There is not a single wardrobe staple quite as iconic as jeans. Whether you’re currently rocking mom jeans, ripped jeans, starched and ironed jeans, or anything in between, the origin story stems from the same place. In 1873, Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis co-invented and co-patented the idea of using copper rivets at the stress points of sturdy work pants after one of Davis' customers kept purchasing cloth to reinforce torn pants. This subsequently revolutionized the apparel industry, and we can’t help but wonder how many of the 10,000 inaugural Kentucky Derby spectators were rockin’ the brand-new Levi’s style.

Potentially the single hottest commodity of 2020 during the pandemic, the idea of commercially produced toilet paper was born in 1857. Joseph Gayetty, an entrepreneur in New York City, invented and sold aloe-infused sheets of manila hemp that dispensed from Kleenex-like boxes. Unfortunately, people did not flock to it at the time, preferring to carry on using pages from Sears Roebuck catalogs that came in the mail for free. Five stars for creative recycling, one star for comfiness.

This modern-day household staple was first discovered by John Landis Mason and patented on Nov. 30, 1858 – a date embossed on millions of jars for food preservation and pickling. While these jars are still famous for their traditional uses, they’re also the perfect glass to drink an iced latte, aesthetic cocktail, or our next invention on the list out of …

Essentially just lemonade with added pink color, the earliest known reference to pink lemonade came in 1857 when someone used water dyed pink from a horseback rider's red tights to make a batch of lemonade. After that, people *thankfully* switched over to additives like grenadine, cherry juice, grapefruit juice, cranberry juice and strawberry juice to add that delectable pink color without the unsavory taste of old riding pant water.

Invented in 1865 by John Batterson Stetson during a hunting trip, Stetson used fur collected during the trip, his bare hands, and boiling water to make a piece of felt. With utility in mind, he shaped the headwear with a large brim to better protect from rain, wind, and snow. While functionality that remains the primary use for some folks, cowboy fashion has gone mainstream in recent years. Arguably the anthem of 2019 after spending 17 weeks at #1, the song “Old Town Road” references a “cowboy hat from Gucci,” which we all sang or swayed along to at one point as it played in conjunction with the Kentucky Derby broadcast that year.

While the origin of this invention is contested by some, it is widely believed that jelly beans first surfaced in 1861 when Boston confectioner and inventor William Schrafft urged people to send his jelly beans to soldiers during the American Civil War. 161 years later, these sweet little treats are the cash cow for dentists everywhere after the Easter holiday.

Potentially one of the most polarizing inventions on this list, the spork was invented in 1874 by Samuel W. Francis. You either love these handy little tools, or they frustrate you beyond oblivion.

Not just limited to root beer floats, variations of the ice cream soda are as countless as the varieties of soda and flavors of ice cream. In 1874, the ice cream soda was invented by Robert M. Green of Philadelphia. Green's invention paved the way for the soda fountain industry to flourish and for many new novelties such as ice cream sundaes to be created. Now THAT is a sweet invention.