The opaque backing paper allows roll film to be loaded in daylight.
It is typically printed with frame number markings which can be viewed through a small red window at the rear of the camera.
In 1881 a farmer in Cambria, Wisconsin, Peter Houston, invented the first roll film camera.
His younger brother David, filed the patents for various components of Peter's camera.
[1] David Henderson Houston (born June 14, 1841; died May 6, 1906),[2] originally from Cambria, Wisconsin, patented the first holders for flexible roll film.