The most fascinating aspect of the history of packaging is the fact that some inventions seem so simple that they go unnoticed. In reality, they have radically changed our habits.
This is the case of the paper bag, a common and versatile object, which has a very specific history. It was invented by Charles Stilwell (often cited as Stilwell), an American innovator who, in 1883, patented a practical and revolutionary solution destined to transform the paper industry.
A Simple but Ingenious Invention
Until the second half of the 19th century, paper bags were made by manually folding and gluing sheets of paper with pointed bottoms, which resulted in them being unstable and difficult to fill.
The first person to revolutionize this method was Margaret Knight with the design of a machine that produced bags with flat, square bottoms.
Improving on what had been started by Knight, the first woman to obtain a U.S. patent, Charles Stilwell perfected the machine, which could produce flat-bottomed bags that could stand on their own. This intuition significantly improved the functionality and speed of packaging.
In 1883, he obtained the patent for his Self-Opening Sack (SOS), which also represented a breakthrough in terms of production: the bags, with pleated sides, could be folded by machine, stacked and distributed with ease.
This design soon became the standard in businesses of all kinds, from bakeries to grocers.
History of packaging: from the shop to large-scale distribution
The Stilwell bag was adopted very quickly. In the United States, at the end of the nineteenth century, it became an essential tool for retail trade. In Italy and the rest of Europe, the model was introduced in the early decades of the twentieth century, in parallel with the expansion of organized distribution.
With the advent of supermarkets in the 1950s and 1960s, the paper bag became a symbol of modernity. In the 1970s, it was joined by plastic bags, but in the last two decades – thanks to attention to the environment and European directives – it has returned to the forefront.
A lesson in sustainability and functionality
Today, Charles Stilwell’s design is more relevant than ever. Kraft paper bags, often customized with offset or flexo printing, are chosen by cosmetic, pharmaceutical, food and fashion brands not only for their biodegradability, but also for their positive visual impact on the consumer. In fact, they communicate care, authenticity and respect for the environment.
Charles Stillwell’s legacy is still tangible every time we pick up a paper bag. His intuition combined functionality, simplicity and sustainability, three pillars that still guide paper innovation today. For companies in the sector, the paper bag is not just a container, but a symbol of continuous evolution.
