Edgar Hooley, a Nottinghamshire County surveyor, perfected the method of making road surfaces stick in the early twentieth century, with Radcliffe Road in West Bridgford subsequently becoming the very first Tarmac road in the world.
A plaque at the world-famous Trent Bridge Cricket Ground to honour Hooley’s achievements and the link to the important milestone in the county’s industrial history was unveiled by Councillor Ben Bradley, leader of Nottinghamshire County Council, and Harvey Cullen of Tarmac – the construction materials company Hooley originally founded in 1903.
Councillor Ben Bradley MP, leader of Nottinghamshire County Council, said: “The story of Edgar Hooley is a fascinating one and is yet another example which highlights why we are rightly proud of the contribution Nottinghamshire and our pioneering inventors have made over the years to help change the world."
Tarmac says that, although Scotsman John McAdam is widely acknowledged as the original creator of modern tarmacadam, his initial crushed stone road surfaces were not strong enough once the motor car became commonly used across the UK.
Hooley patented the process of using heated tar to bind crushed stones with waste blast furnace slag from ironworking, which could then be compacted and rolled to form a smooth and robust road surface – registering Tarmac as a trademark before selling the business shortly afterwards.
The longstanding links between Tarmac and Nottinghamshire continue to this day, with the company currently contracted by the council to operate and maintain the county’s roads. This sees the business deliver a range of highway maintenance works, including road resurfacing, gully cleaning, street lighting, road marking and earthworks.
Harvey Cullen, general manager of Tarmac’s contracting business, said: “We’re extremely proud of our history and heritage and were honoured to have been invited to help pay tribute to our founder Edgar Hooley – a true Nottinghamshire pioneer."
Tarmac uses a wide range of sustainable materials in its resurfacing activities in Nottinghamshire, with asphalt mixes regularly including recycled content. The company has rolled out a new sustainable ‘rubber’ asphalt made from recycled waste tyres – with a road in Ollerton near Mansfield becoming one of the very first in the country to be resurfaced with the environmentally friendly material.
The business was also involved in one of the most complex resurfacing projects ever undertaken at the iconic Silverstone international racing circuit, where cutting-edge technology and processes were used to lay a perfectly smooth new track surface.
