General Tire
Continental Tire the Americas, LLC, d.b.a. General Tire, is an American manufacturer of tires for motor vehicles, and semi trucks. Founded in 1915 in Akron, Ohio by William Francis O'Neil, Winfred E. Fouse, Charles J. Jahant, Robert Iredell, and H.B. Pushee as The General Tire & Rubber Company using funding from Michael O'Neil, William Francis O'Neills' father, who owned Akron's O'Neil's Department Store. The company later diversified by 1984 into a conglomerate (GenCorp, Inc.) with holdings in tire manufacturing (General Tire, Inc.), rubber compounds (DiversiTech General), rocketry and aeronautics (Aerojet), and broadcasting (RKO General).
| General Tire | |
| Formerly | The General Tire & Rubber Company (1915–1984) General Tire, Inc. (1984–1987) |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
| Industry | Manufacturing |
| Predecessor | The Western Rubber & Supply Company (1909–1911) The Western Tire & Rubber Company (1911–1915) |
| Founded | September 29, 1915 Akron, Ohio, U.S. |
| Founders | William Francis O'Neil (General Manager General Tire & Rubber Co.) Winfred E. Fouse (Director, General Tire & Rubber Co.) Charles J. Jahant (Vice President, General Tire & Rubber Co.) Robert Iredell (Director, General Tire & Rubber Co.) H.B. Pushee (Chief Chemist, General Tire & Rubber Co.) |
| Headquarters | Akron, Ohio (1915–1984) Fairlawn, Ohio (1985–1987) Charlotte, North Carolina (1987–2008) Fort Mill, South Carolina (2008–Present) |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products | Tires |
| Parent | Continental AG |
| Website | generaltire |
The company's tire division was sold to Germany's Continental AG in 1987, becoming Continental General Tire Corp. before its re–incorporation again to its current name. The compounds division was spun off & became OMNOVA Solutions Inc. The rocketry and aeronautics business was kept and expanded, and after a couple company name changes, the parent company eventually became Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings, Inc.