United States Rubber Company - Origins

Origins

The Litchfield Rubber Co. moved to Naugatuck, Connecticut in 1847, and the name was changed to Goodyear's India Rubber Glove Mfg. Co., as it began to manufacture rubber gloves for telegraph linemen. It was the only company in which Charles Goodyear, inventor of the rubber vulcanization process, is known to have owned stock. By 1892, there were many rubber manufacturing companies in Naugatuck, as well as elsewhere in Connecticut. Nine companies consolidated their operations in Naugatuck to become the United States Rubber Company. From 1892 to 1913, the rubber footwear divisions of U.S. Rubber manufactured their products under 30 different brand names, including the Wales-Goodyear Shoe Co. The company consolidated these brands under one name, Keds, in 1916, and were first mass-marketed as canvas-top "sneakers" in 1917. These were the first sneakers.

On May 26, 1896 Charles Dow created the Dow Industrial average of twelve industrial manufacturing stocks, which included among them U.S. Rubber Company. When the average expanded to a list of 20 stocks in 1916, U.S. Rubber remained, however the listing expanded to 30 stocks in 1928 and U.S. Rubber was dropped.

In an effort to increase its share of the automobile tire market in 1931, U.S. Rubber Company bought a substantial portion of the Gillette Safety Tire Company. The company was founded in 1916 by Raymond B. Gillette and its primary manufacturing plant was located in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. The Gillette plant held large contracts with the General Motors Corporation and with the addition of U.S. Rubber products, became one of the world's largest supplier of original equipment tires. It produced tires under the Gillete, Ward, Atlas, and U.S. Rubber and U.S. Royal brands.

In 1940, U.S. Rubber purchased the remainder of the Gillette company, and began to expand and modernize the Eau Claire factory, greatly increasing production. During World War II, U.S. Rubber factories were devoted to production of war goods, and produced military truck and airplane tires, as well as the canvas-top, rubber-soled Jungle boot for soldiers and marines serving in tropical and jungle environments.

In 1942, the United States government restricted the sale of scarce rubber products for civilian use and production at the plant dwindled. The company sold the Eau Claire plant to the government, which then converted it for the manufacture of small caliber ammunition and renaming it the Eau Claire Ordnance plant.

By December 31, 1943, the need for tires outweighed the need for ammunition. U.S. Rubber repurchased the plant from the government for over US$1 million, and converted it back to synthetic rubber tire production. The company began an expansion and modernization program that lasted through 1951. When it ended, the Eau Claire plant was the fifth largest tire facility in the United States. The company again expanded the plant in 1965 to produce tires for construction machinery and for many years it was the largest private employer in Eau Claire and the second largest in Chippewa Falls before it was closed in 1991.

In late 1943, US Rubber working with one of its engineers Dr. Louis Marick developed a propeller de-icing system in which a rubber boot was fitted onto the leading edge of a propeller. The boot contained wires that conducted electricity to heat the edge and break-up ice.