Not all tarpaulin is created equal, though. The Red Cross catalog’s tarpaulin is the crème de la crème of plastic sheeting. It’s not the blue stuff of construction scaffolds, nor is it the ...

Today, tarpaulins are made from plastics but, until the 20th century, they were made from flax canvas imported from Ireland and the Baltic, produced in Britain and coated in water-resistant tar.

5. During World War Two, British tarpaulin was supplied to the Soviet army as part of the allied war effort against Nazi Germany. 6. A tarpaulin was part of an early survival kit against nuclear ...

Today, tarpaulins are made from plastics but, until the 20th century, they were made from flax canvas imported from Ireland and the Baltic, produced in Britain and coated in water-resistant tar.