Tanbark

This article is about the type of bark used for tanning. For the form of mulch also known as "tanbark", see Barkdust. For the neighborhood, see Tanbark, Lexington.
Workers peeling hemlock bark for the tannery in Prattsville, New York, United States

Tanbark is the bark of certain species of trees, traditionally used for tanning hides into leather.[1]

The words "tannin", "tanning", "tan," and "tawny" are derived from the Medieval Latin tannare, "to convert into leather."

Bark mills are horse- or oxen-driven or water-powered edge mills[2] and were used in earlier times to shred the tanbark to derive tannins for the leather industry. A "barker" was a person who stripped bark from trees to supply bark mills.

  1. ^ Pizzi, Antonio (2008), "Tannins: Major Sources, Properties and Applications", Monomers, Polymers and Composites from Renewable Resources, Elsevier, pp. 179–199, doi:10.1016/b978-0-08-045316-3.00008-9, ISBN 9780080453163
  2. ^ "CONTENTdm". cslib.cdmhost.com. Archived from the original on 2011-10-07. Retrieved 2018-07-09.