11/12/2025
Inventive Women Who Changed the World
In our ongoing series celebrating women inventors, we’re spotlighting Versta Stoudt — the brilliant mind behind what would become duct tape.
While working during World War II packing ammunition boxes, Versta noticed that sealing them with wax made the packages watertight but nearly impossible to open quickly in the field. Her solution? A strong, waterproof cloth tape that could be torn by hand — simple, practical, and revolutionary.
She sent her idea directly to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who approved it! Soon after, the War Production Board authorized its manufacture, and the rest is history.
From a wartime innovation to an everyday essential — thank you, Versta Stoudt, for your ingenuity and impact.
Women's Business Enterprise National Council - WBENC WBEC Florida