<P> The idea for what became duct tape came from Vesta Stoudt, an ordnance - factory worker and mother of two Navy sailors, who worried that problems with ammunition box seals would cost soldiers precious time in battle . She wrote to President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1943 with the idea to seal the boxes with a fabric tape, which she had tested at her factory . The letter was forwarded to the War Production Board, who put Johnson & Johnson on the job . The Revolite division of Johnson & Johnson had made medical adhesive tapes from duck cloth from 1927 and a team headed by Revolite's Johnny Denoye and Johnson & Johnson's Bill Gross developed the new adhesive tape, designed to be ripped by hand, not cut with scissors . </P> <P> Their new unnamed product was made of thin cotton duck coated in waterproof polyethylene (plastic) with a layer of rubber - based gray adhesive (branded as "Polycoat") bonded to one side . It was easy to apply and remove, and was soon adapted to repair military equipment quickly, including vehicles and weapons . This tape, colored in army - standard matte olive drab, was nicknamed "duck tape" by the soldiers . Various theories have been put forward for the nickname, including the descendant relation to cotton duck fabric, the waterproof characteristics of a duck bird, and even the name of the 1942 amphibious military vehicle DUKW, which was pronounced "duck". </P> <P> After the war, the duck tape product was sold in hardware stores for household repairs . The Melvin A. Anderson Company of Cleveland, Ohio, acquired the rights to the tape in 1950 . It was commonly used in construction to wrap air ducts . Following this application, the name "duct tape" came into use in the 1950s, along with tape products that were colored silvery gray like tin ductwork . Specialized heat - and cold - resistant tapes were developed for heating and air - conditioning ducts . By 1960 a St. Louis, Missouri, HVAC company, Albert Arno, Inc., trademarked the name "Ductape" for their "flame - resistant" duct tape, capable of holding together at 350--400 ° F (177--204 ° C). </P> <P> In 1971, Jack Kahl bought the Anderson firm and renamed it Manco . In 1975, Kahl rebranded the duct tape made by his company . Because the previously used generic term "duck tape" had fallen out of use, he was able to trademark the brand "Duck Tape" and market his product complete with a yellow cartoon duck logo . Manco chose the "Duck" name as "a play on the fact that people often refer to duct tape as' duck tape"', and as a marketing differentiation to stand out against other sellers of duct tape . In 1979, the Duck Tape marketing plan involved sending out greeting cards with the duck branding, four times a year, to 32,000 hardware managers . This mass of communication combined with colorful, convenient packaging helped Duck Tape become popular . From a near - zero customer base Manco eventually controlled 40% of the duct tape market in the US . In 2009 Duck Tape was sold to Shurtape Technologies, which is owned by the Shuford family of North Carolina . </P>

Where does the name duct tape come from
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