Who discovered rubber, and the ways it could be used?

Who discovered rubber, and the ways it could be used?

Rubber is a natural substance that had been used or centuries before being rediscovered by Columbus, and introduce to Western culture. Caoutchouc or natural rubber came from the Indian word ‘cahuchu’ which meant ‘weeping wood’. Natural rubber was harvested from the sap that oozed from the bark of the rubber tree. The name ‘rubber’ comes from the use of the natural substance as a pencil eraser that could ‘rub out’ pencil marks.

In 1837, Charles Goodyear received his fires patent for a process that made rubber an easier product to work with. However, this was not the patent Goodyear is best known for. In 1843, Goodyear discovered that if you removed the sulphur from rubber then heated it; it would retain its elasticity. This process called vulcanization made rubber waterproof and winter proof and opened the door for an enormous market for rubber goods. On June 24, 1844, Goodyear was granted patent for vulcanised rubber.