The Origin of Rubber Boots

ROASTING RUBBER: Amazonian Indians may have originated the rubber boot over a campfire. ISTOCKPHOTO/SKI88

From Scientific American:

Galoshes seem to have come from a little fire, Amazonian Indians' boredom and Charles Goodyear's luck.

Perhaps the Indians roasted them like s'mores—rotating them ever so slowly to make sure every side got just dark enough, but not so long that they caught on fire. Or maybe they went all out, expediting the process and blowing out any flames. Of course, for the art of hovering a rubber-coated foot over a fire, one's pain tolerance may have ultimately determined how long the process went on.

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