Tires, garden hoses, shoe soles, industrial belts, pencil erasers and more. These days, we take rubber products for granted. But well into the 19th century, rubber was considered too unstable for most commercial uses because it decomposed easily and melted at high temperatures. In this program, guest speaker John Cilio will describe how Charles Goodyear rose from a clerk in his father's Naugatuck hardware store to become a self-taught chemist who eventually discovered the secret to stabilizing rubber – a process called vulcanization. Along the way, Goodyear dealt with poverty, failed experiments, and patent issues – but his eventual success would help launch the industrial revolution of the 1800s and transform Naugatuck into an important industrial center. Even today, the city's main street is called Rubber Avenue.

Category: Attractions | Talks and Lectures