The Hard Rubber Substitutes

, celluloid, pyroxylin, xylonite, galalith, & bakelite.

[Posted on L&P on Apr 27, 2010.]
        Here are a few trademarks for substitutes for hard rubber.  US trademark no. 1,102, Celluloid Mfg. Co., “Compound Of Pyroxylin”, Jan 14, 1873, is for the name “Celluloid”, the cellulose nitrate plastic later used in fountain pens, mechanical pencils, motion picture film etc.  US trademark no. 11,569, Charles H. Graef, “Certain Fancy Goods Made Of Hard Rubber, Celluloid, Horn, Lignoid, Xylonite, Tortoise Shell”, Oct 14, 1884, used since Aug 9, 1884, is for the words “Labor Omnia Vincit, Columbia” and an image of Bartholdi’s “Statue Of Liberty Enlightening The World”.  US trademark no. 20,852, Arlington Mfg. Co., “Material Made Of Pyroxyline”, Mar 15, 1892, used since July 1891, is for the word “Pyralin”.  US trademark nos. 29,053 and 29,054, George A. Alden & Co., “India-Rubber, Gutta-Percha, And Other Vulcanizable Gums”, Oct 27, 1896, are for the names “Anchor Brand” and “Sun Brand”, and US trademark nos. 29,206 through to 29,213, Nov 24, 1896, are for the names “Two-Wheel Brand”, “Globe Brand”, “Crescent Brand”, “Eagle Brand”, “Wheel Brand”, “Rose Brand”, “Lighthouse Brand”, and “Bell Brand”.  I’ll let you look them up yourselves, if you’re interested.  US trademark no. 33,275, Stahl & Straub, “A Chemical Composition As A Substitute For Hard Rubber”, July 25, 1899, used since June 17, 1899, is for the word “Xelton”.  US trademark no. 34,001, Celluloid Co., “Pyroxylin Compounds, And Substances Coated With Same”, Jan 2, 1900, used since Mar 1, 1898, is for the word “Texoderm”.  US trademark no. 35,320, Loewitz & Rohlfs, “Gutta-Percha Paper”, Oct 30, 1900, used since Apr 1, 1893, is for the word “Hammonia”.  Also see Thomas R. Dawson and P. D. Porritt’s book, Rubber, Physical And Chemical Properties (1935), printed on latex-rubber paper, in the Open Library and WorldCat.   US trademark no. 36,603, Gummiwaaren-Fabriken Harburg, “Substances Of Celluloid, Hard Rubber, And Tortoise, Or Like Nature”, June 18, 1901, used since Nov 13, 1900, is the word “Galalith” used for casein plastic.  US trademark no. 59,629, Celluloid Co., “Plastics Composed In Part Of Pyroxylin Or Soluble Cotton”, Jan 15, 1907, used since 1871, is for the word “Celluloid”.  And US trademark no. 75,266, Leo H. Baekeland, “Condensation Products Of Phenol And Formaldehyde”, Sept 14, 1909, used since June 30, 1907, is the word “Bakelite” used for the plastic “product” in US patent 942,852, et al.  For a longer list of hard rubber substitutes see Henry C. Pearson’s book, Crude Rubber And Compounding Ingredients, Chapters VII and VIII, pp.117-152, online webpages 11, 12, and 13.


George Kovalenko.

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