The General Tire and Rubber Company is an American manufacturer of tires for motor vehicles. General Tire was founded in 1915 in Akron, Ohio by William F. O'Neil. Products included the low-pressure "General Balloon Jumbo" and the "Dual 90" tire. In 1943 General Tire branched out from its core business by purchasing the Yankee Network and the radio stations it owned from Boston's Shepard Stores, Inc. Thomas F. O'Neil, son of the founder William F. O'Neil, served as Yankee's chairman with Shepard's John Shepard III serving as president.
Formed in 1953 by 4x4 pioneer, Mark A. Smith, Jeep Jamboree USA is an off-road adventure company that brings together people who share a love of the outdoor and their Jeep 4x4s for off-road treks across the country. Smith organized the first-ever Jeep Jamboree and voyaged across the Sierra Nevada Mountains by way of the old Rubicon Trail. In 1954, Willys Motors (then manufacturer of Jeep vehicles) became involved with the adventure, and Jeep Jamborees have been an off-road tradition ever since. Today Jeep Jamboree USA conducts over 30 family oriented Jeep 4×4 trips nationwide annually and has grown from 155 participants at the first Jamboree to more than 7,500 expected in 2015.