John W. Hyatt continued his efforts to improve the methods of manufacturing celluloid and went on to develop a number of other significant inventions relating to its production. In addition to the water purification process, introduced in 1881, he also devised a type of roller bearing to reduce friction on machinery and moving parts. As a result, he founded the Hyatt Roller Bearing Company of Harrison, New Jersey,

 
The gold Perkin Medal was awarded to John Wesley Hyatt at the age of 77 by the Society of Chemical Industry, May, 1914.

The gold Perkin Medal was awarded to John Wesley Hyatt at the age of 77 by the Society of Chemical Industry, May, 1914.

which later became a division of General Motors. By the turn of the twentieth century, Hyatt was further engaged in the development of several new machines and methods to advance industry.
     In 1914, the Society of Chemical Industry recognized the 77-year-old inventor by awarding him the solid gold Perkin Medal for his outstanding contributions to the field of industry and applied chemistry. This was indeed an honor, as in reality John W. Hyatt was actually a self-taught inventor rather than a scientist with a learned understanding of chemical theory.
     Other Hyatt inventions included a machine for turning billiard balls in 1870; a machine for making slate blackboards in 1875; a substance using bone and silica, called Bonislate, which was used in billiard balls and knife handles, in 1878; a method for solidifying hardwoods for use in bowling balls, golf heads, and mallets, in 1878; a sewing machine capable of sewing 50 rows of stitches simultaneously (used for machine belting and to manufacture mattresses) in 1900; a machine for cold rolling and straightening steel shafting in 1901 and in 1989, 1901, a sugar cane mill designed to extract juice more efficiently than those presently used.
     On May 10, 1920, John W. Hyatt died of heart failure at his home in Short Hills, NJ. He was 82 years old and left behind two sons, Ralph and Charles, and his wife of 50 years, Anna Taft Hyatt. Overall, Hyatt received 238 patents issued in his name, with 77 of those directly relating to the manufacture of celluloid.
     In 1973 the Billiard Congress of America recognized Hyatt for his outstanding contribution to the sport by inducting him into their Hall of Fame. In 1992, with the opening of the National Plastics Center and Museum, Hyatt was inducted into its Plastics Pioneers Hall of Fame. In 1995 the John Wesley Hyatt Society was established for the purpose of raising annual financial support for the NPC.

This Celluloid Manufacturing Company business card, produced by Baldwin and Gleason, on imitation ivory grained celluloid sheet, bears the name of Marshall Lefferts, primary financial investor for the Celluloid Manufacturing Company of Newark, New Jersey.