Whether you ’re publish documents at home plate or the role , you know it ’s wise to keep reams ofpaperon manus . But when you chitchat an office supply store , there is n’t a riches of selection . The received paper sizing is 8.5 inches broad by 11 inches long .
Which invite a bit of pulpy pondering : Who decided that ?
harmonise toMarketplacewriter Jack Stewart , the answer repose in the early days of paper product , when worker dipped composition molds made of wood into tub take mush and water . Once dried , you had paper .
This technique was pioneered by the Dutch paper makers of the 1660s . Through trial and mistake , the flesh settled into a standard size of 44 inches long toaccommodatethe outstretched weaponry of the labourer . dissever up by four , that gave paper makers a paper sizing of 11 inches .
The breadth is a little bit murky . It may be that the Dutch allow for 17 inch on the mold to make room for water line . cut those in half meant paper that was 8.5 column inch .
But that ’s only part of the standardization cognitive operation . With people using typewriter , duplicator , and printing machine , it made small sense to have multiple sizes of composition usable . There needed to be a one - sizing - fits - all philosophy . Paper total in at 8.5 inch by 11 inches fit the bill — or , in this pillow slip , the typewriter . The sizeallowsfor a comfortable 65 to 78 characters per 6.5 inches per type , which is what you get after deduct 1 - inch margin .
This size became more omnipresent when Presidents Herbert Hoover and Ronald Reagan both mandate the dimension for all government forms in the 1920s and 1980s , respectively . ( Hoover was looking to minimize newspaper thriftlessness . )
There is another standardized distance of paper—14 inches . That extra 3 inches is thought to be the result of attorney needing more elbow room for tedious contract bridge , which is why it ’s often relate to as sound - size newspaper . It ’s fuck off increasingly popular in restaurants , where the additional place is helpful to number card items . Most newspaper , however , is the effect of craftspeople who merely could n’t get their blazonry around anything else .
A version of this story in the first place run in 2021 ; it has been updated for 2023 .
