Before Bumper Stickers

What appears to be a modern fad has roots that dig down well before the age of automobiles. In the days of horse-drawn carriages, companies used to print their advertisements on horsefly nets to gain the public's attention.

But the introduction of cars didn't automatically mean the introduction of personalized bumper stickers, largely because cars didn't have bumpers till Ford's Model A came on the scene in the late 1920s. After that, drivers began crafting their own custom-made "bumper stickers" using cardboard or metal and attaching them to their rear bumper with wire. Unlike today's waterproof stickers, these signs were at the mercy of rain, snow and heat.

WWII & Bumper Stickers

It took the advent of World War II to produce the next steps in the creation of modern-day, custom bumper stickers. Among the new materials developed during the war were adhesive-backed paper and fluorescent day-glow paint.

In the late 1940s, a screen printer named Forrest P. Gill in Kansas City, Missouri, realized he could put his overstock of paper and paint to good use by creating bumper stickers. Gill's initial large order was for car stickers for Florida-based Marine Gardens.

The First Custom-Made Bumper Stickers

Custom-made bumper stickers soon took off as a popular form of advertisement, with tourist attractions like Marine Gardens being early first adopters. Locations as diverse as Meramec Caverns in Missouri, Seven Falls in Colorado and Lookout Mountain in Tennessee took advantage of the portable advertising benefits offered by bumper stickers.

Ike & Personalized Bumper Stickers

The 1952 presidential election sent custom bumper stickers in an entirely new direction. The contest between Dwight Eisenhower and Adlai Stevenson was the first instance of bumper stickers being used as part of a political campaign, with "I Like Ike" decals sprouting up on the rear bumper of cars across the country. Now, every political campaign is designed to include car stickers as an important way of promoting candidates.

Popular Bumper Stickers Today

These days, if you can think of something, you can print it on personalized bumper stickers. Whether ordered in bulk or more limited quantities, design-your-own bumper sticker topics range far beyond political campaigns and tourist attractions to include:

• Philosophical statements
• Religious affiliations
• Cultural references
• Support for local schools
• Social justice issues
• Alumni pride
• Advertising for local, regional and national businesses

Bumper sticker shapes have evolved as well, with circles and squares as popular as the good, old-fashioned rectangle. Materials have also advanced — adhesive vinyl is often the first option considered, thanks to its durability and abrasion resistance.