September 1, 1913.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



621 



THE RUBBER TRADE IN AKRON. 



By (1 Rcsideiil Corrcst'ondoil. 



■ I "HE annual dull season for the rubber business is now on, 

 ■*• and while some of the companies state that none of their 

 help will be laid olT, it is reported that in some other plants two 

 eight-hour shifts are being run instead of the usual three, and 

 that working forces will be cut down as trade slows off. 

 * * * 



The seventeen factories engaged in the rubber industry in 

 Akron are said to have employed in 1912 about 22,600 workers, 

 at a maximum wage for men of 60 cents per hour — minimum, 

 for beginners, 17 cents per hour — and for women a ma.ximum 

 of 30 cents with 10 ci-nt-; for l)eginncrs. The capitalizaticm of 



THE PLANT OF THE B. F. GOODRICH CO. 

 Here is the latest photograph of the mammoth plant of The 

 B. F. Goodrich Co., at Akron, Ohio. This is the largest aggre- 

 gation of factories, belonging to a single rubber company, in the 

 world. It comprises 65 acres of floor space and employs 15,000 

 operatives. The growth of this company has been the most 

 interesting phenomenon in the entire rubber industry. It was 

 only 43 years ago. in 1870, that the late B. F. Goodrich moved 

 bis little rubber factory from the lianks of the Hudson to the 

 small but ambitious town of Akron. He bought an unused 

 factory property for $1,800, and he succeeded in borrowing on 

 his note, from Akron business men, $13,000, which was the 

 company's entire capital. It started— with 25 employes— under 

 the name of the Akron Rubber Works, but ten years later the 

 name was changed to The B. F. Goodrich Co., and its capitaliza- 



Pl.\nt of The B. F. Goodkich Co., Akrox, Ohio. 



these seventeen companies is $112,949,000, and of the six largest 

 the total output for 1912 amounted in value to $94,445,000. with 

 an aggregate pay roll for these six companies of $12,022,780. 



A fire which was discovered Sunday night, August 17, in the 

 w'arehouse of The Loewenthal Rubber Co., destroyed from 

 $25,000 to $30,000 of the company's property before it could be 

 subdued. This company deals in scrap rubber, and the ware- 

 house was well tilled at the time. The fact that the windows 

 fell in immediately firemen started to play the hose on the 

 building and that tlames in large volume at once burst therefrom, 

 leads to the belief that the fire must have been smouldering for 

 some time, rubber being very slow to catch fire. The oflice of 

 the company was not damaged, and its business has not been 

 seriously interfered with. .\ new building will be erected at 

 once to replace this old one-story structure. 

 * * * 



The balata belting and tire departments of The Goodyear Tire 

 & Rubber Co. continue to run day and night. Sales for this 

 year are reported to be 40 per cent, greater than those of last 

 year. This company is working on plans for remodeling the 

 old plant of The Great Western Cereal Co., which will probably 

 be accomplished before the rush of next year's business. H. S. 

 Quine, wdio has resigned liis position as advertising manager 

 of the company to become secretary to the president, F. A. 

 Seiberling. has lieen succeeded by L. L. King. 



tion increased to $100,000. A year and a half ago, when it 

 absorbed the Diamond Rubber Co., the Goodrich capitalization 

 was $20,000,000. which, after the absorption, w-as increased to 

 $90,000,000. It would, of course, be foolhardy to predict what 

 great developments may take place in the rubber industry of 

 this country in the future, but it certainly seems fairly safe to 

 hazard the opinion that never again will a company grow from 

 so hiimljlc and feeble a beginning to such great magnitude. 



* * * 



The B. F. Goodrich Co. is to have Goodrich Road Markers on 

 two official transcontinental routes, one of which is by way of 

 the Santa Fe Trail and the other to San Francisco via Denver, 

 Salt Lake and Reno. This company expects soon to have com- 

 pleted the building under erection at Woodward and Hancock 

 avenues. Detroit, ilichigan, the anticipated cost of which is 



$100,000. 



* * * 



A fire, the cause of which is attributed to spontaneous com- 

 bustion, and w'hich engaged the entire fire-fighting force of 

 Akron, was discovered at an early hour on the morning of 

 August 11 at the plant of the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. 

 It was subdued after a nine-hour struggle by the fire depart- 

 ment, having damaged the plant to the extent of $30,000. 



* * * 



The annual picnic of the Miller Rubber Co.'s employes was 

 held at Cedar Point, Saturday, August 16. The picnickers left 

 .•\kron on a special train, from which they were transferred at 

 Cleveland to the steamer "Eastland" for Cedar Point. Special 



