kerosene lanterns

[cward]

i usually do pre 1840's reenacting but i like to use kerosene lanterns for light.i put citronella oil in them to help keep away the Ohio air force (mosquitoes). problem is the time period perfectionists are on me about them. does anyone know when they came into being?

[old salt]

As to when the use of kerosene lanterns for lights i8n the US see site one

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerosene

As to when the process of distilling crude oil/petroleum into kerosene first happened see this site

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerosene#History

Hope this helps.

[Tim Burns]

Here is a Very brief history:Development of Kerosene Lantern

The first kerosene lantern was designed in the 9th century in Baghdad, with the wick lantern and pressure lantern coming out of this discovery. In the United States and Europe, the early days of history showed the majority of people living in small farms or in small towns outside of the larger cities, using candle lanterns, paper lanterns or oil lanterns as their main light source.

The 1846 invention of the kerosene lantern by Abraham Gesner was a huge improvement on lighting as compared to the days when "Indians of the Northwest natives caught and dried oolakan or candlefish, and used them as lamps stuck into a lump of clay, or carried them around in the fork of a stick." (Exposition, 1904) A native of Nova Scotia, Gesner was trained as a medical doctor but was considered one of the primary founders of the petroleum industry when he immigrated to the United States. He had developed and patented a process for manufacturing kerosene, which would lead to the development of the kerosene lamp.

By the time 1860 arrived, the development of kerosene lanterns had improved on the light quality that had been used for hundreds of years. John D. Rockefeller was the first American to consolidate petroleum refining which made kerosene available for everybody in society instead of oil, even though he was considered as "one of the bad boys of late Victorian capitalism."  

Hope this helps - depending on what era of history that you are portraying: I am located in Canton, Ohio - where might you be in the Buckeye state?   Tim

[Watauga]

Good Question on the Kerosene Lanterns.
A link that may help
http://inventors.about.com/od/lstartinventions/a/lighting.htm
And
http://www.classiclantern.com/lantern.htm#C1
Check out the Dead Flame Lantern It might go for being  1840 as the R. E. Dietz Company was selling them.
Before 1840 how much earlier I dont know.
The basic wick burner glass chimney lamp was invented in 1783

[pathfinder]

It's not so much as to when they were used,but what was there at Rendezvous up to 1840. There are THOUSANDS of items that were around during the rendezvous era,they just never made it to rendezvous. We dont even have the camp chairs at AMM events. If it's can't be documented as to being at rendezvous in the Rockie's,it's not used by the AMM.

[cward]

thanks for the info guys.  to greyfox i am located in the celina area southwest of lima.    also if you got the time (and gas) there is a large vous at piqua this weekend usually over 250 camps.  FYI