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Posts from Heddels for 12/11/2023
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By Zach Liollio on Dec 11, 2023 12:01 am
Pockets will only take you so far. Whether you’re carrying books to class or a load of equipment on a three-hour-long ruck march, backpacks will take you further and faster than any other accessory.
Backpacks have evolved to carry a wide range of specialized gear for any mission. My favorite is a water-resistant backpack for camping that has loops on the side to carry a hatchet and straps on top for the ground cloth and blanket. In college, I remember backpacks with dedicated pencil and pen pockets (that could also hold a phone charger or a bag of Cheetos). Below, we’ll examine how humble materials like canvas, leather, and wood have evolved into the ergonomic, stuff-swallowing storage compartments that we pull onto our shoulders every day.
Backpack, Knapsack, and Rucksack
English is sometimes cruel to us in that we have a lot of words that can essentially mean the same thing.
The easiest pack to distinguish is the rucksack—think of these as large, utilitarian, military-grade packs for carrying some serious gear over serious distances. There’s even a (slang) verb to accompany it; “rucking.” As the term implies, it involves walking, hiking, or marching long distances while being strapped down with a rucksack. This exercise is common for physical training and a requirement for expert soldiering.
The U.S. Army’s lightweight rucksack of 1968 was mounted to a field pack frame. Image via gear-illustration.com.
Speaking of military gear, a knapsack was the historical choice for many of the world’s armies. Some people, namely Canadians, will use the terms knapsack and backpack interchangeably today. Reading the justifications for one term over the other, I’m hard-pressed to find any concrete differences other than the fact that the usage of “knapsack” tapered off in the mid-20th century. It’s just a matter of semantics. The popularity of the word “backpack” coincides with the dominance of zippers after World War II and a time when schoolkids began carrying what we recognize as the accessory’s modern iteration—so, the association stuck.
Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) sported a red pack in “Back to the Future Part II” (1989). Image via GQ España.
Blanket Rolls and Bindle Sticks
A circa 1917 image compares the American pack system with the traditional blanket roll. Image via Phil-osophy.
A few improvised systems get “honorary mention” as far as backpacks go. A “bedding” or “blanket roll” is exactly that; placing your items inside of a blanket that can be rolled, tied to itself at the ends, and thrown over your shoulder like a sash. In some cases, a waterproof blanket, ground cloth, or shelter half can be rolled on the outside to make the whole thing waterproof. This resourceful method goes back to at least a few centuries. In 1800s Australia, transient laborers wore something similar known as a “swag” and thereafter dubbed “swagmen” or “swaggies.”
A hobo, or hobo stand-in, carries his bindle stick for the camera. Image via “The San Bernardino Sun.”
Speaking of iterant labor, bindle sticks were popularized in the late 19th century. Their construction involves tying your belongings in a makeshift sack—a large bandana works—that’s suspended from the end of a sturdy stick and carried on your shoulder. Hobos made the bindle iconic during the Great Depression of the 1930s and bindles remain an inseparable part of their image.
Pack Frame
Pack frame examples can be found in many cultures. Image via Carryology.
The earliest backpacks were not for individuals with sore shoulders. Ancient peoples recognized the need to carry crucial things: animal carcasses to feed their families, wild fruits foraged from the wilderness, and even their children. Like with everything in life, they used what they had and wood made the ideal base for what became known as a ‘pack frame’. From this bare frame, they could rig whatever they needed to carry like a human flatbed truck.
“Trapper Nelson’s Indian Pack Board,” ca. 1922. Image via History Link.org.
Lloyd Nelson, an entrepreneur in the outdoor sporting goods industry, saw indigenous pack frames when he encountered the Inuit people on an arduous expedition through Alaska in 1920. He then adapted the design with cutting-edge construction and materials. The end product? “Trapper Nelson’s Indian Pack Board.” Modern hunters will recognize the pack frame as an essential part of their kit to this day. Meanwhile, materials like wood and leather have largely been substituted for synthetics and metals.
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