Goodyear was founded in 1898 by Frank Seiberling in Akron, Ohio where the headquarters remain today. The company is named after Charles Goodyear, who invented vulcanized rubber. They originally produced carriage and bicycle tires.
In 1901, the company provided Ford with racing tires. By 1908, all Model T’s feature Goodyear tires.
In 1925, the first Goodyear blimp is launched.
By 1926, Goodyear is the largest rubber company in the world.
In 1927, the company goes public.
In 1944, the company opens a subsidiary called Goodyear-Oxo in Mexico.
In 1986, the company completed a huge buyback on common stock after a hostile takeover attempt was launched by James Goldsmith.
Today, Goodyear is one of the largest tire manufacturers in the world. Besides automobiles, they also manufacture tires for trucks (light & commercial), race cars, airplanes and farm equipment.
