On the 20th May 1873, Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis secured the patent for riveted blue jeans.  The rivets strengthened the jeans, reducing the likelihood of tearing and making them perfect for manual labour.

Strauss was a German-born businessman who sold fabric on the West Coast of the USA, and Davis was a Russian-born tailor working in Nevada.  Their relationship began as supplier and customer – Davis used to buy fabric from Strauss’s warehouse to manufacture garments.  It was Davis who came up with the idea of strengthening the stress points with rivets after the wife of a woodcutter asked ...