From Hammer To High-Tech, The Seldom Told Tale Of The Can Opener: The History of Ordinary Things
The can opener has its own unique history, but first, the can. Last month’s column reviewed its evolution but in summary the can arrived in the late 1700s without a means of opening it. The first cans were designed for use during military campaigns.
Bryan Donkin set up the first canning factory in the UK in 1812. The instructions on his iron cans read, “Cut round the top near the outer edge with a chisel and hammer.” Not until metal cans became thinner could a handheld device be used.
Over time two models of can openers were developed.
In 1870, the first rotating wheel (knife) can opener was patented by William Lyman (see Model 1). The can was pierced in its center with a sharp metal tip. An adjustable cutting knife was set at the edge of the can and fixed in place with a wing nut. (There was no standardized can size.) The cutting knife was pressed into the can. The user rotated the handle around the top of the metal lid. This required near brute force to pull the blade through the thick metal.
In 1858 Ezra Warner patented a lever-type opener consisting of a sharp sickle with a guard. The sickle was pushed into the can and sawed around its outer edge (see Model 2). This opener was used by the US Army during the American Civil War. Its unprotected knife-like sickle was considered too dangerous for domestic use (women). Grocers opened cans before patrons left the store.
In 1865, a home-use opener was made of cast iron with a blade. A guard was added to prevent the blade from going too deep into the can. The bull-head design, used for bully beef cans, was produced and in use until the 1930s.
In 1925, the Star Can Company introduced an opener with a second serrated rotation wheel. It provided better grip of the can edge and was so efficient that the design is still used.
In 1931, an electric can opener was made using the cutting-wheel design. It cut fast, but they did not sell well. It was post-depression when people had little money, and many people did not have electricity. In 1950, Walter Bodle created a freestanding electric can opener with a knife sharpener. Magnets were added to prevent the lid from falling back into the can. It came in flamingo pink, avocado green, aqua blue and cream. The openers were successfully marketed for Christmas sales by 1952. The electric opener was the predominant model of can opener into the 1980s.
In the 1990s, a new battery-operated and hands-free model entered the market. It cuts the can below the lid seal rather than on top of the lid. The driving teeth are very fine which eliminates the sharp edges along the lid making it safer for the user.
Other types of can openers include a metal “key” which was soldered to the lid of the container. The key was removed and hooked on a 1/8-inch metal strip along the top and then rotated around the can to remove the metal seal. This was popular for sardines, canned ham, coffee and tobacco. A variety of twist mechanisms were used to open shoe polish paste cans. The church key openers are still used for bottle caps.
In the 1960s, aluminum removeable ring pull-tabs were introduced for beer cans but were quickly embraced by the entire beverage industry. The ring peeled back a small teardrop tab to open. While innovative, the tab was environmentally hazardous because it was extremely sharp and could be swallowed. They were phased out beginning in 1975 when the Sta-Tab was launched. In the 2000s, ring pull lids were introduced for food cans. This was touted as the top packaging innovation of the last 100 years.
Today millions of cans are still opened with the old-fashioned Star Can Company opener with the two serrated wheels.
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