Asbestos and Asbestos Related Lawsuits

Newspaper articles about asbestos detail the rise and fall of a mineral widely used for thousands of years. Yet, asbestos was not commercially mined until the late 19th century. The demand for it increased dramatically when its fireproof qualities began to be used in products such as paint and cloth. Its ability to prevent heat transfer made asbestos perfect for use in household appliances like toasters and clothes irons. It is estimated that more than 3,000 consumer products have contained asbestos.

During the early 1960s, researchers began to recognize that increasing numbers of asbestos workers were dying at young ages due to lung related diseases. By 1968, research was beginning to show strong links between exposure to asbestos and certain forms of cancer. In 1973, the hammer fell on the asbestos industry. Dr. Irving Selikoff, of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, published the results of a study that had begun in 1967. The report proved for the first time the escalated risk of cancer in workers routinely exposed to asbestos. The study reported that of 17,800 asbestos insulation workers surveyed, nearly 459 died of lung cancer. He would go on to conclude that of the one million workers who had already been exposed to asbestos, 200,000 would die of lung cancer, 70,000 of asbestosis, and 150,000 of various other cancers.

By the turn of the 20th century, asbestos was considered dangerous and the Environmental Protection Agency began programs across the country to remove asbestos from public buildings and to clean up contamination in areas near closed asbestos mines. Asbestos also found its way into the courtroom via class-action lawsuits brought against asbestos manufacturers and vendors across the country. At the outset of the trials, most state and local governments were sympathetic to the victims of asbestos and their families. However, as the number of lawsuits increased so did the price-tag on the damages sought by the claimants. Some states moved to limit the effect that asbestos related lawsuits were causing to state and local economies. By January 2005, asbestos litigation had forced 76 into bankruptcy due to asbestos lawsuits. However, in February 2005, the EPA filed suit against Maryland based W.R. Grace & Co. charging that the company and its executives had withheld information regarding the dangers of asbestos and was directly responsible for the deaths of nearly 200 people in Libby, Montana.

Asbestos has been in the headlines of American newspapers for more than a century. NewspaperARCHIVE.com, the largest newspaper database available online, provides a free archive on the history of asbestos granting access to thousands of original newspaper articles. The archive includes articles on asbestos mining, asbestos workers, products, diseases and asbestos related lawsuits. Click on the timeline above to view newspapers in chronological order or begin searching newspaper articles with your own key words.