CITY OF WASHINGTON
PUBLISHED BY THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION
AUGUST 15, 1923

The Lord Baltimore Press
BALTIMORE, MD., U. S. A.

CONTENTS

PAGE
List of Illustrations[v]
Foreword[ix]
Chronology of Electric Light[xi]
Early Records of Electricity and Magnetism[1]
Machines Generating Electricity by Friction[2]
The Leyden Jar[3]
Electricity Generated by Chemical Means[3]
Improvement of Volta’s Battery[5]
Davy’s Discoveries[5]
Researches of Oersted, Ampère, Schweigger and Sturgeon[6]
Ohm’s Law[7]
Invention of the Dynamo[7]
Daniell’s Battery[10]
Grove’s Battery[11]
Grove’s Demonstration of Incandescent Lighting[12]
Grenet Battery[13]
De Moleyns’ Incandescent Lamp[13]
Early Developments of the Arc Lamp[14]
Joule’s Law[16]
Starr’s Incandescent Lamp[17]
Other Early Incandescent Lamps[19]
Further Arc Lamp Developments[20]
Development of the Dynamo, 1840–1860[24]
The First Commercial Installation of an Electric Light[25]
Further Dynamo Developments[27]
Russian Incandescent Lamp Inventors[30]
The Jablochkoff “Candle”[31]
Commercial Introduction of the Differentially Controlled Arc Lamp[33]
Arc Lighting in the United States[33]
Other American Arc Light Systems[40]
“Sub-Dividing the Electric Light”[42]
Edison’s Invention of a Practical Incandescent Lamp[43]
Edison’s Three-Wire System[53]
Development of the Alternating Current Constant Potential System[54]
Incandescent Lamp Developments, 1884–1894[56]
The Edison “Municipal” Street Lighting System[62]
The Shunt Box System for Series Incandescent Lamps[64]
The Enclosed Arc Lamp[65]
The Flame Arc Lamp[67]
The Constant Current Transformer for Series Circuits[69]
Enclosed Series Alternating Current Arc Lamps[69]
Series Incandescent Lamps on Constant Current Transformers[70]
The Nernst Lamp[71]
The Cooper-Hewitt Lamp[72]
The Luminous or Magnetite Arc Lamp[74]
Mercury Arc Rectifier for Magnetite Arc Lamps[77]
Incandescent Lamp Developments, 1894–1904[78]
The Moore Tube Light[79]
The Osmium Lamp[82]
The Gem Lamp[82]
The Tantalum Lamp[84]
Invention of the Tungsten Lamp[85]
Drawn Tungsten Wire[87]
The Quartz Mercury Vapor Arc Lamp[88]
The Gas-Filled Tungsten Lamp[89]
Types and Sizes of Tungsten Lamps Now Made[91]
Standard Voltages[93]
Cost of Incandescent Electric Light[93]
Statistics Regarding the Present Demand for Lamps[94]
Selected Bibliography[95]

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PAGE
Portion of the Electrical Exhibit in the United States National Museum[viii]
Otto Von Guericke’s Electric Machine, 1650[2]
Voltaic Pile, 1799[4]
Faraday’s Dynamo, 1831[8]
Pixii’s Dynamo, 1832[9]
Daniell’s Cell, 1836[10]
Grove’s Cell, 1838[11]
Grove’s Incandescent Lamp, 1840[13]
De Moleyns’ Incandescent Lamp, 1841[14]
Wright’s Arc Lamp, 1845[15]
Archereau’s Arc Lamp, 1848[16]
Starr’s Incandescent Lamp, 1845[18]
Staite’s Incandescent Lamp, 1848[19]
Roberts’ Incandescent Lamp, 1852[19]
Farmer’s Incandescent Lamp, 1859[20]
Roberts’ Arc Lamp, 1852[21]
Slater and Watson’s Arc Lamp, 1852[21]
Diagram of “Differential” Method of Control of an Arc Lamp[22]
Lacassagne and Thiers’ Differentially Controlled Arc Lamp, 1856[23]
Serrin’s Arc Lamp, 1857[24]
Siemens’ Dynamo, 1856[25]
Alliance Dynamo, 1862[26]
Wheatstone’s Self-Excited Dynamo, 1866[27]
Gramme’s Dynamo, 1871[28]
Gramme’s “Ring” Armature[28]
Alteneck’s Dynamo with “Drum” Wound Armature, 1872[29]
Lodyguine’s Incandescent Lamp, 1872[30]
Konn’s Incandescent Lamp, 1875[30]
Bouliguine’s Incandescent Lamp, 1876[31]
Jablochkoff “Candle,” 1876[32]
Jablochkoff’s Alternating Current Dynamo, 1876[33]
Wallace-Farmer Arc Lamp, 1875[34]
Wallace-Farmer Dynamo, 1875[34]
Weston’s Arc Lamp, 1876[35]
Brush’s Dynamo, 1877[36]
Diagram of Brush Armature[36]
Brush’s Arc Lamp, 1877[37]
Thomson-Houston Arc Dynamo, 1878[38]
Diagram of T-H Arc Lighting System[39]
Thomson-Houston Arc Lamp, 1878[40]
Thomson Double Carbon Arc Lamp[40]
Maxim Dynamo[41]
Sawyer’s Incandescent Lamp, 1878[42]
Farmer’s Incandescent Lamp, 1878[42]
Maxim’s Incandescent Lamp, 1878[43]
Edison’s First Experimental Lamp, 1878[44]
Diagram of Constant Current Series System[45]
Diagram of Edison’s Multiple System, 1879[45]
Edison Dynamo, 1879[46]
Edison’s High Resistance Platinum Lamp, 1879[47]
Edison’s High Resistance Platinum in Vacuum Lamp, 1879[47]
Edison’s Carbon Lamp of October 21, 1879[48]
Demonstration of Edison’s Incandescent Lighting System[49]
Dynamo Room, S. S. Columbia[50]
Original Socket for Incandescent Lamps[51]
Wire Terminal Base Lamp, 1880[51]
Original Screw Base Lamp, 1880[52]
Improved Screw Base Lamp, 1881[52]
Final Form of Screw Base, 1881[53]
Diagram of Edison’s Three Wire System, 1881[54]
Diagram of Stanley’s Alternating Current Multiple System, 1885[55]
Standard Edison Lamp, 1884[56]
Standard Edison Lamp, 1888[56]
Standard Edison Lamp, 1894[57]
Various Bases in Use, 1892[58]
Thomson-Houston Socket[59]
Westinghouse Socket[59]
Adapters for Edison Screw Sockets, 1892[60]
Various Series Bases in Use, 1892[61]
Edison “Municipal” System, 1885[62]
Edison “Municipal” Lamp, 1885[63]
Shunt Box System, 1887[64]
Enclosed Arc Lamp, 1893[65]
Open Flame Arc Lamp, 1898[66]
Enclosed Flame Arc Lamp, 1908[66]
Constant Current Transformer, 1900[68]
Series Incandescent Lamp Socket with Film Cutout, 1900[70]
Nernst Lamp, 1900[71]
Diagram of Nernst Lamp[72]
Cooper-Hewitt Mercury Vapor Arc Lamp, 1901[73]
Diagram of Cooper-Hewitt Lamp for Use on Alternating Current[74]
Luminous or Magnetite Arc Lamp, 1902[75]
Diagram of Series Magnetite Arc Lamp[76]
Mercury Arc Rectifier Tube for Series Magnetite Arc Circuits, 1902[77]
Early Mercury Arc Rectifier Installation[78]
The Moore Tube Light, 1904[79]
Diagram of Feeder Valve of Moore Tube[80]
Osmium Lamp, 1905[82]
Gem Lamp, 1905[83]
Tantalum Lamp, 1906[84]
Tungsten Lamp, 1907[86]
Drawn Tungsten Wire Lamp, 1911[87]
Quartz Mercury Vapor Lamp, 1912[88]
Gas Filled Tungsten Lamp, 1913[89]
Gas Filled Tungsten Lamp, 1923[90]
Standard Tungsten Lamps, 1923[92]

Portion of the Electrical Exhibit in the United States National Museum.

Section devoted to the historical development of the electric light and dynamo.

FOREWORD