CHARLES GOODYEAR. Partly Printed Check filled out and signed: "Chas Goodyear", 6½x2½. Washington, D.C., 1860 May 12. Check No. 61, drawn on the Bank of Metropolis, payable to "R.A. Goodyear" for $20. Endorsed: "R.A. Goodyear" on verso. Charles Goodyear (1800-1860), the developer of the vulcanization process, the basic patent of the rubber manufacturing industry, was in and out of debt most of his life and had served in prison because of it. Although his vulcanization patent was immensely valuable, he received only a small share of the profits. In order to meet his obligations, Goodyear sold licenses and established royalties at a price far below their value. In fact, Daniel Webster's fee of $25,000 for defending Goodyear's patent rights was more than Goodyear ever acquired for himself and his family. In 1851, Goodyear went to Europe to extend his patent. His London exhibition cost him $30,000 and his Paris exhibit cost him $50,000 of borrowed money, and Goodyear was so poor that he had to pawn his wife's jewelry to pay for boat passage back to America. Goodyear lost patents in England and France due to technicalities and suffered heavy infringement in the U.S. When he died on July 1, 1860, less than six weeks after he signed this check, Goodyear left his widow and six children approximately $200,000 in debt. Lightly creased. Folds, vertical folds touch the "a" in Charles and the "od" of Goodyear. "X"-cut bank cancellation touches 1 word of writing. Overall, fine condition.