The "Little Nipper," a prototype for the standard spring-loaded snapping device you might immediately think of when asked to imagine a mousetrap, was invented by James Henry Atkinson in 1897. It's simple: flat wooden base, wire fastenings, spring trap.Mar 28, 2011 it was a prototype but James Henry Atkinson, an ironmonger invented the design that we are familiar w/ today he is most famous for is his mousetrap (GB 13277 of 1899). So i'd say 1899