They may have no electricity, but there are photographs framed and hanging on the wall behind the lantern. Indeed, a photograph was being taken which used a bright light flash, (maybe one of those where some chemical was poured along a shallow tray then lit somehow when the shutter was opened.) The flash cast a shadow, not only of the lamps from right to left, but of the man with the hat on.
And I notice the great swing arm of wood that the lamps hang from. Someone was really a genius to have done that. Come on over to Sepia Saturday to see what other creative people have come up with as triggered by this theme!
When my sister joined many other folks (lots from Florida) who wanted to go "back to living on the land" in the 1970s she moved into an old cabin (logs of course) in the mountains of Tennessee. It was up a sort of dirt and rock road which had been scraped out by tractors. They had a stream for water (not too close to the house) and no electricity. She learned how to cook on a wood stove also. The outhouse was the opposite direction from the stream, of course. They later took a tractor and made a dam to provide a pond for livestock, mainly.
I visited her and was glad they had a really nice Aladdin Lamp over the dining table. It reminded me of these oil lamps in the photo from Sepia Saturday.
Aladdin Lamps have a mantle rather than a wick, so can give off much more light, and are of course hotter than a wick fire is. Since I was visiting in summer, I was glad that we turned in early, and didn't heat up the house with the lamp for very long.
These lamps have a long chimney also, which helps draw the fire. They are apparently still in business today, and there weren't any hanging models on the site I looked at.
--------------------
Aladdin Mantle Lamp Company
681 International Blvd.
Clarksville, TN 37040, USA
Tel: 800-457-5267 FAX: 931-647-4517
www.alalddinlamps.com
E-mail: sales@aladdinlamps.com
681 International Blvd.
Clarksville, TN 37040, USA
Tel: 800-457-5267 FAX: 931-647-4517
www.alalddinlamps.com
E-mail: sales@aladdinlamps.com
Enlarged View Model 23 Wick Clip.
ALADDIN and LOX-ON are registered trademarks of Aladdin Industries, LLC-----------------------
I'm sorry I couldn't get this to copy with the text and the pictures in line.
Source: http://aladdinlamps.com
Other lamps use kerosene oil or lamp oil, and a cotton wick.
An antique"Mansfield" Saloon Hanging Lamp - Antique Brass 21" w/shade (selling for $119)
I used to always have 2 glass mantle "hurricane lamps" (that sat on a table) in case the electricity was out.
Have you ever camped out with a Coleman lantern? They require the gas to be pumped up, I think. And they also have a very hot light with a mantle rather than a wick. If I remember right, the mantles were very fragile cotton, and I usually had to have a couple of spares for when they broke.
Have you ever camped out with a Coleman lantern? They require the gas to be pumped up, I think. And they also have a very hot light with a mantle rather than a wick. If I remember right, the mantles were very fragile cotton, and I usually had to have a couple of spares for when they broke.
I found it one of those cosmic coincidences that a newsletter from Mother Nature Network talked about the back to the land movement this week as well. HERE...mentioning Stewart Brand and the Whole Earth Catalogs. The only problem with the article is the misnomer for those who work on computers from being nerds to being hackers. I think that is definitely not a correct definition of the computer lovers...as many nerds love their computers and their communities (though they do live in isolation) while hackers are seen as anti-establishment and even lurkers. What do you think?
I noticed that swinging lamp arm too. Living for many years on the Atlantic coast, I've always kept a few oil lamps to use during hurricanes. We still have them now in the mountains, though they are more for rare power outages. Lately I've acquired battery powered LED lamps which are lighter, cooler, quieter, and safer. Of course you need a supply of batteries.
ReplyDeleteStewart Brand was one of my inspirations, and somewhere in my attic I have a well worn Whole Earth Catalog. The term Hacker is misused, Brand was talking about people who create their own stuff and don't wait for some corporation to build it. His forward thinking focused as much on retaining old methods and technologies that were still useful. Simple is often the best.
I don't know what that trait is that makes people want to live off the grid. I'm sure I would have made a terrible pioneer. I have an antique Aladdin lamp that has been electrified. And yes, the chimney is tall and slender. I had to replace it once and was glad to find one with the trademark name etched in.
ReplyDeleteWonderful lamp post (excuse the pun). At our summer camp, when I was a child, I think we had a Coleman lamp...it made a whooshing sound when it was in operation and did give off a nice, bright light. Although today's LED camping lamps are certainly much safer and less toxic!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, Sepia friends. Glad to have your response to my efforts! We are all grateful to have other sources of light when our electricity fails (which mine did last night for a couple of hours, before dark at least!)
ReplyDeleteWe used to have several kerosene lamps in case the lights went out. Now we have several batter operated lamps that work as well and smell much better.
ReplyDeleteI was intrigued by those lamps on the swinging arm too, but I didn't think of anywhere to go with them. Glad you did!
ReplyDeleteI remember the camp lanterns with gas and mantles and the sound of them running as well as the light. I keep oil lamps with wicks and candles for nights when the power goes out. Luckily that doesn't happen all that often, but it's good to have backup when you need it! And I'm with Wendy about playing "pioneer". It might be fun for a short while, but long-term? I don't think so.
ReplyDeleteI always think the best bit about Sepia Saturday is how people take the same image and follow different elements in order to bring out different bits of information and different stories. Picking on those old lamps was a master stroke and gave rise to a fascinating read.
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