The Bloody Pillow Case

[L Verge]

(08-23-2013 04:55 AM)BettyO Wrote:  Fascinating, Anita!

Thanks for the link. I had never heard of vulcanized rubber overshoes. I knew about the rubberized blankets/ponchos which Union soldiers occasionally issued.

Lew Powell had supposedly gutta percha (vulcanized rubber) buttons on his frock coat when captured. The comb also found on his person was described as gutta percha as well.

I have to agree. This forum is a great knowledge base!

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but gutta percha is not the same thing as vulcanized rubber. The former comes from a tree in Southeast Asia and was preferred because it was not as brittle as rubber (which comes from the sap of a rubber tree) until Goodyear and an Englishman vied for the patents on vulcanization of rubber. Gutta percha could be shaped into decorative items.

Typical examples of gutta percha are pieces of jewelry (especially mourning jewelry because of its black color and because it resembled the more expensive jet used by the upper classes), buttons, pistol grips, canes, walking sticks, photograph cases, and even golf balls. Because it is an inert substance, it also does not react with the human body and has been used in dentistry tools as well as plugging teeth.

Gutta percha became scarce because it was an excellent insulation for telegraph wires, including the transatlantic cable.