Who invented the safety pin?
1696028#4
Walter Hunt invented the safety pin by forming an eight-inch brass pin into a bent pin with a spring and guard. He sold the rights to his invention to pay a debt to a friend, not knowing that he could have made millions of dollars.
Pin
332366#3
American mechanic Walter Hunt is regarded as the inventor of the safety pin that bears resemblance to those used today. The safety pin included a clasp that covered the point and kept it from opening, and a circular twist at the bend to act as a spring and hold it in place. Charles Rowley (Birmingham, England) independently patented a similar safety pin in October 1849, although the company no longer makes these.
Safety pin
332366#2
The fibula, a form of brooch, was invented by the Myceaneans on the Greek Peloponnesus between the 14th and 13th Century BC, and is considered an early precursor to a safety pin since they were used in a similar manner. Fibulae were used by Greek women and men to help secure tunics.
Safety pin
332366#10
During the emergence of punk rock in the late seventies, safety pins became associated with the genre, its followers and fashion. Some claim the look was taken originally from Richard Hell whom the British punks saw in pictures, and whose style they adopted. This is disputed by a number of artists from the first wave of British punks, most notably Johnny Rotten, who insists that safety pins were originally incorporated for more practical reasons, for example, to remedy "the arse of your pants falling out". British punk fans, after seeing the clothing worn by such punk forerunners, then incorporated safety pins into their own wardrobe as clothing decoration or as piercings, shifting the purpose of the pins from practicality to fashion. The safety pin subsequently has become an image associated with punk rock by media and popular culture outlets.
Safety pin
30857927#13
A safety notch is one of the oldest forms of drop safety, used on older single-action revolvers manufactured before the invention of the hammer block, some lever-action rifles, 1911-pattern guns, and hammer-fired semi-automatics that were designed before the invention of the firing pin block. The safety notch is a relief cut made in the tumbler at the base of the hammer, that allows the sear to catch and hold the hammer a short distance from the pin or cartridge primer, in a "half-cocked" position. The safety notch works first by allowing the handler to retract the hammer a short distance from the firing pin or primer, such that dropping the firearm on its hammer will not result in an energy transfer to the pin or spur, which could then discharge a chambered cartridge. A second purpose is to allow the sear to "catch" a hammer that is falling when the trigger has not been pulled, such as in cases where a drop jarred the sear loose or when the hammer was not fully cocked before being released. However, a safety notch used to "half-cock" a firearm is an active feature that must be engaged, and does not positively prevent accidental discharges in all cases. A certain amount of manual dexterity and familiarity with a firearm is also required to "half-cock" a firearm; unfamiliarity with how to engage the "half-cock" position can result in accidental discharges. Moreover, safety notch and "half-cock" style safeties are prone to breakage which can result in unintentional discharges leading to severe personal injuries or death.
Safety (firearms)
332366#8
While the cover on the safety pin makes it less likely to hurt someone, a version was invented especially for use with babies' diapers, the diaper pin. This is larger and stronger than the typical safety pin. Modern diaper pins have either a sliding cap to lock the pin or a S shaped channel inside the cap.
Safety pin
332366#9
The laryngologist Dr. Chevalier Jackson devised special instruments for removing swallowed safety pins. Because small children often swallowed them and open pins could be lodged dangerously in their throats, Jackson called them "danger pins" and sometimes displayed arrangements of those he had extracted. Safety pin ingestion is still a common problem in some countries, including Turkey, today.
Safety pin
332366#4
Hunt made the invention in order to pay off a $15 debt to a friend. He used a piece of brass wire that was about 8 inches long and made a coil in the center of the wire so it would open up when released. The clasp at one end was devised in order to shield the sharp edge from the user.
Safety pin
37342729#2
Morton wore a jean jacket held together by safety pins as early as 1971, years before the use of safety pins became a widespread part of punk fashion. The use of safety pins in clothing and piercings was later popularized by artists such as Richard Hell, the Sex Pistols and others during the punk rock explosion of the late 70's. It was a jacket that Morton had admired a few years prior on his friend and mentor, Royce Dendler, an assistant professor at Oberlin College, whom Morton met when he was 14 years of age. Morton later visited Dendler while he was attending SVA and Dendler was also living in New York at the time. Upon inquiring as to the jacket's current whereabouts, Dendler answered by pointing to the doormat below them. Morton offered to replace the doormat and asked if he could have the jacket even though it was now tattered, in need of much repair. Morton subsequently repaired the jacket using safety pins to make it wearable and liked the look so much that he gleefully added even more safety pins. It's also been said that Morton wrote the lyrics to one of his earliest songs, "Mr. Crab", after Dendler "walked him around New York and told him to write them." He recorded the song a few weeks later in September 1972 and it was eventually released in 1997 on the "Those Were Different Times" 3x10" vinyl set on Scat Records credited to The Styrenes.
John D Morton
4505820#6
In the 1960s, the disposable diaper rapidly took hold and cloth diaper use fell out of favor. The "Safe Diaper Clip," an alternative to traditional safety pins, was invented and patented in 1961 by Edward Moonan of Boonville, NY. but never took off, due to drop in use of cloth diapers.
Cloth diaper