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Inventions
sprung from filling needsby
Delbert Trew | |
As
a child I could always tell when my Grandmother Trew was near as I could smell
the odor of Mentholatum. A close friend said his grandmother always smelled like
Vicks and his uncle smelled like Bay Rum. Most old families had a relative or
two who smelled like vanilla flavoring, especially if you resided in a dry county.
My wife always knows when I have a wood splinter, as I smell like Gray's
Ointment, and when I get a skin puncture or skinned knuckle I smell like Campho-Phenique.
All these remedies sprang from old home remedies used at one time in the old days.
Vicks VapoRub
Lunsford Richardson, a
North Carolina pharmacist, concocted a cold relief medicine in the 1890s using
Japanese mint oil (menthol) along with camphor and eucalyptus oil mixed in with
an early form of Vasoline or petroleum jelly. Eventually they named it Vicks VapoRub
after a brother-in-law who owned the laboratory where it was invented. Of interest,
the product has remained virtually unchanged since inception because they evidently
got it right the first time.
Spam
Another
product that became world-famous was known as Spam, which was introduced in 1937
by Hormel Meat Packing Company when they discovered they had a lot of pork shoulders
left over. They produced a cooked pork and ham loaf, inserted it into a can that
needed no refrigeration and the rest of the story is history. A contest for a
catchy name found Spam, causing many new terms added to our vocabulary like Spamwich
and Spam and eggs. An Air Force squadron named its headquarters Spamville because
it had to eat so much Spam. Many soldiers in WWII
described Spam as "ham that couldn't pass its physical."
One man who left
home and his mother's cooking survived bachelorhood by eating Spam three times
a day for a long time. He later stated the only reason he got married was, "I
got tired of eating Spam."
Bingo
The game
of Bingo was discovered, developed and adapted by Edwin Lowe in 1929 when he observed
a crude version being played at a carnival. His first effort, named Beano because
of the pinto beans used to mark the numbers, had 12 cards and was so captivating
to his friends they played it around the clock. When one enthusiast yelled Bingo
instead of Beano he changed the name. A priest, trying to assist his bankrupt
congregation by sponsoring large groups of players, asked if more cards could
be designed. Lowe finally made 6,000 nonduplicate cards, a feat that nearly drove
him crazy. Sadly, he could not patent the game as it had passed on into a kind
of Americana.
Earmuffs
Because his ears
turned blue quickly in the Maine winter weather, 15-year-old Chester Greenwood
invented earmuffs out of baling wire and bits of fur. They were so successful
he hired his mother and grandmother to manufacture the products trying to keep
up with orders. Eventually, Chester was producing 400,000 pairs of earmuffs per
year along with many other products he had invented. His favorite saying was,
"Chester had colder ears than most of his peers."
July
13 , 2010 Column © Delbert Trew
More
"It's All Trew"
Delbert Trew
is a freelance writer and retired rancher. He can be reached at 806-779-3164,
by mail at Box A, Alanreed, TX 79002, or by e-mail at trewblue@centramedia.net.
For books see DelbertTrew.com. His column appears weekly. | |
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