Charles Goodyear and Vulcanisation/Vulcanization

Charles Goodyear Book

Charles Goodyear (Born 1800 - Died 1860)

Charles Goodyear was born in New Haven, Connecticut. He invented the process of the vulcanization of rubber - patenting the process in 1844 after spending many years perfecting the process.

Goodyear triumphs over adversity

He was imprisoned many times for bad debts incurred due to his investment in his inventions. In the end, his invention of vulcanized rubber is one of the most important inventions of our modern economy, vital for the transport industry in the form of rubber tyres for vehicles.

Roxbury Rubber Company

Goodyear worked with the owners of the Roxbury Rubber Company (read Scientific American no. 787, Jan 31, 1891) to perfect their rubber products to prevent them from decaying after being sold. This led to his invention of the vulcanisation process.

Goodyear Motor Company

Rubber tyre from Goodyear Tyre Co

The Goodyear Motor Company named itself in honour of Charles Goodyear. See here for more information on the rubber tire. Note: Spelling of Tire is US, Tyre in UK. Although natural rubber is often replaced with synthetic rubber in modern tyres, Charles Goodyear made a profound impact on the economy of the world with his invention of vulcanized rubber. Almost as important as the invention of the wheel itself, is the rubber to go around it. Without rubber tyres, planes couldn't land and the transport system would be running on metal or wooden wheels.

Vulcanisation

Fake Rubber Plant - 150cm tall

Vulcanisation (British spelling) or Vulcanization (American spelling) is the process of converting latex (from a rubber tree - Hevea brasiliensis) into the useful substance which we call rubber; useful for products like Wellington Boots (Rubber Boots), tyres for vehicles, and erasers for pencils. The process of vulcanisation involves the application of a combination of heat and sulphur in specific proportions to a latex base mixture. The purpose of vulcanisation is to prevent or slow down the natural decay of rubber.

Examples of rubber products

Rubber for children's toys: Rubber duck

Rubber tyres (on cars, go-carts, airplanes)

Rubber tracks for toys and machines

Rubber Washing Up Bowl

Who invented rubber Wellington boots?

No single person was responsible for the invention of rubber Wellington Boots. Goodyear was responsible for creating the process that produced the first rubber that made the manufacture of rubber Wellington boots possible. The Duke of Wellington designed the Wellington Boot (although not called the Wellington boot at the time) for his soldiers for the Battle of Waterloo, in 1815, fighting against Napoleon. The distinguishing feature of the Wellington Boot was the low-cut heels and the calf-high tops. The Duke of Wellington, defeated Napoleon at Waterloo, and in the wake of this victory and his ensuing popularity, Wellington boots became popular, originally made in hessian, but later made in rubber. The hessian boot was the forerunner of the both the cowboy boot and the Wellington boot.

Wellington Boots Origin

In 1847, S.C. Shive, in America, patented the patterns and crimping board for what is known as a Full Wellington. This was a two piece boot that found wide acceptance among the military, horsemen, and adventurers of the time, possibly due to the news of the Battle of Waterloo. Of interest is that by 1868 Wellingtons were almost exclusively an American style. Europe preferred the Hessian boot style - which had tassles and a more pointy toe.

Ref: Full account of boot history

Hiram Hutchinson

In 1852, Hiram Hutchinson licensed Goodyear's rubber process to manufacture rubber boots, although these were not originally called Wellington Boots, and were mainly sold for farm labourers to use instead of wooden cloggs. He started the the Aigle company - now well known for producing quality Wellington Boots. By 1857 Aigle was producing 14,000 pairs of hand-made rubber boots per day! Read more about the history of Aigle here.

Synthetic Rubber and Neoprene

Synthetic rubber is used to substitute for the real thing, usually in cases where the impurities found in natural rubber are not desired (such as in medical applications). One of the most successful synthetic rubbers is Neoprene (invented by DuPont in 1931); Neoprene is used in wetsuits and Wellington Boots - and exhibits superior insulation, weather proofness, and chemical inertness.

Charles Goodyear Jnr. (Welting Process Invention)

Charles Goodyear's son invented machinery to create shoes. He patented a shoe welt machine (in 1871) and created the Goodyear welt construction process, which to this day is the process used to make the finest boots and shoes.

Examples of synthetic rubber products

Ron Thompson Neoprene Waders (also see Ron Thompson Thermal Boots)

CSR Prodigy Superstretch Neoprene Large Gloves

Konfidence Neoprene Beach Boots/Shoes Blue UK Children

Neoprene Wellington Boots

External Links

• Charles Goodyear
• Obtaining Latex from a Rubber Tree
• Vulcanisation Process
• History of the Goodyear Tyre Company

Related links

Wellingtons

• Page 76 - Kids Fireman Rainboots
• Page 77 - Funky Wellington Boots
• Page 78 - Wellington Boots Song for Children
• Page 79 - Kids Wellington Boots
• Page 80 - Wellington Boots
• Page 81 - Wellie Boots

Wellington Boots by colour

• Page 82 - Yellow Wellington Boots
• Page 83 - Purple Wellington Boots
• Page 84 - Red Wellington Boots
• Page 85 - Green Wellington Boots
• Page 86 - Pink Wellington Boots (for grown-ups)
• Page 87 - Pink Wellington Boots (for children)
• Page 88 - Chocolate/Brown Wellington Boots

Fashion and Designer Boots Page 89 - Hunter Wellington Boots Page 90 - Snow Boots Page 91 - Children's Boots Page 92 - Emu Boots Page 93 - Hush Puppies Page 94 - Rocket Dog Page 95 - Sugar boots Page 96 - Jella Wellington Boots for kids Page 97 - Skull Wellington Boots Page 98 - Flower Pattern Wellingtons Page 99 - Ladies boots Page 100 - Tamara Henriques Wellies Page 101 - Pink Heart Funky Wellies Page 102 - Cowboy Wellies Page 103 - UGGs Page 104 - Fly London Boots Animal Patterns Page 105 - Leopard Rain Boots Page 106 - Zebra Wellies Page 107 - Giraffe Wellies

Pink Heart Wellington Boots. View > Exploding star wellies. View >

Wellington Boot Gifts and Accessories

• Page 108 - Boot jack
• Page 109 - Wellie Warmers
• Page 110 - Boot bag
• Page 111 - Wellington Boot gift ideas

Information and Articles

• Page 112 - Shoe size chart
• Page 113 - Looking after your Wellies
• Page 114 - Wellington Boot Week Festival
• Page 115 - Cement Boots
• Page 116 - Wellington Boot auctions
• Page 117 - How wellies are made
• Page 118 - Charles Goodyear (inventor of rubber for Wellington Boots)
• Page 119 - Duke of Wellington
• Page 120 - Wellington Boot mis-spellings