The Tilley lamp is a

kerosene Kerosene, paraffin, or lamp oil is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid which is derived from petroleum. It is widely used as a fuel in aviation as well as households. Its name derives from el, κηρός (''keros'') meaning "wax", and was regi ...

pressure lamp A kerosene lamp (also known as a paraffin lamp in some countries) is a type of lighting device that uses kerosene as a fuel. Kerosene lamps have a wick or mantle as light source, protected by a glass chimney or globe; lamps may be used on a t ...

History

In 1813, John Tilley invented the hydro-pneumatic blowpipe. In 1818, William Henry Tilley, gas fitters, was manufacturing gas lamps in

Stoke Newington Stoke Newington is an area occupying the north-west part of the London Borough of Hackney in north-east London, England. It is northeast of Charing Cross. The Manor of Stoke Newington gave its name to Stoke Newington the ancient parish. The ...

, and, in the 1830s, in

Shoreditch Shoreditch is a district in the East End of London in England, and forms the southern part of the London Borough of Hackney. Neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets are also perceived as part of the area. In the 16th century, Shoreditch was an impor ...

. In 1846,

Abraham Pineo Gesner Abraham Pineo Gesner, ONB (; May 2, 1797 – April 29, 1864) was a Canadian physician and geologist who invented kerosene. Gesner was born in Cornwallis, Nova Scotia (now called Chipmans Corner) and lived much of his life in Saint John, New Bru ...

invented

coal oil Coal oil is a shale oil obtained from the destructive distillation of cannel coal, mineral wax, or bituminous shale, once used widely for illumination. Chemically similar to the more refined, petroleum-derived kerosene, it consists mainly of se ...

, a substitute for

whale oil Whale oil is oil obtained from the blubber of whales. Whale oil from the bowhead whale was sometimes known as train oil, which comes from the Dutch word ''traan'' ("tears, tear" or "drop"). Sperm oil, a special kind of oil obtained from the ...

for lighting, distilled from coal. Kerosene, made from petroleum, later became a popular lighting fuel. In 1853, most versions of the kerosene lamp were invented by

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

inventor and pharmacist

Ignacy Łukasiewicz Jan Józef Ignacy Łukasiewicz (; 8 March 1822 – 7 January 1882) was a Polish pharmacist, engineer, businessman, inventor, and philanthropist. He was one of the most prominent philanthropists in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, crown land o ...

, in

Lviv Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukraine ...

. It was a significant improvement over lamps designed to burn vegetable or sperm oil. On 23 September 1885,

Carl Auer von Welsbach Carl Auer von Welsbach (1 September 1858 – 4 August 1929), who received the Austrian noble title of Freiherr Auer von Welsbach in 1901, was an Austrian scientist and inventor, who separated didymium into the elements neodymium and praseody ...

received a patent on the gas flame heated incandescent mantle light. In 1914, the

Coleman Lantern The Coleman Lantern is a line of pressure lamps first introduced by the Coleman Company in 1914. This led to a series of lamps that were originally made to burn kerosene or gasoline. Current models use kerosene, gasoline, Coleman fuel (white ga ...

was introduced by the

Coleman Company The Coleman Company, Inc. is an American brand of outdoor recreation products, especially camping gear, now owned by Newell Brands. The company's new headquarters are in Chicago, and it has facilities in Wichita, Kansas, and in Texas. There are ...

. In 1915, during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the Tilley company moved to Brent Street in

Hendon Hendon is an urban area in the Borough of Barnet, North-West London northwest of Charing Cross. Hendon was an ancient manor and parish in the county of Middlesex and a former borough, the Municipal Borough of Hendon; it has been part of Great ...

, and began developing a kerosene pressure lamp. In 1919, Tilley High-Pressure Gas Company started using kerosene as a fuel for lamps. In the 1920s, Tilley company got a contract to supply lamps to railways, and made domestic lamps. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Armed Forces purchased quantities of lamps, thus many sailors, soldiers and airmen used a Tilley Lamp. After

, demand for Tilley Lamps drove expansion to a second factory, in

Cricklewood Cricklewood is an area of London, England, which spans the boundaries of three London boroughs: Barnet to the east, Brent to the west and Camden to the south-east. The Crown pub, now the Clayton Crown Hotel, is a local landmark and lies north- ...

, then a third, merged, single factory in

Colindale Colindale is a district in the London Borough of Barnet; its main shopping street on the A5 forming the borough boundary with neighbouring Brent. Colindale is a suburban area, and in recent years has had many new apartments built. It's also th ...

. The company moved to Northern Ireland in the early 1960s, finally settling in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

. It moved back to England in 2000.

Competing lamps

Aladdin Industries Aladdin is a brand notable for its line of character lunchboxes including Hopalong Cassady, Superman, Mickey Mouse and The Jetsons. Today, Aladdin continues to be a food and beverage products brand and is owned by Pacific Market International, ...

Bat lamps Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most ...

* Bialaddin lamps *

Fama lamps FAMA () is a Hong Kong hip hop duo consisting of members C Kwan and Luk Wing (6-Wing). Formed in 2002, the duo have since released 10 studio albums and EPs. Known for their quick-wit and humour, along with the use of lyrics and music to reflect H ...

Optimus lamps Optimus may refer to: Organisations * Optimus Telecomunicações, S.A., a Portuguese mobile phone company who was merged with ZON and formed a new company called NOS * Optimus S.A., a former Polish computer assembler Fictional characters *Optim ...

Petromax Petromax is a brand name for a type of pressurised paraffin lamp ( US: kerosene lamp) that uses a mantle. They are as synonymous with the paraffin lamp in Continental Europe as Tilley lamps are in Britain and Coleman lanterns are in the United ...

Primus stove The Primus stove was the first pressurized-burner kerosene (paraffin) stove, developed in 1892 by Frans Wilhelm Lindqvist, a factory mechanic in Stockholm. The stove was based on the design of the hand-held blowtorch; Lindqvist’s patent covere ...

* Solar lamps *

Vapalux Vapalux is a brand name for paraffin pressure lamps and lanterns (kerosene mantle lamps) developed and manufactured by ''Willis & Bates'' in Halifax, England, part of the United Kingdom. History As a company, Willis & Bates dates back to the 1 ...

Veritas lamps Veritas is the name given to the Roman virtue of Honesty, truthfulness, which was considered one of the main virtues any good Roman should possess. The Greek goddess of truth is Aletheia (Ancient Greek language, Ancient Greek: ). The German phi ...

References

External links

Principles of Tilley lamp operationTilley lamp resource

fansite A fansite, fan site, fan blog or fan page is a website created and maintained by a fan or devotee about a celebrity, thing, or particular cultural phenomenon. Fansites may offer specialized information on the subject (e.g., episode listings, bi ...

{{Artificial light sources Oil lamp British brands Lighting brands Articles containing video clips

History

Competing lamps

See also

Further reading

References

External links