Matchbook Invention

The Matchbook: Was It Really A Good Thing? The invention of the matchbook was quite revolutionary. In the 1880’s, Joshua Pusey decided that matchboxes were too big and bulky to constantly have to carry around. Thus, the matchbook was invented. Since Joshua Pusey thought that matchboxes were too bulky, he created a smaller, slimmer version of the matchbox called the matchbook. The inventor of the matchbook was called Joshua Pusey. He was a Philadelphian attorney who always wore suits and vests (Bean 300a). This kind of person can also be called a “dandy”. He was born into a wealthy and prosperous family. As an example, “Born into a prestigious family in 1842, he had an upbringing typical of a young man of position; a private-school education

The matchbook, folded piece of cardboard carrying matches, was invented in 1892 (Greenman & Rubinstein). Pusey created the matchbook while preparing for a party, using a stove cooked solution (Mangla). Although the matchbook may seem like nothing better than the matchbox, some say, “Though legend suggests it had more to do with vanity than safety… ‘And that box of wooden matches was bulky and awkward to carry around,’” (Greenbaum & Rubinstein). There was also a significant difference between the matchbox and the matchbook. “Pusey called his brainchild ‘flexibles’ quite possibly because, unlike their predecessors, which smokers carried in silhouette-marring match safes, they slid into a dany’s pocket with nary a bump,” (Greenman & Rubinstein). As this quote suggests, matchbooks were, as the name also suggests, more like a miniature book than a miniature box. Overall, there was much more to the invention of matchbooks than

Before matchbooks became what they are now, something else happened. But before that, “American businesses quickly learned that the matchbook’s value lay outside the box,” (Greenman & Rubinstein). After that, however, matchbooks became less popular. In the mid 1970s, 35 billion matchbooks were made each year. When the lighter came along, it took over 90% of the market (Greenman & Rubinstein). After the lighter took over the market, antismoking crusades dried up the rest of the matchbook business (Greenman & Rubinstein). Before all this happened, Pusey had a small mishap. Around 1911, the Diamond Match Company bought the matchbook from Pusey, and they still sell it today (Panati). However, the whole ordeal of buying and selling was very complicated. It took several years for Pusey to willingly sell his invention, but when he did, he got a job and $5,000 along with it (Panati). As matchbooks become less popular, they are often just a plain, boring white color, unlike their former glory, full of color and fun (Greenbaum & Rubinstein). Given these points, matchbooks seem to have their best days behind