guide for mothers aimed at toughening up the baby, making it as independent from its mother as was possible. He advocated very strict routines, for example 5 O’clock in the evening was the time when you were supposed to play with your child but only for 1 hour. This was an extremely popular idea at the time. It may seem surprising now, but at a time, when there were very large families, it was hard for a young mother to cope. Many young mothers, especially in the middle-classes, were determined to have a Chibby-King baby.
In 1946, Dr Benjamin Spock proposed a different method of childcare. It was less regimented and more child centred and was to have great impact on family life. It was a method of childcare only possible in the new post war 'small' family.
Mrs Hunter Gordon did not find it easy at first to convince every one of the benefits of the disposable nappy. There was a belief in the medical profession that covering a baby's bottom in plastic would act as a compress and be most unhealthy. Although young mother's commonly used rubber pants put on over a washable terry nappy, they would always remove them before seeing the doctor or health visitor for fear of disapproval
(It was a positive article written to 'The Lancet' by an army doctor friend at The Staff College which helped change medical opinion. His children had used it with no ill effect)
The idea of easy disposability was also a bit of a barrier to start with, the extensive rationing of the war years and the shortages of the inter-war years led to a collective dislike to throwing anything away, it was felt to be a great extravagance. Laterally however, with the influence of America this feeling was overcome. Admittedly this was mainly in middleclass households due to the perceived expense of the new product but they were seen as a godsend for travelling by most. However as many other companies took hold of the idea the popularity spread to the incredible extent that we use them today.
Up to present day there has been a lot of concern about the amount of waste the disposable nappy now creates, this has become a huge issue, especially with environmental groups. Nowadays (I am sorry that I do not have an example to show you) The nappy is quite a large item and differently from the ones made by Mrs Hunter-Gordon, it is the whole thing that is thrown away not just the paper and cotton wool insides. (It is not biodegradable.) I found a website called the Woman’s environmental network and they have discovered that 4% of all household waste is caused by disposable nappies, they have worked out that in a year a typical local councils spend £100,000-200,000 dealing with this waste. It is quite remarkable when you think that the nappy is a single product used by a single age range that creates so much waste. They also give off a lot of gas such as methane that can cause explosions and global warming. They have discovered a number of options to cut down on waste. One idea is recycling (nappy washing) ! Another idea is to try to make a biodegradable nappy where all of it rots, but they have found this causes other environmental problems. The new waste created is also quite bad for the environment.
So, all in all there is still lots of concern about what to do with disposable nappies. One idea I had was to go back to a system such as this when we only throw away the paper and cotton wool.
The disposable nappy has changed the way of life for millions of woman all round the world, the achievement of Mrs Hunter-Gordon is that she had the original idea and was determined enough to follow it through. She overcame many obstacles and oppressive attitudes of post-war Britain to follow through her creation into something that has become one of the largest commercial successes of the 20th century.
----------------------------------------
Questions
Has anyone got any questions or comments?
Question
Was it patented? Does Mrs Hunter Gordon hold the patent?
Answer
Yes it was patented in Scotland. I don't think she holds the patent now as it only lasts for 15 years
Question
Where was it invented? Where does she live?
Answer
When she invented it she lived in Surrey, but now she lives in Beauly near Inverness
Question
Did she make her fortune and was she knighted?
Answer
I don't think she was knighted
Her daughter is here. Would she like to say anything? (NO!)
I think she certainly enjoyed the experience and certainly made some money from it yes and I think she is quite excited that the museum have taken it on board and are finding out about it
Question
Did she market it in America?
Answer
I think she did try to find something in America before she began making them but there was nothing there. When she came up with the idea she suggested it to an American company who rejected it and then tried to market it as their own idea. That led to a legal battle (which she won). She definitely had the idea before the Americans
Comment
I would just like to say that I think she should be knighted . The disposable nappy has made such a difference to woman's lives.
Several people saying 'Here Here' and much applause
Any more questions or comments
Thank-you very much for coming out on such an awful day
Applause
ROYAL MUSEUM AND MUSEUM OF SCOTLAND
Chamber Street
Edinburgh
LECTURES
FROM THE VAULTS: A Curator's choice
27th February 2001
FROM THE BOTTOM UP: - The original disposable nappy
A Lecture by Jennifer Webster
(The invention of the disposable nappy)
'The change that has taken place in the last 50 years, from using washable terry nappies to completely disposable ones is incredible, especially when it is down to the foresight and determination of one woman:
-VALERIE HUNTER GORDON.'
Last weekend when I was sitting on the Edinburgh to Inverness train I noticed a man who made his way past. In one hand he had a small child in the other a brand new Pampers nappy. Now this is not an uncommon or noteworthy occurrence perhaps except that is to someone such as myself who was on her way to meet the woman who, in the late 1940s, invented the disposable nappy. Now I have no practical experience of motherhood and for this reason I have never really considered the impact of disposable nappies on busy mums and dads today. It was only when I was given the opportunity to interview Mrs Hunter-Gordon, the lady in question, that I realised the extent of her amazing achievement. The change that has taken place in the last 50 years, from using washable terry nappies to completely disposable ones is incredible, especially when it is down to the foresight and determination of one woman.
In this short talk I will take you through the story of the invention and the changes that it has brought to our lives. The kinds of environmental issues today are also a consideration for future use of the disposable nappy and that will also be included.
The disposable nappy is not something which immedietly springs to mind when great inventions of the past are considered. Television is perhaps more obvious or the motorcar. Indeed there has been some confusion over how the disposable nappy was created. In a BBC documentary as recently as 1994 it was claimed that no one invented the disposable nappy it was simply a combination of existing inventions. It wasn’t until last year when Valerie Hunter-Gordon visited The National Museums of Scotland that we discovered how exciting the story was.
Mrs Hunter-Gordon, a 79 year old Great-grand-mother wondered if we’d like to have more information to add to our 20th century gallery where we briefly mentioned that disposable nappies were invented in 1949. I did an oral history interview with her at her home in Beauly in Inverness-shire and this talk is a follow on from that.
Valerie Hunter-Gordon had her third child in 1947, her husband had just returned from fighting in Japan (Borneo) and they lived in the hustling army environment of Camberley, Surrey. (where her husband was an instructor at the army Staff College) A very busy young woman, with three young children, she grew tired of the huge amounts of work which washing and ironing nappies created. Constantly on the lookout for something to ease this she tried America and Europe for a disposable solution. It was when she found that there was nothing available that she realised that she would have to make something herself. It took a number of attempts based on trial and error until she created a nappy that she was satisfied was both waterproof and practical for everyday use.
Now I have got a number of originals to show you that she actually made herself:
…………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 1
This is one of the small nappies she made.
Puts gloves on
Show small nappy (now discoloured with brown stains)
From the audience
Question: I see you are putting gloves on. Does this mean it has been used?
Much laughter from audience!
Reply: It is standard museum practise to wear gloves to handle exhibits.
You can see how her idea basically was to have an outer plastic covering into which she would put a separate disposable pad. This was one of the first she made.
The first ones were not too successful, because the plastic she used actually reacted to the baby oil used on the baby and went hard.
(Plastic (PVC) was a recent discovery and not easily available. Before, mothers used rubber pants if they did not want leakage from their babies towelling nappies. Flannel was also used but was not so effective.)
Mrs Hunter Gordon experimented with different types of material.
…………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 2
This one is quite interesting because it is made out of an old army parachute
Show nappy made from parachute
You can see it has some writing. We haven’t been able to identify what that means but I’m told it is possibly American.
…………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 3
This is one of the later ones she made about 1948.
Show nappy made about 1948
You can see she’s stitched around the edges. There are press-studs to do it up (and nylon ribbons to adjust the waist and leg size to prevent leakage).
Its really quite similar to ones that we would find today only now we throw the whole thing away. Here only the biodegradable pad was thrown away. The plastic garment was re-used.
This plastic has gone slightly hard with use of baby oil but it is a different plastic, which she managed eventually to get from ICI and which was much more successful.
Valerie Hunter-Gordon’s friends were also very interested in her new idea. She began to receive nappy orders for children from all round Camberley and beyond. In total she hand made about 400 nappies from 1947 to 1949 sitting at her kitchen table in the evenings. It soon became apparent to Mr Hunter Gordon, her husband that there were exciting possibilities for this product.
A name was chosen for it ‘Paddi’ after much discussion with friends and family.
I have here the original list of possible names, (which was drawn up and discussed at an instructor's meeting with the Brigadier at the Staff College!)
.....................................................................................................................................................................................................
Exhibit 4
Show list
They were quite keen to make it a commercial product and therefore they obviously needed a snappy name. Out of the list of possible names were:
Valette
Snappy
Napniks
Lavnet
Drypad
Drytot
Easynap
Beautykin
Startwell
Paddi
Padinap
Padlet
Padikin
Quicky,
Nappy Knicker
Lifesaver
The name ‘Paddi’ was finally chosen. You can see it on the list just there.
Initial request to find out if they would be interested, were made to companies which made female sanitary products, but these were unsuccessful. They were unwilling to deal directly with private individuals. It wasn’t until, by coincidence, that Mrs Hunter-Gordon’s father was chatting to the managing director of Robinson’s and Sons, now Robinson’s Healthcare, over a business dinner, that interest grew and Robinson’s took a chance on marketing the idea. (On being asked what he did, Mr Robinson said 'I run a company in which we try to market sanitary towels at prices affordable to all women'. Mrs Hunter Gordon's father replied 'Good heavens you must have a mind like my daughter' and explained the situation.) As Mrs Hunter-Gordon told me, ‘They all thought it was a dotty idea but to please me and to please my father they had a go at it and to their amazement all the people who tried it said “YES, COME ON, MORE”’. Relations grew strong between the Hunter-Gordon’s and Robinson’s and Sons and in 1949 an agreement was signed to market the product.
The timing for such a product was perfect, there were thousands of woman who had come through the war much more confident about their right to play an active role in society. The idea that they could rid themselves of the chore of nappy washing was a very attractive one.
(The other change that followed the war was the end of domestic service. Where previously a young mother might have employed amongst other staff a nursery maid who would have washed nappies as part of her duties, the mother would now have to do this herself as well as cook and clean)
I have some photographs to show how the nappy was launched
………………………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 5
This is Mrs Hunter Gordon and her daughter Frances.
This was used in the Daily Express as a feature when they were first introduced in the 1950's
Show
(photo not available)
…………………………………..…………………………………………
Exhibit 6
This is a photograph of one the vehicles which Robinson’s used once they started producing the nappy.
Show photo of Robinson van
As you can see the small baby on the front was actually one of Mrs Hunter-Gordon’s sons, she used her children in a number of pictures which now, I think, they are quite embarrassed about sometimes.
(This is not correct. The baby shown on this van is not Nigel although his photo was used on vans and elsewhere)
……………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 7
This is a photograph of Mrs HG and her husband at the ideal home exhibition in 1952,
Show photo of ideal home exhibition
This gave a tremendous boost to the sales of the disposable nappy, it created widespread interest in it.
……………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 8
This Last photo is of Mr Hunter-Gordon changing his son’s nappy,
Show photo of Mr Hunter Gordon changing nappy
This is quite a rare site in the 1950s we don’t think it often happened. but you can see a watchful eye from his wife behind him so that was considered ok.
………………………………………………………………………
Exhibit 9
This is the last exhibit.
This is a packet of the disposable pads that went inside the plastic garment
(The pad was made of layers of paper (cellulose) which was highly absorbent, covered by a thin layer of soft cotton wool which protected the baby's bottom. After use the cellulose could be disposed of down the loo, as it was water-soluble. The cotton wool covering had to be removed and thrown away separately.)
…………………………………………………………………………….
As I mentioned the nappies came at a time when attitudes and rules were beginning to change. Thoughts on child rearing in particular were going through great periods of transformation. Since the beginning of the 20th Century mothers had been bombarded with manuals on infant care and health visitors made routine visits to mothers. The Victorian idea that child rearing was a private activity best left to mothers was now gone. It was redefined as a matter of public and national importance that mothers should produce strong and obedient offspring on whom the future stability of the nation was soon to depend. Dr Frederick Chibby-King developed a new scientific approach that became the standard advice to mothers from the 1920s-40s. This was a highly regimented guide for mothers aimed at toughening up the baby, making it as independent from its mother as was possible. He advocated very strict routines, for example 5 O’clock in the evening was the time when you were supposed to play with your child but only for 1 hour. This was an extremely popular idea at the time. It may seem surprising now, but at a time, when there were very large families, it was hard for a young mother to cope. Many young mothers, especially in the middle-classes, were determined to have a Chibby-King baby.
In 1946, Dr Benjamin Spock proposed a different method of childcare. It was less regimented and more child centred and was to have great impact on family life. It was a method of childcare only possible in the new post war 'small' family.
Mrs Hunter Gordon did not find it easy at first to convince every one of the benefits of the disposable nappy. There was a belief in the medical profession that covering a baby's bottom in plastic would act as a compress and be most unhealthy. Although young mother's commonly used rubber pants put on over a washable terry nappy, they would always remove them before seeing the doctor or health visitor for fear of disapproval
(It was a positive article written to 'The Lancet' by an army doctor friend at The Staff College which helped change medical opinion. His children had used it with no ill effect)
The idea of easy disposability was also a bit of a barrier to start with, the extensive rationing of the war years and the shortages of the inter-war years led to a collective dislike to throwing anything away, it was felt to be a great extravagance. Laterally however, with the influence of America this feeling was overcome. Admittedly this was mainly in middleclass households due to the perceived expense of the new product but they were seen as a godsend for travelling by most. However as many other companies took hold of the idea the popularity spread to the incredible extent that we use them today.
Up to present day there has been a lot of concern about the amount of waste the disposable nappy now creates, this has become a huge issue, especially with environmental groups. Nowadays (I am sorry that I do not have an example to show you) The nappy is quite a large item and differently from the ones made by Mrs Hunter-Gordon, it is the whole thing that is thrown away not just the paper and cotton wool insides. (It is not biodegradable.) I found a website called the Woman’s environmental network and they have discovered that 4% of all household waste is caused by disposable nappies, they have worked out that in a year a typical local councils spend £100,000-200,000 dealing with this waste. It is quite remarkable when you think that the nappy is a single product used by a single age range that creates so much waste. They also give off a lot of gas such as methane that can cause explosions and global warming. They have discovered a number of options to cut down on waste. One idea is recycling (nappy washing) ! Another idea is to try to make a biodegradable nappy where all of it rots, but they have found this causes other environmental problems. The new waste created is also quite bad for the environment.
So, all in all there is still lots of concern about what to do with disposable nappies. One idea I had was to go back to a system such as this when we only throw away the paper and cotton wool.
The disposable nappy has changed the way of life for millions of woman all round the world, the achievement of Mrs Hunter-Gordon is that she had the original idea and was determined enough to follow it through. She overcame many obstacles and oppressive attitudes of post-war Britain to follow through her creation into something that has become one of the largest commercial successes of the 20th century.
----------------------------------------
Questions
Has anyone got any questions or comments?
Question
Was it patented? Does Mrs Hunter Gordon hold the patent?
Answer
Yes it was patented in Scotland. I don't think she holds the patent now as it only lasts for 15 years
Question
Where was it invented? Where does she live?
Answer
When she invented it she lived in Surrey, but now she lives in Beauly near Inverness
Question
Did she make her fortune and was she knighted?
Answer
I don't think she was knighted
Her daughter is here. Would she like to say anything? (NO!)
I think she certainly enjoyed the experience and certainly made some money from it yes and I think she is quite excited that the museum have taken it on board and are finding out about it
Question
Did she market it in America?
Answer
I think she did try to find something in America before she began making them but there was nothing there. When she came up with the idea she suggested it to an American company who rejected it and then tried to market it as their own idea. That led to a legal battle (which she won). She definitely had the idea before the Americans
Comment
I would just like to say that I think she should be knighted . The disposable nappy has made such a difference to woman's lives.
Several people saying 'Here Here' and much applause
Any more questions or comments
Thank-you very much for coming out on such an awful day
Applause