Toothbrush with nylon bristles, and plastic handle marked “Dr. West.” A letter from the donor states that this was the “First brush ever made with nylon bristle. This brush was made from a batch of experimental product tediously prepared. The initial results with the bristle were so encouraging that we proceeded rapidly with the development of this product. As you probably know, bristle was the first nylon product commercialized. It was sold a year or two before nylon filament yarn came on the market.” The letter went on to say that “This brush was made on a machine in the Leominster (Massachusetts) plant which regularly made toothbrushes for the Dr. West Company. This accounts for the printing on the handle. (It was made) about November 1936.”
