From Ron Smith
I agree wholeheartedly with Brian J. Ford that amateur and independent
scientists deserve more recognition
(30 September, p 46). It’s a pity, then,
that he credits John Boyd Dunlop with the invention of the pneumatic tyre.
Sadly, the true inventor, the civil engineer Robert Thomson, rarely gets the
credit he deserves—except in his home town of Stonehaven in Scotland. The
Royal Automobile Club at least credited him with the invention and donated a
plaque in 1922 marking his birthplace
Thomson invented the pneumatic tyre in 1845 and had patents granted in France
in 1846 and the US in 1847—the year pneumatic tyres were first
demonstrated in Regent’s Park, London. Forty-three years after Thomson’s patent,
Dunlop “re-invented” the tyre. His patent application was withdrawn after two
years when he was officially told that Thomson’s patent took precedence.
For a potted history of Thomson’s life and numerous inventions and patents,
see www.stonehaven.org.uk/thomson.htm
Rome
