"Gable-top" containers are now so commonplace that it is hard to imagine that it took over 20 years of persistence to get the public to accept them. However, it did. The man who was responsible was John Van Wormer.

Van Wormer owned a toy factory in Toledo, Ohio. He got the idea for paper milk cartons after dropping a milk bottle. The bottle broke, the milk & glass went everywhere, and it was an annoying way to start the day.

Van Wormer was granted a patent on October 19, 1915 for his new product. He called his invention the "paper bottle" because it could be thrown away after one use.

Then the difficulties began. It took over a decade for Van Wormer to perfect a machine capable of making the containers. Finally, in 1933, his 1st paper milk carton was introduced. Even then the struggle was not over, for everyone was very attached to milk in bottles. Refillable glass bottles reigned for a long time after his paper carton was introduced. But time, and a steady increase in the cost of glass, worked in Van Wormer's favor.

In 1937 his paper milk carton sold 42 million units and dairies extended their markets as the container didn't need returning. By 1950 Van Wormer was producing 20 million a day and by 1968 over 70% of milk packaged in the United States went into paper "Gable-Top" milk cartons.

Along the way, the 4 sides have proved a useful place to advertise everything from missing children to Hopalong Cassidy. Now, with 50 billion produced each year, it's not hard to see how this biodegradable container that is over 90 years old is such an important and positive part of our planet's future.

John Van Wormer's "paper bottle" is still going strong.