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Henry Timken to be Inducted into The National Inventors Hall of Fame

9 June 1998

Henry Timken, Founder of The Timken Company, to be Inducted into The National Inventors Hall of Fame

    CANTON, Ohio, June 9 -- Henry Timken (1831-1909), inventor of
the Timken(R) tapered roller bearing and founder of The Timken Company
, will join the ranks of other historic inventors such as Thomas
Edison, Alexander Graham Bell and the Wright Brothers when he is inducted into
the National Inventors Hall of Fame at Inventure Place in Akron, Ohio, this
September.  The announcement was made at a press conference today at the Henry
Ford Museum in Dearborn, Mich.
    He will become one of only 141 inventors inducted into the Hall of Fame.
This year's class of six inductees is the Hall of Fame's 26th class.  Mr.
Timken's induction comes on the eve of The Timken Company's centennial
celebration, which begins in 1999.
    "My great-grandfather's achievements changed the world," said
W.R. Timken, Jr., chairman, president and chief executive officer of The
Timken Company.  "After a century of success at The Timken Company, we can
look back at his accomplishments as the foundation for the innovation,
perseverance and independence upon which this company was built."
    A carriage maker, Henry Timken worked to find a solution to the technical
problem of friction in turning wheels which led to his two Timken tapered
roller bearing patents.  "The man who could devise something that would reduce
friction fundamentally would achieve something of real value to the world," he
said.
    Working intensely between 1895 and 1898 on that challenge, Mr. Timken
found an innovative way to reduce friction with the invention of the Timken
tapered roller bearing.  The new invention could accommodate both radial and
thrust loads which made it ideal for the axles and hubs of carriages and
automobiles.
    Henry Timken applied for two tapered roller bearing patents:  one in
August 1897, and one in February 1898.  Both were issued on June 28, 1898, 100
years ago this month.  In 1899, he formed a separate company in St. Louis --
The Timken Roller Bearing Axle Company -- to manufacture axles equipped with
his bearings.  In order to be closer to the rapidly growing steel and
automotive industries in Detroit and Pittsburgh, Mr. Timken in 1901 moved the
company to Canton, Ohio, where the headquarters remains today.
    "Henry's invention of the Timken tapered roller bearing, the first
successful tapered roller bearing, has changed our lives in countless ways,"
said Robert L. Leibensperger, executive vice president, chief operating
officer and president - bearings.  "Today you'll find Timken bearings on
everything from aircraft and spacecraft to printing presses and cars."
    Mr. Timken's motivation led to a lifetime of achievements.  At 16, young
Henry left his Missouri farm and headed for St. Louis to work in a wagon
factory.  By age 24, he opened his own carriage factory in St. Louis, and at
age 68 founded The Timken Company.  He obtained a total of 14 patents before
his death in 1909.
    A Renaissance man, Henry Timken once said, "If you have an idea which you
think is right, push it to a finish."
    The Timken Company is a leading international manufacturer of highly
engineered bearings and alloy steels.  The company employs about 21,000 people
worldwide and reported 1997 sales of more than U.S. $2.6 billion.