“This remarkable stack rises to a height of 250 feet. The diameter at base is 22 feet and 5 in. with 32 5/8 in. wall. Is 12 feet in diameter at top. 1310 tons of material were required to build it. The stack fans the fires under our boilers and is in a way responsible…
The B.F. Goodrich Company was founded in 1870 by Dr. Benjamin Franklin Goodrich. The company began as a manufacturer of rubberized hoses and later began manufacturing pneumatic bicycle tires. In 1896, B.F. Goodrich became the first company in the United States to manufacture pneumatic automobile tires.
“The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company is one of the largest rubber factories in the United States. Good year produced more than 110,000,000 tires since 1898. It employs thousands of people. The annual Payroll is over $43,000,000. Goodyear is the largest producer of auto tires and rubber heels in the world. 110,000,000 tires linked together would…
One of the largest rubber factories in the United States located in Akron, Ohio, the rubber center of the United States. This view shows plants number one and two and the steel products plant. It covers a great many acres and employs thousands of people.
Ohio Columbus Barber, the founder of nearby Barberton, Ohio, was one of the early manufacturers of rubber products in Akron. He organized and managed the Diamond Rubber Company up to the time of its 1912 acquirement by the B. F. Goodrich Company.
In 1898, Frank Seiberling established the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company in Akron, Ohio. The company was named for Charles Goodyear, the man who developed vulcanized rubber.
In 1916, Goodyear became the world’s largest tire company. This is also when the company began using the slogan “More people ride on Goodyear tires than on any other kind.”
Founded in 1856 by Thomas Robinson, Richard Whitmore, and Thomas Johnson. Robinson Clay Products company manufactured sewer pipes, tile, brick, and many other clay products. Offices in the Second National Building
The Diamond Rubber Company was a manufacturer of vehicle tires and other rubber products at the end of the 19th, and into the early 20th century. The company was created in 1894 by famed local industrialist O.C. Barber.
Goodyear had its initial public offering and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange on On August 5, 1927.
“The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, one of the largest rubber factories in the United States, is located in Akron, the rubber center of the United States. Goodyear produced more than 110,000,000 tires since 1998. It employees thousands of people. The annual payroll is over 43,000,000. Goodyear is the largest producer of auto tires and rubber…
By 1930 Goodyear had pioneered what would later become known as “tundra tires” for smaller aircraft — the “airwheel” aviation wheel-rim/tire sets were initially available in sizes up to 46 inches in diameter.
By 1926 Goodyear was the largest rubber company in the world. Only four years earlier it was forced to temporarily halt production of racing tires due to heavy competition. Nevertheless, the popularity of the Goodyear tire on the racing circuit led to a popular demand for the return of the brand.
Was Goodyear big in Akron? Oh yeah. By the early 1900’s this plant had one million square feet of rubber making floor space and covered 41 acres!
A 1968 factory explosion at the Mohawk Rubber Plant caused the death of 25-year-old Thomas Schultz of Coventry Township.
Quaker Oats mills looking down Akron’s busy Howard Street. The Flatiron building is seen here towering above the Interurban streetcars.
In 1896, seven cars entered America’s first automobile race held on a track – it was the five-lap “Providence Horseless Carriage Race”. To the awe of 60,000 spectators, the Riker Electric Trap No. 1, using Diamond Rubber Company tires, took home the checkered flag. The car averaged about 20 miles per hour.
Firestone had its origins in the rubber city. Founded in1900, the company started operations with just 12 employees. Together, Firestone and Goodyear (also an Akron company) were the largest suppliers of automotive tires in North America for over 75 years. In 1906 Henry Ford chose Firestone for Model T original equipment tires.
Early view of the Quaker Oats Factory on Howard Street in Akron, Ohio. This postcard view also shows wonderful examples of period advertising. Billboards include Akron’s Famous Heaters, and S&G’s Portage Brand Coffee & Tea. On the Left side of the street is a sign for McClains.
Founded in 1907 by S. E. Duff, Star Rubber Goods was one of Akron’s earliest rubber manufacturers. In 1916 the company entered the tire manufacturing business, having previously made druggists’ rubber sundries. The company was reported to have a capacity for 750 tubes and 600 tires a day.
Started in 1894 under the name Sherbondy Rubber Company, In 1896 the company changed its name to the Diamond Rubber Company. Diamond Rubber was founded by famed industrialist Ohio C. Barber, president of the Diamond Match Company.
The Firestone Tire and Rubber Company founder Harvey Firestone, had a personal friendship with Henry Ford, and used this to become the original equipment supplier of Ford Motor Company automobiles, and was also active in the replacement market.
Founded in 1898 by Frank Seiberling, Goodyear manufactures tires for automobiles, commercial trucks, light trucks, motorcycles, SUVs, race cars, airplanes, farm equipment and heavy earth-mover machinery. It also produced bicycle tires from its founding until 1976.
In 1869 Benjamin Franklin Goodrich purchased the Hudson River Rubber Company, a small business in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York. The following year Goodrich accepted an offer of $13,600 from the citizens of Akron, Ohio, to relocate his business there.
In 1894, O.C. Barber tried his hand in the rubber industry. Barber brought in a rubber chemist named Arthur Marks to assist him in this new endeavor. And so the Diamond Rubber Company was born. The company became an early leader in tire manufacturing. Baber soon made a handsome profit by selling the company to…