[9] Among its best-known consumer brands are Scotch Tape, Scotchgard surface protectants, Post-it notes, and Nexcare adhesive bandages.

Co-founder John Dwan solicited funds in exchange for stock and Edgar Ober and Lucius Ordway took over the company in 1905.

[20] The original formula for Scotchgard, a water repellent applied to fabrics, was discovered accidentally in 1952 by 3M chemists Patsy Sherman and Samuel Smith.

[21][22] In the late 1950s, 3M produced the first asthma inhaler,[23] but the company did not enter the pharmaceutical industry until the mid-1960s with the acquisition of Riker Laboratories, moving it from California to Minnesota.

[25] In the mid-1990s, 3M Pharmaceuticals, as the division came to be called, produced the first CFC-free asthma inhaler in response to adoption of the Montreal Protocol by the United States.

[26][27] In the 1980s and 1990s, the company spent fifteen years developing a topical cream delivery technology which led in 1997 to health authority approval and marketing of a symptomatic treatment for genital warts, Aldara.

[33] In the late 1970s, 3M Mincom was involved in some of the first digital audio recordings to see commercial release when a prototype machine was brought to the Sound 80 studios in Minneapolis.

[36][37] A year later 3M instead issued free samples of it as a sticky note directly to consumers in Boise, Idaho, with 95% of those who tried them indicating they would buy the product.

In 2011 by 3M created CloudLibrary as part of its library systems unit as a competitor to OverDrive, Inc.; in 2015 3M sold the North American part of that unit to Bibliotheca Group GmbH, a company founded in 2011 that was funded by One Equity Partners Capital Advisors, a division of JP Morgan Chase.

[54] In 2018, it was reported that the company would pay $850 million to end the Minnesota water pollution case concerning perfluorochemicals.

[56] On December 19, 2018, 3M announced it had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the technology business of M*Modal, for a total enterprise value of $1.0 billion.

[59] In December 2021, 3M announced that it would merge its food-safety business with food testing and animal healthcare products maker Neogen.

[64] In December 2022, the company announced plans to stop producing and using so-called forever chemicals (per and polyfluoroalkyl[65]), which have been commonly used in items such as food packaging, cellphones, nonstick pans, firefighting foams, and clothing.

These chemicals are well known for their water-resistant and nonstick properties, but they are also dangerous pollutants that are linked to serious health problems, including ulcerative colitis and cancer.

The program initially focused on pollution reduction at the plant level and was expanded to promote recycling and reduce waste across all divisions in 1989.

By the early 1990s, approximately 2,500 3P projects decreased the company's total global pollutant generation by 50 percent and saved 3M $500–600 million by eliminating the production of waste requiring subsequent treatment.

[78] In 1999, the EPA began investigating perfluorinated chemicals after receiving data on the global distribution and toxicity of perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS).

[87][88] In late 2010, the state of Minnesota sued 3M for $5 billion in punitive damages, claiming they released PFCs—classified a toxic chemical by the EPA—into local waterways.

[92] In 2021, research had determined that 3M's Zwijndrecht (Belgium) factory caused PFOS pollution that may be contaminating agricultural products within a 15 kilometer radius of the plant which includes Antwerp.

[96] In 2023, 3M reached an agreement to pay a $10.3bn settlement with numerous US public water systems to resolve thousands of lawsuits over PFAS contamination.

[110] Since 2018, more than 140,000 former users of the earplugs (primarily U.S. military veterans) have filed suit against 3M claiming they suffer from hearing loss, tinnitus, and other damage as a consequence of the defective design.

[111] Internal emails showed that 3M officials boasted about charging $7.63 per piece for the earplugs which cost 85 cents to produce.

[120] Selected factory detail information: Board chairs have included: William L. McKnight (1949–1966),[147][148] Bert S. Cross (1966–1970),[149][150] Harry Heltzer (1970–1975),[151] Raymond H. Herzog (1975–1980),[152] Lewis W. Lehr (1980–1986), Allen F. Jacobson (1986–1991),[153] Livio DeSimone (1991–2001),[154] James McNerney (2001–2005),[155] George W. Buckley (2005–2012),[156][157] and Inge Thulin (2012–2018).

[159] 3M's CEOs have included: Cross (1966–1970),[160] Heltzer (1970–1975),[151] Herzog (1975–1979),[160][161] Lehr (1979–1986),[162] Jacobson (1986–1991),[153] DeSimone (1991–2001),[154] McNerney (2001–2005),[155] Robert S. Morrison (2005, interim),[163] Buckley (2005–2012),[156][157] Thulin (2012–2018), and Roman (2018–present).

[158] 3M's presidents have included: Edgar B. Ober (1905–1929),[164] McKnight (1929–1949),[148][165] Richard P. Carlton (1949–1953),[166] Herbert P. Buetow (1953–1963),[167] Cross (1963–1966),[168] Heltzer (1966–1970),[149] and Herzog (1970–1975).