Buttons.
They didn't. You can't use something BEFORE it is invented.
The zipper was invented by Whitcomb Judson in 1890 in Chicago. The method he used in his invention is still in use today.
benches
bikes
pickaxes
carriages
slide fastener is a common name but it's effect to a people that use zipper.
horses or their feet.
wall sockets
Brief case
Buttons and knots.
We used letters.