Tale of the tape
You may think the matter is settled, and that’s understandable: In the past few years, the “duck tape” adherents have wiring duct been on the march, and the story they promote has considerable appeal. In the 1940s, the tale goes, the US military asked Johnson & Johnson cable duct to come up with “a waterproof, strong cloth based tape that could keep moisture out of ammunition cases.” The tape J&J produced was (allegedly) called “duck tape,” either because its cloth base was cotton duck (a plain-weave fabric, lighter than canvas) or because it repelled water (as in “off a duck’s back”). “Duck tape,” by this account, became “duct tape” only during the postwar building boom, when its chief use became taping heating ducts.
Not only is this a good story, it’s the “official” version, taken from Johnson & Johnson’s company history (viewable at the blog Kilmer House). And even the Oxford English Dictionary says that “duct tape” may “perhaps” be an cable trunking alteration of “duck tape.” But is there any evidence that “duck tape” was the earlier name of “duct tape”?
