Serendipity: the faculty of making happy and unexpected
discoveries by accident.
Here you will find bits and
pieces related to rubber which do not fit into the main structure of the
site but which I have come across and jotted down. All will be unexpected
and hopefully some will be happy experiences.
◊ Charles Macintosh & Co. – The story of the business.
◊ Conrad Poppenhusen – Who? you may well ask.
◊ Eva Hesse. A short biography of the German-American artist who
used latex in many
of
her artworks.
◊ Gutta Percha. The rise and fall of Gutta Percha during the 19th century
◊ Marlborough Cottage.
The London Home of Thomas Hancock
and family
◊ Photo Galleries:
This link takes
you to an index of high resolution pictures of famous people
in
the story of rubber
Follow this for illustrations from the turn of the 18/19th centuries showing the
treatment of rubber in Amazonia and its shipment to
the US.
The story of natural rubber production told in words and pictures.
◊ Rubber in steam railways. This link takes you to a review by an ex-colleague.
◊ The development of the motor tyre.
◊ Vulcanization. Did Charles Goodyear really discover
vulcanization or was it the
unknown
Mr Eli
of Boston?
◊ 1886. Some snippets from the 1886 edition of the India Rubber and Gutta Percha
and Electrical Trades Journal (later to become the IRJ and even later
the ERJ.
I found them interesting and more might follow!
◊ Lakelandelements sells a wide range of traditional made-to-measure
raincoats to suit every occasion, but on her website Lorraine celebrates
the cult of the traditional 'mackintosh'
in “Lorraine’s Rainwear Club” which contains a vast number of pages
relating to different aspects of this ubiquitous article. The link “http://www.lakelandelements.com/rainwearhistory/rainwearhistoryindex.htm” takes you to rainwear
history which includes the complete e-text of Hancock’s “Personal
Narrative”. Work backwards from here through links in the top right to
“chillout room” then “club foyer” and then to “SHOP” in the bottom left. If
you love Mackintoshes – rubber or plastic - you’ll
love this site!
I need to dispose of 48 bound volumes
(one more unbound but the complete year loose) of the “India Rubber
Journal” from 1887 to 1938 – known in its early days as “The India-Rubber
and Gutta-Percha and Electrical Trades Journal”.
I just need the space!
They are available to a good home at
no charge provided the “buyer” arranges collection. They require about
2.2metres of shelf-space.