What’s the story behind the name 'Bobby Pins'?

When people need to secure their hair or perhaps improvise a lock-picking tool, they often turn to a bobby pin, a hair clip designed to ensure a tight, slip-resistant hold. But how did these clips come to be called 'bobby pins'? Could a person named Bobby be behind their invention?

Not exactly. The term 'bobby pin' originates from the bob hairstyle trend, which gained widespread popularity in the early 1900s. Back then, women typically wore longer hair, but when dancer Irene Castle chose a shorter, more practical style, many of her followers adopted it, sparking a controversy. Numerous beauty salons refused to offer such cuts to their female clientele, forcing them to seek out barbers. Eventually, by the 1920s, salons began to accept the style.

Initially called the Castle bob in honor of the woman who popularized the look, the style eventually became known simply as 'the bob.' To keep this new short style in place, hair clips were commonly used, and these clips became affectionately known as bobby pins.

Pinpointing the true creator of the bobby pin can be a challenge. Some attribute it to Luis Marcus, a prominent cosmetics entrepreneur from San Francisco, who sold two-packs of handcrafted hair clips for 35 cents. “There were discussions about calling it the Marcus pin,” his daughter Elaine Marcus shared in a 1990 interview with The Los Angeles Times following her father's passing. “However, he chose to name it after bobbed hair,” she confirmed.

Over the years, other names have surfaced as potential creators of the bobby pin, including Frank DeLong, Hazel Hook Waltz, Jacob Herbert, and Henry Hubbard, who might have been responsible for developing the method used in manufacturing bobby pins.

The bobby pin was not the only effort to innovate hair clips. In 1903, Solomon Goldberg introduced the Hump hair pin, named for its bent center that helped it stay in place. While it was likely not the first hair accessory with such a design, it was probably the most effectively marketed, leading many to believe it was a groundbreaking invention.

Goldberg's pins were ideal for those with long hair, but this posed a dilemma when Castle's shorter hairstyle gained popularity. Goldberg later claimed to have invented the bobby pin, though this is likely inaccurate—his company did, however, produce the Hold-Bob, a different type of clip, which his wife, Ruth, created.

Can you really use a bobby pin to pick a lock? The answer is yes—if you bend it into the shape of a lock pick and have another one nearby to serve as a tension wrench for leverage. However, some locks are too small for a bobby pin, so don't rely on them for your sneaky escapades.