See San-Nap-Pak sanitary napkin ads from 1932
and 1945 and Ads for teenagers.
See the roughly contemporary Cashay tampon,
box, instructions. (Procter & Gamble donation, 2001), and
Dale (U.S.A., 1930s?-1940s?) Tampons, box, instructions.
(Procter & Gamble donation, 2001)
And, of course, the first Tampax AND - special
for you! - the American fax tampon,
from the early 1930s, which also came in bags.
See a Modess True or False? ad in The American
Girl magazine, January 1947, and actress Carol Lynley
in "How Shall I Tell My Daughter" booklet ad (1955) - Modess . . . . because ads (many dates).
 
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San-Nap-Pak tampon, U.S.A., late 1930s-early 1940s?
Enclosed folder
I can roughly date this tampon from wording that indicates maybe the
1930s ("a new, improved aid to feminine hygiene . . . ." and "This
new simple device replaces belts, buckles, pins, and any other accessories
of any kind and permits the wearer complete protection with nothing to chafe
and complete convenience."). Companies were emphasizing the newness
of tampons. But it does use the word tampon, lacking on earlier boxes because
women probably wouldn't have known what that was (you see phrases like "internal
sanitary napkin"). About this time a report
extensively addressed the chafing problem and more; pads at the time were
big.
The box's color is close to Kotex blue, common for the early menstrual
products, which the history of Procter & Gamble called "hospital
blue"; Dr. Lillian Gilbreth didn't like it, as she reported
to Johnson & Johnson in 1927.
The Procter & Gamble Company kindly donated this tampon along
with dozens of other early American menstrual devices.
Harry Finley created the scans.
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Above: enlargement of a drawing. The drawings are identical
to those in the Wix instructions - I wonder why.
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Note that the company says there is no deodorant in the tampon;
decades later some manufacturers would brag that there were deodorants.
Tampons have been used for thousands of years to put medication into body
cavities, including the vagina. See some hieroglyphics
describing ancient Egyptian use for the vagina.
The folder on coated paper measures 6" x 7" (about
15.3 x 17.8 cm).
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