Exhibits
Visit >> Exhibits
Rolling on Rubber
How Need Inspires Innovation
The new exhibit at the Litchfield Park Museum shines a light on the extensive and rapid growth of the rubber tire industry from 1900 to the early 1960s – a time when rubber became one of America’s great industries. Spurred on by the popularity of bicycles which gave people a new freedom and mobility, it only seemed logical for businessmen to turn to the newly invented automobile for further opportunities. After all, each vehicle needed rubber tires.
As a result, hundreds of companies set up shop overnight; and Akron, Ohio, soon became the Rubber Capital of the World. This was partly due to the accessibility of goods via railroad, the Ohio and Erie Canal, and the Cuyahoga River; but mainly it was due to the intersection of leadership and luck.
The Founder
Paul Weeks Litchfield 1875 - 1959
Learn more about the life of Paul Weeks Litchfield. Litchfield figured prominently into the pillars of Arizona’s 20th century economy and was instrumental in its transition from one largely based on agriculture to one increasingly based on manufacturing and technology. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts and was mainly based in Akron, Ohio throughout his career. He was a chemical engineer, inventor, corporate leader, and industrialist with the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company from 1900 – 1958 and was engaged in enterprises that had a significant role in shaping Arizona’s economy.
Southwest Cotton Company and Goodyear Farms artifacts and photographs
The story of A Company Town: Litchfield Park 1917-1959 is told through photographs and artifacts.
Medicine in Litchfield Park
Showcases the medical equipment of Dr. Robert Hilton, Litchfield Park’s fourth physician, and Dr. George McMillan, its first dentist.
