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 re ...

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 ta ...

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 imp ...

. In 1846, Abraham Pineo Gesner invented coal oil, 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'' (" tear" or "drop"). Sperm oil, a special kind of oil obtained from the head ...

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 inventor and pharmacist Ignacy Łukasiewicz, in

Lviv Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in Western Ukraine, western Ukraine, and the List of cities in Ukraine, seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is o ...

. It was a significant improvement over lamps designed to burn vegetable or sperm oil. On 23 September 1885, Carl Auer von Welsbach 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 This led to a series of lamps that were originally made to burn kerosene or gasoline.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. In 1915, during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, 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 Gre ...

, 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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, 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 Kingdom ...

. It moved back to England in 2000.

Competing lamps

* Aladdin Industries *

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 bir ...

* Bialaddin lamps * Coleman Company *

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 * Petromax *

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 cov ...

* 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 ...

* Veritas lamps

References

External links

Principles of Tilley lamp operationTilley lamp resource
fansite {{Artificial light sources Oil lamp British brands Lighting brands Articles containing video clips

History

Competing lamps

See also

Further reading

References

External links