Interesting Information About Paper Clips

Symbol of Nazi resistance, plaything of bored students

Since it was first patented near the end of the 19th century, the paper clip has captured the human imagination. Perhaps that's due to the simplicity and obviousness of the paper clip's design, one of those self-evident things just waiting to be discovered. One thing is for sure, there's quite a bit of interesting information about paper clips to be had.

Whatever the reason, paper clips have enjoyed a strange and varied history as objects of societal obsession and even political resistance. Here are a few of the more interesting moments in the history of paper clips.

A symbol of Nazi resistance

It was a widespread myth about the origins of the paper clip that would lead to its use as a symbol of resistance to Nazi oppression during the Second World War.

Johan Vaaler was a Norwegian who patented two different versions of the paper clip in 1899 and 1901. However, the Gem-type paper clip he is frequently credited for inventing was already being produced in Britain in 1890 by The Gem Manufacturing Company.

Nevertheless, Norwegian nationalism and pride took the form of a paper clip as World War II reached its height, and Norwegians began wearing paper clips in their lapels to express opposition to the German occupation forces.

Operation paperclip

Operation Paperclip was the code name for a post-WWII project in which the U.S. government removed Nazi scientists from Germany during the final stages of the war and put them to work doing weapons and missile research in the United States. This research would eventually lead to the formation of NASA and America's intercontinental ballistic missile program.

Though President Truman had expressed that any scientists with Nazi ties were not to be involved with Operation Paperclip, the military cleared the files of nearly 800 scientists, many of whom had participated in experiments on concentration camp prisoners during the war.

Paper Clips: The Movie

Considering the many ties paper clips share with WWII, it was appropriate that the teachers at the Whitwell, Tennessee Middle School used them in a Holocaust project for their students.

The idea behind the Whitwell paper clip project was to collect as many paper clips as there were Jews killed by the Nazis during the war, and by doing so, give students a visual lesson about the horrors of prejudice.

Their paper clip project would become a documentary movie. Paper Clips was released in 2004, and became a surprise hit.

Paper clip world records

The longest paper clip chain created by one individual in twenty-four hours was 5,340 feet long. It was made by Dan Meyer, a university student in Davis, California. He used 54,030 paperclips to create the record chain.

The students at Eisenhower Junior High School in Taylorsville, Utah are responsible for the longest paper clip chain created by a group. It was 22.17 miles long.

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