1818 – 1905 dentist and inventor of a gutta-percha preparation process

Born on 20th December 1818 Edwin Thomas Truman was educated at King’s College School and King’s College Hospital. He was appointed the dentist to the Royal Household on 28th February 1855 and in 1859 he became a member of the Royal College of Surgeons. As part of his work, he studied gutta-percha, a latex extracted from the gutta-percha tree, and would invent a dental stopping using the substance. He would also develop an improved method for preparing it that he would use to insulate telegraph cables. This was a major area of research at the time as the failure of the first transatlantic cable had been caused by the improper refining of the insulating gutta-percha. As well as patenting a new method for preparing the rubber he also invented a machine that would make the process easier, using it in a factory he established at Vauxhall Cross. This would operate from 1860 until 1889. He would continue to work on various improvements to reduce porosity and cost which ensure his methods would be sued by a range of customers, including the General Post Office (GPO) and many railway companies. Over his lifetime he collected a number of books and prints before died on 8th April 1905. He was succeeded as dentist to the Royal Household by his son Charles Edwin Truman.