Fluid Lamps

Fluid lamps flourished for a time in the 19th century United States as an alternative to other lamps which burned more expensive whale oil and as a forerunner to the kerosene lamp.

Generally, fluid lamps became popular in American homes during the 1830s when households were being filled with an array of home furnishings.

Technically speaking, of course, everything from the whale lamp to the kerosene lamp was actually fluid lamps. However, historians usually confine the definition to that group of smaller lamps which prevailed between the two fuel eras.

In their heyday, fluid lamps provided a household light by burning just about any fuel which could replace the more costly whale oil.

Earlier in the 19th century, whale oil made a 'whale' of an impression as a fuel to light homes, especially in the Eastern part of the country.

During the 1820s, some very nice accommodating whale oil lamps were produced by the likes of the New England Glass Company and the Sandwich Glass Company.

Initially, the lamps burning whale oil were of blown glass using molded designs. Toward the end of the 1920s, production of such lamps moved more toward forms of pressed glass which involved somewhat less crafting time and effort.

Although whale oil burned brightly and relatively cleanly, it was still expensive as a continuing fuel source.

Further, such oil grew steadily more costly and scarce as the population moved ever westward and away from the Atlantic coastal regions.

"Inventors were looking for ways to provide a bright and steady light utilizing various fuels," observed Nadaj Mari, author of the book American Lighting: 1840-1940.

"They all worked on the same principal of creating light. When a wick was soaked in a liquid fuel and a lighted match was applied, gas is produced and the vapor burned."

One so-called burning fuel choice was an eight to one combination of alcohol and turpentine which Augustus Webb first called camphine. Sometime later it was referred to as camphene, and for awhile most fluid lamps were termed camphene lamps even though many used other fuels.

The Argand lamp, for example, was capable of burning both vegetable and animal oil and came with a tubular structure which served to consume its smoke by-product.

Other fluid lamps were totally fueled by the lard of pressed animal fat which, unlike whale oil, was readily available in even the most remote households.

However, unrefined lard soon clogged lamps and refined lard grew more and more expensive. Some fluid lamps worked better than others, but it is fair to say that the majority of them were only moderately sufficient as sources of 19th century light.

Unfortunately some were a little too 'sufficient' and tended to malfunction with certain types of fluid fuel and on occasion would even burst into flames or explode.

Still, during the middle of the 19th century, before kerosene became fully available and affordable, other fluid lamps served the purpose.

While most such fluid lamps were colorless, there were exceptions. Boston and Sandwich Glass Company produced some striking cobalt blue lamps with square or octagonal bases.

Early in the 1840s, the striking Astral Fluid Lamp appeared on the market. In contrast to the plain lamps, some Astrals bore cut and etched globe shades with a gilt bronze standard.

Such lamps were crafted by Cornelius & Company of Philadelphia. There also were two-colored and three-color fluid lamps produced in the 1850s and 1860s including some which combined white with cranberry red.

Additionally, Boston and Sandwich also manufactured some remarkable striped fluid lamps of transparent blue alternating with opaque white. There were also some clam broth and translucent blue pressed glass lamps produced by Boston and Sandwich during that time period.

Boston and Sandwich, located in Sandwich, Massachusetts and American Glass Company, located both in East Cambridge and South Boston, Massachusetts accounted for much of the fluid lamp production during the nation's transition from whale oil to kerosene.

Other makers included the Blackwell Glass Company in Pennsylvania and the Meriden Britannia Company in Connecticut.

Shortly after the middle of the 19th century kerosene, sometimes known as "carbon oil", gradually began to gain popularity as a more stable and efficient source of lamp fuel.

It was clearly not as combustible as other fluids and was said to burn longer on a modified wick than other fuels.

By the 1860s, there were some 60 different kerosene lamps alone in the marketplace. Less expensive models retailed for as little as $2 each, and as a consequence they were used to light the darkness in countless American homes.

"The lamps at the time were made to accommodate the use of kerosene were generally larger than early type," according to the comprehensive American Heritage History of Antiques. "They offered designers in a wide range of possibilities, they also provided the metal and glass industries with an expanded market for their wares."

However, kerosene lamps and most all other fluid lamps required nearly constant cleaning.

"Many household guides during the Victorian era recommended the lamps be cleaned on a daily basis," according to Maril.

The process involved, "trimming the wicks, polishing silver and brass, washing chimneys and shades, and changing the oil after each use, and then removing it to the kitchen."

Despite the success of more than 100 different larger kerosene lamps being sold by the 1880s, other smaller fluid lamps were still being manufactured.

While fewer in number, they were typically fancier in design. The Boston and Sandwich Glass Company, even in the 1880s, was offering sparkling fluid lamps decorated in gilt metal with four sections of flower petals on the glass.

Glass could be clear, frosted or as breathtaking as cobalt blue cut into white and mounted on a marble base. Usually such fluid lamps were no more than 12 to 16 inches in height, but some could reach to nearly three feet, thus rivaling in some ways the best of the latter 19th century kerosene lamps.

Today the fluid lamps of the past, sometimes simply designated in some circles as non-kerosene lamps, command a significant following of collectors. More than century and a half later traditional fluid lamps are still burning bright.

Source: Robert Reed, Farm and Dairy, December 3, 2009