This year marks the 140^th anniversary of the invention of the electric vibrator. That’s right, electric vibrators specifically designed to massage female genitals have been around since 1869 when American physician George Taylor invented the first steam-powered massager. Why did he invent it? To ease the strain on doctors who found their hands were getting tired from, and we kid you not, massaging women’s genitals to treat “hysteria”. Yes, doctors treated hysteria, the symptoms of which included sensitive nether regions and excessive vaginal lubrication, by massaging the genitals of the female sufferer. Oh. My. Goodness.  Imagine checking out of work early, telling the boss “Sorry, it’ll have to wait till tomorrow, can’t chat now, I’ve got a doctor’s appointment!” as you head out to get your vulva massage.

24 kt. gold-plated No.12 Golden-Glo Vitalator - Circa 1950

The first home-use vibrators became available in the early 1900’s. The Barker Universal Home Vibrator came complete with speed control and Hamilton Beach’s Try-New-Life brand vibrator was on the market long before it introduced the electric vacuum or iron. A company after our own heart.

Early-model vibrators resembled a dentist’s drill, but by the mid-50s “luxury” models had hit the market.  The 24 kt. gold-plated No.12 Golden-Glo Vitalator was a top of the line model during the 1950’s and sold for $24.95 or about $223 in today’s dollars. 

Now why not see how far we’ve come and browse our wide selection of Vibrating Goodness.

Tags: 1950's, Sex Flash Backs, Vibrators

This entry was posted on Friday, July 31st, 2009 at 7:43 am and is filed under Sex Flash Backs. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.