Scrapbooking Ideas

Scrapbooking is often thought of as something women do, but there have been many male enthusiasts from Thomas Jefferson to Mark Twain. There is no gender bias to saving items that represent memorable occasions in one’s life. People hold on to everything including but not limited to photographs, articles and clippings, stamps, pressed flowers, receipts, and ticket stubs.

Take a look at how scrapbooking has evolved over the centuries:

1598- Earliest form began in the era of Aristotle with men keeping records of religious and political discussions.

1769- History of England was published by William Granger. His book included drawings along with the text. Blank pages were included so readers could add their own comments or illustrations.

1800’s- President Thomas Jefferson was known to save newspaper clippings and compile them into albums. Saving memorabilia and displaying it in book-like form became more popular. Albums were intricately crafted with leather tooling, embossing, etc. Many featured locks. Mark Twain became an avid enthusiast devoting entire Sundays to his hobby. His albums later sold for nearly fifty thousand dollars!

1826- John Poole published a book, Manuscript Gleanings and LIterary Scrapbook, which featured how-to instructions for displaying memorabilia such as poetry, diary entries, and other scraps. The term scrapbook originated from the scraps of colored paper which were pasted into albums. These scraps featured ornate designs of things like birds and flowers.

1839- Louis-Jacques Daguerre invented and introduced the daguerreotype which preceded the invention of photography.

1870’s- Die cutting and stamping began to appear in albums.

1888- The first Kodak camera with rolled film was marketed by George Eastman. This invention revolutionized the way people recorded events from their lives.

1970’s- Resurgence of interest in preserving family history following Alex Haley’s Roots.

Of course, the timeline ends with the booming industry scrapbooking is today.