Gold Bond Spackle Plaster
The National Gypsum Company was founded in 1925 as a producer of heavy duty wallboards. To inspire confidence in their product, the company offered a $5,000 Gold Bond Certificate to anyone who was able to purchase a better wallboard. This marketing approach worked, and soon the company expanded and began producing an array of other construction based products. Because the offer was so popular, their goods became known by the name Gold Bond, which still exists today.
Spackle plaster is used to patch holes and make repairs on walls and ceilings. These repairs are usually small and easy to make, so they can be done by either contractors or private citizens. The Gold Bond brand of spackle plaster was extremely popular for years. It was very tough, and designed to last.
One of the reasons this plaster was so strong was that it was made with a naturally occurring mineral called asbestos. Asbestos is a hardy and powerful material that was a key component in hundreds of different products during much of the 20th century. National Gypsum used it in every item they produced, right up until the 1970's.
The reason the company stopped using asbestos was that research showed that it was toxic, very harmful to the human respiratory system and was found to be one of the primary causes of mesothelioma. Microscopic amounts of the mineral could break off, become airborne and be easily inhaled. After it was ingested, the asbestos would lodge internally and cause large amounts of decay. It makes people very ill, and is the cause of several diseases like asbestosis and Mesothelioma, including pleural mesothelioma, peritoneal mesothelioma and pericardial mesothelioma. Because there is no mesothelioma cure, the number of survivors from the disease is low.
While people were applying the spackle plaster they were very likely to unknowingly inhale the asbestos that it contained. The same threat arose if the spackle were to become brittle and break apart with age. Anyone who worked with it, or who was employed at the factories where it was produced was put at risk. Those who were inflicted with health problems, especially mesothelioma cancer, often fought back by using mesothelioma attorneys to file lawsuits against National Gypsum. So many claims were filed that by 1990 the company had declared bankruptcy. A trust fund was set up to pay off all outstanding valid claims, and the company continued to operate with the Gold Bond brand name.
Even today the plaster could be a threat. It may be found in homes, schools, offices, churches or any other buildings. By now it will be quite old, and very likely to be brittle and falling apart which means that more people may continue to be affected by the contaminated product for years to come. If you have been made ill by Gold Bond Spackle Plaster or any other asbestos based product, contact us today for a free copy of our asbestos and Mesothelioma information kit.
