Paper BagsRecycled Paper Bags | Brown Paper Bags | Paper Bags for Sale

While most retail chains and supermarket joints offer the option for the shopper to bag their purchases using recycled paper bags or plastic bags, the paper bag has been the center of all retail bagging the world over. The paper bag has come a long way and has even evolved to include durable brands made from recycled paper which boasts more strength and water resistance. With grave competition coming from the plastic bag intensifying because of the fact that the plastic bag is reusable, the paper bag has managed to hold its own. But where did the paper bag come from and what are its origins?

The original paper bag as we know it came from the United States and is a brain child of one Francis Wolle at around 1852 who invented a machine to solve the dilemma of how to bag customers' purchases at a retail or grocery store. Wolle, an ordained clergyman, was a learned man who worked in his father's store and was immediately drawn to the idea of creating a better way for shoppers to bag their purchases. This was indeed a dilemma because this was the same time that retail stores began to proliferate and become a part of the country's retail future. Wolle liaised with his brother and out came the Union Paper Bag Machine Company which was the commercial vehicle for carrying along their paper bag ideas. Wolle patented his idea in the United States and then in France.  Wolle later opened a plant in Savannah Georgia, a town at that time ravaged by economic hardship. The plant still operates today and is owned by paper giant, International Paper.

Margaret Knight's modification became what today is the square-bottom paper bag that has become a household item in many supermarkets. Margret's story is a tale of determination to win at all costs and while she worked on the invention, her employer almost fired her, complaining that the invention was a distraction to her regular duties. She offered to sell to him if the idea worked and he agreed to let her commence but in the male-dominated society of those days, her idea was quickly stolen and she had to fight it in court. almost going bankrupt in the process. But because of her meticulous record keeping, the Court granted the ruling in her favor.

The well-renowned paper bag with the square bottom thus became a world wide phenomenon, capturing the hearts of manufacturers and retail shoppers alike who were drawn to its size and durability. It was also easy to dispose. Today the paper bag has undergone a renaissance of its own and is now wholly made of recycled paper rather than direct wood products. This has silenced environmentalists who claim that the paper bag has accelerated deforestation in that more trees are cut down to cater for the market for brown paper bags for sale.