kerosene lamp

In the mid-19th century, kerosene began to replace whale oil as a lamp fuel. Kerosene lamps required glass chimneys in order to burn properly, and this led to the birth of a new glass industry. More than 140 patents were granted for lamp chimneys and shades between 1855 and 1873. Even after the introduction of gas for home lighting, kerosene continued to be the major fuel until Edison’s invention of the incandescent electric bulb in 1879. A single kerosene lamp was usually placed on a central table in the parlor, and the family gathered around it at night to read or study. The lamp illustrated here is one of the largest surviving examples of the parlor lamp. It is made of overlay glass, consisting of a colored outer layer that is cut to reveal the colorless inner layer. The Boston & Sandwich Glass Company was a large producer of this glass.