Like many people in East Tennessee, I have family members who suffer from allergies, sniffling and sneezing a lot lately. Last week, two of my children asked for more Kleenex. Wiping runny noses is the only thing I remember seeing Kleenex advertised for, but I was surprised to learn that was not their original use.

The forerunner to Kleenex was born out in World War I. During the war, cotton was in short supply. The paper manufacturer Kimberly-Clark began mass producing cellucotton to aid the war effort. Cellucotton was produced from wood pulp. It was both cheaper and more absorbent than cotton. Cellucotton was made into a crepe paper that was used as a filter in gas masks as well as for bandages.

After the war, Kimberly-Clark was left with a surplus of cellucotton and little market demand. In 1919, they started selling a disposable feminine sanitary napkin made from cellucotton. They called the napkin Kotex for the cotton-like texture of the product.

In 1924, Kleenex facial tissues came on the market. They were sold as “a marvelous new way to remove cold cream.” The first part of the name came from the cleaning function of the tissue. The “-ex” was borrowed from the company’s earlier product, Kotex. Kleenex quickly grew in popularity and had endorsements from Hollywood and Broadway actresses.

Though Kleenex was marketed to women to aid in makeup removal, it wasn’t long before customers started writing to tell the company they were using their facial tissues in place of handkerchiefs.  By 1930, the company shifted their advertising to, “the handkerchief you can throw away.” They emphasized the hygienic advantages of disposable tissues over cloth handkerchiefs with slogans like, “Don’t put a cold in your pocket. Use a fresh Kleenex!”

With this new use in mind, Kleenex were no longer advertised only to women. They even made a man-size tissue. They also encouraged consumers to keep a box in every room, in the car, and even made purse size packs. Sales of Kleenex soared.

Today, Kleenex is a cultural icon. While I can no longer find the man-size packs, I can find ultra soft, with lotion, aloe, or virus-killing. Even though it was not the original intent, as a mom, I am very grateful for existence of disposable tissues and not having to wash a lot of nasty handkerchiefs every allergy season.

Crystal Kelly is a feature writer for Bizarre Bytes with those unusual facts that you only need to know for Trivial Pursuit or Jeopardy or to stump your in-laws.