E. Bryant Crutchfield

Ernest Bryant "Crutch" Crutchfield (February 5, 1937 – August 21, 2022),[3] was an American executive. He was perhaps best known for his invention of the "Trapper Keeper", a type of loose-leaf ring binder geared to students.[2][4]

E. Bryant Crutchfield
Born
Ernest Bryant Crutchfield[1]

(1937-02-05)February 5, 1937
Greenville, Alabama, U.S.
DiedAugust 21, 2022(2022-08-21) (aged 85)
Marietta, Georgia, U.S.
Alma materAuburn University
OccupationExecutive
SpouseVirginia Crutchfield[2]
Children2[2]

Life and career

Crutchfield was born in Greenville, Alabama, the son of Belle Griggers and Ralph Crutchfield, both workers at a cotton mill.[2] He attended Auburn University, where he earned his degree in 1960; he was the first person in his family to attend college.[2] Crutchfield moved to Atlanta, where he worked for the stationery manufacturer Montag, which was later bought by Mead.[2]

In 1971, Crutchfield participated in the development of the ABC television special Good Vibrations from Central Park, which featured the Beach Boys and Carly Simon, but also included pitches for Mead's product line, in a bid to get students to start thinking about school and school supplies. He also earned in-house awards for his product developments[2]

Crutchfield had begun to evolve his loose-leaf ring binder "Trapper Keeper" in the 1970s, but took his time bringing it to market.[4][5] It was officially released nationwide in 1981 by Mead. The company estimated that by the end of the 1980s, half of American middle and high schoolers owned one.[2]

Crutchfield died in August 2022 of bone cancer at hospice in Marietta, Georgia, at the age of 85.[2][4]

References
  1. "Society". Greenville Advocate. Greenville, Alabama. July 27, 1961. p. 12. Retrieved September 22, 2022 – via Newspapers.com. closed access
  2. Risen, Clay (August 25, 2022). "E. Bryant Crutchfield, 85, Dies; Gave the World the Trapper Keeper". The New York Times. Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  3. Lynch, Greg (August 29, 2022). "E. Bryant Crutchfield, inventor of the Trapper Keeper in Dayton, dies at 85". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  4. Langer, Emily (August 29, 2022). "E. Bryant Crutchfield, creator of the Trapper Keeper, dies at 85". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  5. Erin McCarthy (31 August 2017). "The History of the Trapper Keeper". Mental Floss. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
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