Jacob Davis was Born in 1834 in Riga Latvia. He came to the US
and then to San Francisco in the 1850s. He moved around the West
extensively trying to make a living through the 1860s. In 1870
Jacob settled in Reno tailoring fine clothing and manufacturing
utilitarian items such as tents and horse blankets from "duck"
(a sturdy cotton fabric) with copper rivets for added strength.
In the late 1870s a woman came to him for a pair of "cheap"
pants for her "large" husband who had the habit of going through
pants rather quickly. Having found that thread alone did not
always adequately hold the pockets onto work pants, Jacob
decided to try out rivets, which had proven their worth on horse
blankets on the pockets for these pants. By 1871 Davis was
routinely using rivets on the pants he made, first on duck, soon
after on denim, and was beginning to be imitated by other
tailors. He contacted Levi Strauss, his fabric supplier, to help
him apply for a patent. The patent was approved in 1873. Levi
invited Davis to San Fra