National Zipper Day

The modern zipper was designed by Gideon Sundback, who worked at the Universal Fastener Company in Hoboken, New Jersey. He received a patent for his "separable fastener" on April 29, 1913. Sundback's work on the zipper began in 1906, when he was tasked with improving the design of an earlier fastener called the "hookless fastener". He made several important improvements to the design, including replacing the hooks with interlocking teeth and adding a slider to facilitate opening and closing the fastener. He received several patents for his improvements, and his design eventually became known as the "zipper". Sundback continued to refine his zipper design throughout his career and was recognized for his contributions to the field of fastener technology. He died on June 21, 1954, in Meadville, Pennsylvania.