Miner’s Cap Lamp
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: This oil-wick cap lamp was made by John Dunlap of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania during the second half of the 19th century. The oil-wick cap lamp was first invented in Scotland in 1850 and in use until the 1920’s. The font contained a mix of fat and oil for fuel, and a wick was inserted into the spout. The resulting flame was much brighter and more efficient than the candles it replaced. The hook enabled the lamp to be worn on a cap. This lamp has a double-spout, indicating that it could have burned "Sunshine" fuel, a mixture of paraffin wax and 3% mineral oil produced by the Standard Oil Company. Often called a "Sunshine Lamp," the outer spout served to insulate the wick in the inner spout, thereby conducting enough heat to melt the wax.
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content: Work and Industry: Mining
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content: Mining Lamps
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content: Work
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content: Industry & Manufacturing
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content: Natural Resources
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: George J. Titler
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: AG.MHI-MN-9773C
label: accession number
content: 304880
label: catalog number
content: MHI-MN-9773C
objectType: label: Object Name
content: lamp, oil, cap, mining
label: Object Name
content: mining lamp
physicalDescription: label: Measurements
content: overall: 3 3/4 in x 3 1/2 in x 2 in; 9.525 cm x 8.89 cm x 5.08 cm