Museum of Menstruation & Womens Health

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This is how I'm commencing to do this narrative: I will present first with the pictures. Directly under this will be the text explaining the various images.

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Continuing Narrative

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moving on

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Herewith

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How cumbersome.

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Now Herewith

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Now Moving

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Forward Now

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OK

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All Right The Smithsonian Institution, in Washington, D.C., owns these three sanitary napkin dispensers, as well as a small, but important, collection of other menstrual hygiene items.
My thanks to Dr. Katherine Ott, of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History, for showing them to two English Ph.D. candidates visiting this museum, and myself, and for helping me obtain these photos! A. Neps probably is from the 1920s, at a time when napkin brands started to multiply. Kotex made a dispenser in the 1920s, probably the first for pads. B. This brand, using the illustration of what to this American looks like a Dutch girl, probably stems from the 1930s. Americans associated the Dutch with propriety and cleanliness, reflected also in Old Dutch Cleanser, a cleaning powder from that era. The Dutch image has become considerably more complex today! C. Modess pads had a famous advertising campaign, "Modess . . . . because," which the industry sometimes ridiculed, but which lasted from the 1940s to the 1960s. This dispenser must date from that era. See some print ads from that campaign. Belts to hold menstrual pads, part 1 Women wore commercial belts at least from the latter part of the nineteenth century (the earliest ad the museum has is an American one dated 1891). Because self-adhesive pads became available only in the early 1970s, if women used pads, they had to wear belts, suspenders, "sanitary panties," (underpants with hooks or tabs or something else to hold the pad in place) - or invent some way of getting the pad to stay in place.
Companies sold probably hundreds of varieties of belts in the past hundred years, but the industry almost disappeared in the early 1970s with the advent of pads with adhesive (Stayfree and New Freedom).
See also the Kotex "featherweight" menstrual pad belt in a tube.
Many belts, sanitary aprons & underpants from the Butler, Smyth and Savage catalogs, early 20th century.
See 3 ads for American belts, 1949 and 1955, and a booklet for girls by Beltx.
Italian washable pad, about 1900.
See how a woman wore a belt in a Dutch ad. See how women wore a belt (and in a Swedish ad). See Australian belts and pads, about 1900, and Chinese belts and pad holders. Chinese pad and panty pad, Japanese pad, older. American, Sears, 1902 & 1908. German washable pads and belt, with case (about 1935-40). Hickory ads for belts, U.S.A.: 1925, 1920s. Belts to hold menstrual pads, part 2
Women wore commercial belts at least from the latter part of the nineteenth century. Because self-adhesive pads became available only in the early 1970s, if women used pads, they had to wear either belts or "sanitary panties," underpants with hooks or tabs or something else to hold the pad in place.
Companies sold probably hundreds of varieties of belts in the past hundred years, but the industry almost disappeared in the early 1970s with the advent of pads with adhesive (Stayfree and New Freedom).
See Australian belts and pads, about 1900, and Chinese belts and pad holders. Chinese pad and panty pad - Japanese pad, older.
An anonymous donor generously gave MUM most of the belts on this page. Washable menstrual pad with underpants
Elastic bands hold this modern flannel pad in underpants made by the pad manufacturer Glad Rags (another maker is Party In My Pants). Pads come in all kinds of colors and patterns, and often have fillers to vary the thickness (and therefore absorbency) of the pads.
An official of a large menstrual products company visited MUM and saw washable pads for the first time in her life, although she had heard of them. Probably 70 percent of MUM visitors have never heard of today's washable pads, and probably 90 percent have never seen a menstrual cup. And these are intelligent, informed women.
Someone wrote MUM the following in March 2006:
"About washable pads: there are quite a few moms who have work-at-home businesses making these things. I find them to be far superior to Glad Rags. This page shows several styles: Organic Velour Nursing Pads
Made with 2 outer layers of 100% organic cotton velour and a hidden inner layer of 55% organic cotton/ 45% hemp french terry. 5 inches in diameter. Will conform nicely to the breast. Sold in 3-pair packs The commercial menstrual cup (photos below), a device inserted into the vagina to collect, but not absorb, menstrual blood, has been around at least since the 1930s, when the American Leona W. Chalmers patented it (see part 1 of the history of the menstrual cup); an earlier patent also exists for the Daintette cup - its history is less clear.
(Read more about the history of the menstrual cup - First cup? Tassette, Tassaway, The Keeper, Daintette, Foldene
Women didn't buy many of the Chalmers cups when the company sold the hard rubber cup right before World War ll, and it failed. It wasn't until 1959 that Tassette, Inc., began marketing a softer version, in collaboration with Leona Chalmers. It also failed, in the early 1960s.
Women today can buy the reusable The Keeper, sold since the late 1980s; the one-time use Instead (1-800-INSTEAD, or Web site), which Ultrafem started selling in the fall of 1996 in the western part of the U.S.A.; the British Mooncup (Web site); the Canadian DivaCup, made of silicone (Web site); and the Finnish Lunette cup (Web site). I'll add MUM pages for the latter four cups later.
(PICTURES of cups at the bottom of this page)
MUM board member Dr. Philip M. Tierno, Jr., director of clinical microbiology and immunology at the New York University Medical Center, kindly donated both the rare Tassette and Tassaway cups (below) to this museum. Robert Oreck, president of the company that made the Tassette cup, gave the cup to Tierno, who then gave it to MUM. Dr.Tierno is world renowned for his research into the safety of menstrual hygiene products. Harry Finley, director of MUM, took the photos of the cups, which are in the museum collection. Mr. Finley,
After reading the many delightful anecdotes and informative articles in the MUM, I got inspired to contribute a bit of humor of my own.
Hope you enjoy.
Mr. P. Farthingale Bloom Mr. Finley,
I have been a fan of your site for several years now and find research on the topic of menstruation and social images absolutely fascinating. I would like to contribute a joke that was sent to me, and with the current economic times I find this hilarious and yet, perhaps, useful.
A devoted fan and researcher,
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*My dear * *family and * *friends, **
Somewhat embarrassing to admit, Christmas is tight this year. I will be making bedroom slippers for you all as gifts. Please let** **me know your sizes. You'll most likely agree that it's a splendid idea, and should you wish to do the same, I've included the instructions below. **
*How to make bedroom slippers out of maxi pads:
You need four maxi pads to make a pair.
Two of them get laid out flat, for the foot part.
The other two wrap around the toe area to form the top.
Tape or glue each side of the top pieces to the bottom of the foot part.
Decorate the tops with whatever you desire, silk flowers (this is most aesthetically appealing), etc.
These slippers are:
* Soft and Hygienic
* Non-slip grip strips on the soles
* Built in deodorant feature keeps feet smelling fresh
* No more bending over to mop up spills
* Disposable and biodegradable
* Environmentally safe
* Three convenient sizes: (1.) Regular, (2.) Light and (3.) Get out the Sand Bags.
I've attached a photo of the first pair I made so that you can see the nifty slippers for yourself....
Awaiting your response. It's crucial that I get the right size for each one of you.
*Don't worry guys I make Mens too*

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Harry Finley,
The funniest commercial I ever saw was a few years ago and on American TV. It portrayed a mother folding laundry and taking it up stairs to put away. Meanwhile her little boy and his fried are in the little boy's room getting money out of his piggy bank. Mom passes the door on her way to deposit clothes or towels and she over hears the boys talking and stops to listen:
Little Friend: So whacha gonna by with all your money?
Little Boy: Some OB Tampons!
Little Friend: Why do you want OB tampons?
Little Boy: 'Cause if you have OB Tampons you can go swimming and ride horses and play tennis and go to the beach!
Mom gasps laughing and drops her load of towels on the floor
I swear I saw this ad on TV and I have never been able to find it in any search of the internet. Have you seen this ad? [No - has anyone?] Do you think you could ask your contributors if they have ever seen it? I think it is just the thing that would make advertising these products tolerable for everyone but I guess some are too sensitive. Sponges for contraception - birth control - and absorbing menstrual discharge
Women have probably used sponges to absorb menstrual discharge for thousands of years, but they have also used them as contraceptives and for putting medication into the vagina (as with tampons; see hieroglyphics from about 1550 BCE). Sometimes it's hard to say which sponge was used for what - but maybe women sometimes used them for all three purposes.
During the era of the Comstock Act in the U.S.A., 1873 to well into the 20th century, when "artificial" contraception was illegal, American women used sponges to hold liquids that killed sperm as well as to absorb menstrual blood, but ads could not say this. Thus the assertion in the ad, below, that the sponge could keep the vagina "germ free," similar to the wording of douche ads (see a Lysol ad, among others, for this dual purpose). The National Museum of American History of the Smithsonian Institution has three similar examples of sponges, The contents of the above can.

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Prolapse of the uterus, and pessaries
When the uterus become unanchored, often because of injury during childbirth, gravity can drag it out the vagina - see below. The arrow points to a uterus that completely protrudes from the vagina; having a baby, among other causes, can damage the tissues that hold the uterus in place and allow it to shift position. (I added the words; photo from Diseases of Women, 1922, by Dr. Harry Crossen)
Marjorie May's 12th [Twelfth] Birthday
(Kotex puberty & menstruation booklet, U.S.A., 1938) Ten years after the first Marjorie May's 12th Birthday, Kotex offered the puberty and menstruation education pamphlet below, a late and maybe final edition. The language is freer and story has changed somewhat, but it still reflects the privileged clientele Kotex sold its menstrual napkins to. See below for earlier editions and a discussion of the series, and see similar booklets on this site.

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All here Ok? This is the founder's history (Harry Finley) http://www.keeper.com/finley_assets/finley.mp3

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Explanation of pots There is a community of "granola moms" and environmentally aware women out there who use cloth diapers and cloth menstrual pads. Women who use cloth pads soak them in cold water to keep stains from setting before laundering. While a plastic bucket with a lid works just fine, a few years back I got requests from women who wanted something more attractive; some wanted to celebrate their moon-time and treat themselves. Others were getting complaints from life-mates about their current methods. Some asked for lids, others for none; some wanted spouts to water their plants, others preferred no spouts. Some want to soak for a few hours, others want a big pot to contain a day's worth or more. So they have their website where they sell their pots for women, http://www.primalmommy.com/jarsforcups.html

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Fresca douche powder can (U.S.A., 1920s?) Women have practiced douching - the injection of fluid into the vagina - probably for thousands of years. Some have wanted to clean the tube, some to relieve bothersome conditions, some to prevent babies At least since the last century, in part because of the prohibition of birth control in many countries, women have douched with various substances, probably including the one below, to attempt to accomplish some or all three of these objectivesI suspect the phrase "A product of reason" on the label of Fresca, below, might hint at its birth-control function, as may "A boon to humanity," on the back of the can (lower picture). Most Americans know the name Fresca as identifying a (former?) soft drink The can looks as if it dates from the 1920s or before, although patent medicines often retain old-fashioned labels.

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Well, next time you go to the Supermarket and you see Lysol Spray on the shelf you can tell your best friend you learned about the history of it. Lysol was originally utilised as a feminine douche. Isn't that fascinating? I would never have conceived of that.