History of the Mousetrap

James Henry Atkinson was the British inventor who in 1897 invented the prototype mousetrap called the "Little Nipper". The Little Nipper is the classic snapping mousetrap that we are all familiar with that has the small flat wooden base, the spring trap, and the wire fastenings.

The Little Nipper slams shut in 38,000s of a second and that record has never been beaten. This is the design that has prevailed until today. This mousetrap has captured a sixty percent share of the British mousetrap market alone, and an estimated equal share of the international market.

James Atkinson sold his mousetrap patent in 1913 for 1,000 pounds to Procter, the company that has been manufacturing the "Little Nipper" ever since, and has even erected a 150-exhibit mousetrap museum in their factory headquarters.

American, John Mast of Lititz, Pennsylvania received a patent on his similar snap-trap mousetrap in 1899.

Humane Mousetraps

Austin Kness had an idea for a better mousetrap back in the 1920s. The Kness Ketch-All Multiple Catch mousetrap doesn't use bait. It catches mice alive and can catch several before it needs to be reset.

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Modern Mouse Traps

We had endless debate about what type of mouse trap to get. Some of us thought of getting one of the classical snap traps that are designed to break the backs of mice. On the other end, one of my roommates suggested a no-kill trap, arguing that it was more humane. We debated about whether or not a no kill mouse trap was a good idea. Some of us pointed that they were every bit as good as killing the mice, without the cruelty. Others claimed that, if you wont kill them, they would get right back into the house. Finally, we decided on a pretty high tech solution. We bought an electric powered trap that would zap mice or rats quickly and painlessly.

The mouse traps worked like magic. We had taken care of the mice within a few of weeks, and the rats a bit after that. We even had a party to celebrate our success and now all we had to worry about was the cockroaches

Mouse Traps

Good Old-Fashioned Mouse Traps

It has always been said that the best way to fight rodents is with a good cat. Unfortunately, pets are not allowed in the building I was living in. We had to manage ourselves with good old-fashioned mousetraps. We began by putting them all along the baseboards, but we had a few successes. Apparently, we had not puzzled out where the mice were coming from. We thought about calling an exterminator when one of my house mates finally figured out. He saw a small hole in the wall, evidently burrowed out by mice. We examined the area and found a few more on the other side of the room. Now that we knew how the mice were getting in, exterminating them will be easier.