Joshua Pusey

In 1827, an English pharmacist named John Walker produced his "sulphuretted peroxide strikables," gigantic, yard-long sticks that can be considered the real precursor of today's match.

In 1836 in the United States, Alonzo D. Phillips of Springfield, Massachusetts, obtained a patent for "manufacturing of friction matches" and called them locofocos crazies.

His final design had matches secured to a thin paper wrapping with an attached striking surface.

Unlike present-day matchbooks, Pusey positioned the striking surface on the inside of the paper fold.

Eight years later, in 1897, the Mendelssohn Opera Company distributed matchbooks with their logo emblazoned on them to advertise their New York City opening.