Essex Historical Society Collections
The Essex Historical Society collects items pertaining to the history of Essex. These cover a wide range including textiles, tools, ivory, porcelains, ceramics, funiture and the decorative arts, as well as household items, local manufacturing and trade memorabilia, maritime artifacts, genealogies, local and regional history books, archival material, and an extensive collection of Essex postcards and photographs.
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What Is It?
Betty Lamp
Ancient lamps were simple dishes made of clay. With the passing of centuries, they were made of iron, copper and bronze. These lamps burned grease, fish oil, whale oil, or scraps of fat, depending on what might be on hand. The wicks of early lamps were usually pieces of twisted cloth. When the lamps were lighted, they smoked, smelled, and dripped oil or grease on objects beneath them. Early lamps had wicks that usually drew up oil quicker than it burned, and the surplus spilled over the sides of the lamp.
The Betty, from the German word "besser," meaning better, was designed to improve the performance of the lamps by creating a wick holder in the base of the lamp. The design allowed the drippings from the wick to run back into the bowl and eventually be consumed. A cover was added to the lamp which further improved it by confining heat, decreasing smoke, and making the oil burn more efficiently.
The Betty Lamp produced comparatively good light for its time. The light varied with the size and material of the wick, and the oil or grease used in the lamp. Fish oil gave the poorest light and was smoky; grease and fats were somewhat better. Whale oil, usually available in coastal towns, produced more satisfactory light, about equal to that of two ordinary candles.
Various forms of the Betty Lamp existed. The most popular were made of metal, had rounded or oval sides, and a shallow bottom with the spout at one end where the tip of an oil soaked wick could protrude. A bent rod was attached to the lamp which could be hooked to a rafter, a peg on the mantel, or the back of a chair. A pick, for rescuing the wick in case it dropped into the oil was frequently attached to the lamp with a chain.
From the Amercican Association of Family & Consumer Sciences
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