Charles Goodyear ... sounds familiar? - The Story of Today's Tires To Exist

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Goodyear's Company Logo

Ever heard about a tire company called Goodyear Corporate? Ever wonder who invented the material to make today's tires? how the material actually discovered? Do you believe me if I told you that 'Vulcanized Rubber' the material to make today's tires was discovered by accident after many years of trying?

Today's Modern Car Tires

I'm not here to promote about Goodyear Company's tires, but I'm here to share you about a story of a person behind the company's name, a story about a person never knew the meaning of given up, the person whom may not be familiar to most but without him, today's car tires or any other items using rubbers wont be exist.

Charles Goodyear, was a visionary man where he believed that he can replaced the current rubber with his rubber in the early 19th century. Although rubber business was a total loss during that time due to the weakness of the rubber itself, but Charles Goodyear still holding on to his belief!

He was frequently locked up in jail due to unpaid debt, but that wont stop him. Can you believe this? he even started his early experiments on rubber in the cell! Usually many people will gave up on trying but not Charles Goodyear, just not him.

He's not alone, he had his family with him, after released from jail, his wife and daughter helped him in preparing the necessary materials for his rubber experiments. He had moved far away from his hometown Philadelphia to New York city due to their unhappy neighbors complained the unpleasant smells came from his laboratory. Well that's still not the end for him, in New York, his friend gave him a place for his laboratory. He mostly used his money for buying ingredients for the experiments. Lack of food was a common thing to his family, Charles Goodyear once said to his brother-in-law who once visited them in New York and lectured about lack of food in Goodyear's family that, "I am the man to bring it back".

Years by years Charles Goodyear faced failures, after many times of experiments and trials, still failures stand besides him and his family. They moved away from New York and lived in Woburn near the farm, Milk and half-grown potatoes was the only source of food for them. Though Charles Goodyear still gripping hard to his belief about his rubbers.

It was winter, where the Goodyear's rubber experiment which this time, he mixed it with sulphur. Accidentally, yes by accidentally the mixture rubber with suphur landed on the sizzling-hot potbellied stove. He founds out that this was it, this was the rubber he was looking for in all these years, a type of rubber that can resist weather!

After he discovered about the rubber, he sent few samples to the British rubber companies but without any details or descriptions about the rubber. A famed English rubber who also tried to make a rubber that is weatherproof had received one of the rubber samples. He, Thomas Hancock surprised about the samples and he offered Charles Goodyear half of his share but unfortunately Charles Goodyear foolishly declined the offer. I'm still wondering why he foolishly declined the offer, the offer could change his life forever but why he declined? The mystery still remains untold.

Goodyear's tires are mostly used in sports racing.

Neither Charles Goodyear himself nor his families related to the Goodyear's Tire Company, the company was named after Charles Goodyear for appreciation, an honor of what he had done and sacrificed in his life. If he ever gave up on his belief on rubbers, maybe today, we wont see any rubbers around, maybe tires today will be made out of wood, who knows? He was the man that make our future to happen.