So long, silk stockings. The new thing was nylons! The year was 1940 and nylons went on sale for the first time during this month in history (May 15, 1940) in Wilmington, Delaware. That’s where the chemical company DuPont was based and one of its scientists had developed the synthetic material that was taking the world by storm.
DuPont had patented nylon in 1938 and just two years later, it was about to cash in on the invention — big time. On that first day of sales in Wilmington, 780,000 pairs of nylons were sold the first day. Within two days, four million pairs had been scooped up, and in that first year? Sales totalled 64 million pairs of nylons.
Newspapers across the country had been reporting on the discovery of nylon for a number of months. The following news story in the Calgary Herald called nylon one of the “most interesting of new discoveries.” Widespread buzz was generated over the use of nylon as the new fabric of choice for women’s stockings.
At the DuPont company, employees there had been successfully wearing prototypes of nylon stockings for months. The marketplace was eagerly awaiting their turn to try nylon stockings. When nylons went on sale, demand far exceeded available product.
Newspapers across the continent wrote about this latest fashion trend, including the Calgary Herald and The Albertan. Alberta made a play to become home to a Canadian plant that would manufacture nylon, but the plant was ultimately awarded to Kingston, Ont. As nylons beg.