Firestone-Apsley Rubber Company
The Firestone-Apsley Rubber Company was the successor of the Apsley Rubber Company, and was located in Hudson, Massachusetts.
History
The Goodyear Gossamer Company was founded in 1885 in Hudson by U.S. congressman and businessman Lewis Dewart Apsley and J. H. Coffin of Boston. This company produced rubber (or "gossamer") clothing; within the span of five years, the Goodyear Gossamer Company had become the largest producer of gossamer garments in the nation.
In 1892, Mr. Apsley purchased Mr. Coffin's share of the Goodyear Gossamer Company and reincorporated it as the Apsley Rubber Company. This company produced both rubber clothing and footwear. The plant employed around 1200 to 2000 people during its existence, more than half of all of those employed in Hudson at the time.
The plant was sold to the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company when Mr. Apsley approached retirement; the plant was renamed the Firestone-Apsley Rubber Company and it produced tires. A new smokestack that had the word "Firestone" spelled out on it in white-painted bricks was built by the Firestone Company. The factory folded in the 1930s, during the Great Depression.
Today, the plant is still existence, but the Firestone-Apsley Rubber Company is long gone. Since 1963, the plant has housed Hudson Lock, LLC, which produces keys and locks. The Firestone smokestack is no longer used but is also still standing, and is quite possibly the tallest structure in the town of Hudson.
References
- The Hudson Historical Society. (1976). Hudson Bicentennial Scrapbook. Private publication.
See also
External links
Coordinates: 42°23′41.69″N 71°34′34.1″W / 42.3949139°N 71.576139°W