Hood Rubber Company

The Hood Rubber Company was a footwear and rubber manufacturing firm founded in Watertown, Massachusetts, in 1896 by brothers Frederic C. Hood and Arthur N. Hood. The company's history traces back to 1877 when their father, George Henry Hood, established the Boston Rubber Company. In 1892, Boston Rubber Co. consolidated with other rubber manufacturers to form the United States Rubber Company, after which G.H. Hood retired, allowing his sons to establish the Hood Rubber Company. Throughout its history, the company introduced innovative footwear products, including the "Tuff Boot" in 1898 and the "Rolled Edge" shoe line in 1901. In 1904, Dr. Carl Otto Weber joined the company to establish a rubber laboratory, and by 1909, Hood Rubber Company began manufacturing canvas rubber-soled shoes and early tennis shoes. The company also produced basketball-specific shoes, including the popular "P-F" Conference model with patented arch support introduced in 1948. During World War I, Hood supplied trench boots to the French and English armies, and during World War II, it manufactured military boots for the U.S. Armed Forces, earning four Army-Navy "E" Awards for Excellence in Production between 1941 and 1945. In 1906, the company entered the automobile tire market through a subsidiary, Shawmut Tire Company, but this venture was unsuccessful by 1912. On August 31, 1929, Hood Rubber Company merged with The B.F. Goodrich Company, becoming a wholly owned subsidiary. The merger transferred management of B.F. Goodrich footwear production to Hood's Watertown plant. After operating for nearly 70 years, the plant closed in ...