'Unintended consequences': The rubber industry's toxic legacy in Akron – Center for Public Integrity
Introduction In the winter of 1946, Perkins Pringle boarded the first leg of a 950-mile train ride from Durant, Mississippi, to Akron, Ohio—the Rubber Capital of the World. He initially stayed with his Uncle Erich and found work at the twenty-five thousand-acre Ravenna Arsenal, which stockpiled ammunition and machinery during World War II. Eight years after his arrival, he ended up at Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. in the sooty mill room where workers mixed raw rubber with carbon black, or lamp black, which made tires strong and dark. He then moved to the tube room, the rubber shop, and event...
Source: publicintegrity.org