LANTERNS

"One, if by land! Two, if by sea!"

On the evening of April 18, 1775, two tin pierced lanterns hung briefly in the bell-tower of Christ Church in Boston igniting the midnight ride of Paul Revere. Immortalized by the words of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, these lanterns became symbols of the American revolution.

By definition, a lantern is the protective casing of any light source or “lamp”. Early casing materials were wood, polished horn, glass and metal. Light sources were dead flame candles and whale oil lamps. The kerosene era ushered in a new lamp and a man named Dietz became a household name. Consistent, mobile, and weatherproof lanterns would play a role in commerce, industry and domestic culture in the “Age of Invention”. Utilized by carriages, ships, autos, bicycles and police they initiated social gathering such as barn dances, hay rides and camp meetings.

At present there is no organized group of collectors specific to lanterns. However, collectors of railroad memorabilia and advanced collectors of kerosene era lighting continue to grow. Within this decade substantial published research and collector's handbooks have been published.

Want to know more? Visit: The Library

PRODUCT SHOWCASE

Replacement Parts for Old and New Wicks, Burners & Globes Click here.

Other Lanterns

Railroad Lanterns Dress up your caboose! Handmade in the USA by the original maker and tooling. The official lantern used on railroads for generations. Perfected ventilation system — won't blow out even when the lantern is swung back-and-forth to signal. Burns for a full 16 hours! Click here.

Coleman & Petromax Lanterns The brightest lanterns available on the market today. At right, a hand tinted photo of the Petromax Girl from a Germany postcard 1908. Click here to view these lamps.

Comments & Questions Welcomed
dhearn@oillamp.com

Copyrighted 2001