Posted 11 years ago
patsyv
(2 items)
A friend has had this pair of lamps for some time. She needs help identifying. It looks like pattern glass and has obviously been converted from oil to electric. Thank God they didn't drill this pretty lamp. Any help appreciated as to who made it, etc.
This is a reproduction lamp made by WESTMORELAND Glass Co. Grapeville, PA and shown in their 1927 Catalogue. They called it a COLONIAL Pattern and numbered it No.185. It is shown in their catalogue as an Electric Lamp and was sold in Crystal, Roselin, Amber, Green & Blue Glass. RER(BOB)
Thanks Loumanal. I thought it was converted because of where the wiring was - at the top. Did the company do that because they were doing a reproduction & wanted it to look like a conversion?
They were sold and advertized as Electrical Lamps resembling/copying Whale Oil Lamps from the 1860's. The photos that I have, show them with the same electrical connection on your lamp, that screwed into the collar without damaging the glass parts. You will often come across REAL whale Oil lamps that have been converted to Electricity and they can be restored to their original use. The burner attachments for the old lamps were two round wick burners and burner caps. Of course, this lamp can be used as an Oil lamp by finding the right #1 or #2 prong burners that will fit this lamp.
To verify if the glass parts are old, you look at the original untampered-with collar and mold lines on the glass lamp. Usually a molten glass wafer was used to hold the base/stem to the font....if there is a mold line going through the wafer, then the lamp is newer and not an original Whale Oil Lamp.
If you have Hazel Marie Weatherman's " Colored Glassware of the Depression Era 2", this lamp and other Westmoreland lamps are shown on pages 362 and 363. BOB
Bob - thank you so much. I do have Weatherman's book 2 & found it immediately when I checked it. I have voluminous books on glass & I am particularly a fan of early american pattern glass but I hadn't thought I would find lamps there. Now I wish I could find the pink one with what looks like Cosmos pattern or something similar on it. According to my book Cosmos was not made in pink. You have really helped!