The History of the Rubber Stamp

The advent of the rubber stamp was actually linked with the procedure of early dentistry.

Metal printing stamps, generally made of brass, were used prior to the invention of rubber stamps. Rubber stamps followed about seven years later. They were first developed as wax seals that were used to guarantee the privacy of certain documents. The wax seals were generally very intricate.

The actual word, "stamp" refers to a marking device.

It is not specifically known when the production of the first rubber stamp actually occurred. You have probably heard the name Goodyear associated with rubber. The rubber curing process was discovered by Charles Goodyear of America in his kitchen in 1844. While experimenting, he dropped a mixture of rubber and sulphur onto a hot stove. He noticed that it was still flexible the next day. This process was first known as vulcanization; named after Vulcan, the Roman god of fire.

The advent of the rubber stamp was actually linked with the procedure of early dentistry. Dentists had round vulcanized rubber set in plaster molds which were used to make denture bases. These were called "dental pots." These were later used to manufacture the initial rubber stamps.

A dentist, in 1866, assisted his nephew, James Woodruff, in making letter molds by using a vulcanizer and experimented with the dental pot. This lead to the invention of the first quality rubber stamps.

Some of the rubber stamp companies founded in the early years of its invention are actually still in existence today. We generally associate rubber stamps with banks and post offices. One item commonly used is the mechanical date stamp, found in (among other locations) post offices.

Picture stamps were first developed for use in the educational system. Some stamps were used for artistic purposes as early as 1919.

In later years the development of artistic stamps became popular, especially in the craft industry. Today there are a myriad of stamps to be found in craft stores, especially those stores which sell scrapbooking products. The popularity of scrapbooking in recent years has really fueled the rubber stamp industry. And, as you may have noticed, rubber stamps are now available in all sorts of creative shapes and sizes with stamp pads in a wide assortment of colors.

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