Oil-wick Headlamp

Name/Title

Oil-wick Headlamp

Entry/Object ID

MW.0160

Description

Small metal oil-wick, or "teapot", headlamp with wick stuffed inside.

Context

This kind of headlamp was the first lighting innovation to supplant candles in underground mining. The lamp hooked onto the front of a miner's canvas cap, and was filled with cheap oil, like kerosene, and/or sometimes household fats like lard. A fabric wick extending from the teapot spout was then lit. This was the primer head-worn miner's light until the advent of carbide lamps in the early 1900s.

Collection

Coal Mining Tools, Fred Barkey Collection

Acquisition

Source (if not Accessioned)

Fred Barkey, Sandra Barkey

Materials

Material

Copper, Metal, Cotton

Material Notes

wick may be another material

Location

Location

Box

MW.D

Shelf

Unit E: Shelf 3

Room

Artifact Storage Room

Category

Storage

Moved By

Ethan Karnes

Date

May 15, 2024