Late 1950s - Steel strapping was used before World War II on railroad flat car and gondola loads. It was very widely used during the war for military shipments and servicemen became familiar with it, leading to a great increase in its use after the war. Steel strapping for lumber loads, in the form of banding, was not seen until the end of the 1950s. The first use of it on the Southern Pacific, a major lumber shipper, may have been as late as 1959.
Bob Chaparro
Hemet, CA