It is estimated that every person in America uses about 40 lbs of glue a year, including everything from furniture, books, buildings, automobiles, and of course, science fair projects.  In school, we were given a plethora of sticky choices in adhesives.  From Elmer’s glue, to UHU, rubber cement, glue sticks and Krazy Glue (OK, so maybe they didn’t let you use Krazy Glue) if we needed it to stick, we probably had a way; even if we had to push it down, hold it up, flatten it out and remove the wrinkles until it dried. 

Glue got its commercial start over two and a half centuries ago, with the first patent going to a compound made from… fish.  Eww.  Within a short period of time, patents were issued for adhesives made out of everything from natural rubber to animal bones – even milk proteins.  The ingredients, however, should be no surprise; they were the items glue has been made from for thousands of years!

Synthetic glues didn’t surface until the 20th century with advancements in the chemical and plastics industries.  While working on an improved plastic sight for military use during World War II, scientists discovered cyanoacrylate, what is now known as Krazy Glue or Superglue.  It was dismissed, largely because it stuck to everything, and it would take nearly another decade for Kodak to ‘rediscover’ it and put it up on the commercial market. 

Of course, how could we forget good old Elmer’s Glue, the nice, creamy white paste that’s been used by generations of kids and adults on projects of all sizes?  In the late 40s Borden, the company that created the Elmer’s Glue brand, introduced and marketed the product under its trade name “Cascorez Glue.”  It came in a glass bottle with ‘ice cream bar’ styled wood sticks attached to it by rubber band.  (Why didn’t they just glue the sticks to the… oh never mind.)  After a name change to Elmer (the husband to the Borden corporate symbol, Elsie the Cow), the product found a fan base.  Now, you can find it in clear, colored, glitter… you name it!  (But if you ask us, nothing beats the white paste.)

Rubber cement meant fake boogers.  Yeah, it’s great for sticking things together, especially since it was synthetic enough to be low on water (no wrinkles!), but if you didn’t at least try to roll one into the gross shape of a boogie, then… well, were you ever really a child?  Rubber cement was not only sticky as can be and easy to clean up, it was also one of the most… scented.  Though the sniff factor has toned down over the years (toxicity levels demanded it at after a while), it’s still great to use, since it doesn’t become brittle like the other cements. 

Last, but certainly not least is the good old glue stick – or “Glu Stic” as it was spelled on the UHU tubes.  Found in many a desk from Kindergarten to High School, it was easy to use and kept hands clean, though often didn’t have as good a bind as its sticky cousins.  For decades, kids were relegated to plain white colors, though like many other glues today, kids can be found using glue sticks in a wide variety of colors and textures.

Glue was an important part of our education.  Without it, how could we make collages and noodle art?  How about paper mache – of course, it wasn’t necessary for that, but didn’t it make things easier?  Just remember:
“I am rubber… you are glue.
What bounces off me... sticks to you!”