Antique Light Fixture Questions

[Willa]

I got a great deal on four lights, including their shades. Including postage I paid about $ 10.00 CAN each. They appear to be completely intact.

I have never seen the ceramic or porcelain cap, and have no clue about how this would be installed. Can anyone advise ? Also - inside the portion where a lightbulb is screwed is what appears to be a disc of mica. Are these just very early electric lights, or is this an unusual set-up ?

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[Gothichome]

Willa, I would expect your lights to be earlier rather a than later. When electrics were first being installed there were all sorts of competing configurations for wiring, sockets, hardware ect. Remember there was very little standardization in the beginning. Just think of the ac/dc battle between Tesler and Edison as an example. In your lamps the mica was an insulator, pretty common use for mica at the time. Your ceramic mounting, I would suspect fit into a ceramic electrical box using a bayonet type connection. This box would have been either surface mounted or recessed. I am not sure though that your shades are original to the fixtures. In the resource section of the District there is link to early electrics.

[Mick_VT]

That "cap" probably no longer to code and as GH says it may be missing a piece. It looks very much like an old knob and tube one I have. I would look for a slightly later or complete one on ebay. I used the knob and tube one, but did not use the exposed connectors. Instead I ran the wire right through it, using it simply to support the cord which then runs to a junction box close to the light where the connection is actually made. Not ideal but it is safe (though not strictly code) and retained the vintage cap. Maybe you can modify yours to do something similar. A picture is worth perhaps a thousand words....

[Willa]

Thanks, Mick, your photo really helps to explain what should probably be there. When I bought them I wasn't quite sure what I might be getting and assumed they were probably parts from a pan type light. I was surprised to see the ceramic cap thing.

[Mick_VT]

Thanks, Mick, your photo really helps to explain what should probably be there. When I bought them I wasn't quite sure what I might be getting and assumed they were probably parts from a pan type light. I was surprised to see the ceramic cap thing.

My ceramic top thing is a bit different to yours though. I think yours may have been a two piece affair as GH suggests. Mine was / is surface mounted. The only thing I did not do was wire it how it used to be. The tab you can see on the front side would have originally been where the wire connected (there is another out of view) these are connected to terminals inside the ceramic where the lamp cord would have originally connected. The result was live bare terminals when the light was switched on! My cord (as mentioned before) now goes through the ceiling and into the back of the junction box where it meets the modern romex inside a nice safe insulated home

By the way, these lights look best with carbon filament bulbs IMO

[1918ColonialRevival]

That cap looks like it was originally used with a run of wire molding, which was basically a wooden track that wire was run inside of that was attached to the outer surface of a ceiling. This was a very common arrangement in the early 20th Century for older buildings that were retrofitted with electricity. It was also commonly used in outbuildings, garages, and barns (my garage has this from its original construction).

As for age, I would date these to about 1915-1920. The dead giveaway is at the end of the socket. These appear to be UNO shade fitters, which first came out around 1913. The UNO fitter threads onto the end of the socket, whereas earlier sockets had a single raised lip that a shade was clamped around, held in place by a tightening screw.

Rewiring these is a breeze. Disassemble the socket and clean the interior very well with alcohol and a nylon brush. Replace the paper socket liner and cap liner. The wire itself is run through the top, screwed to the terminals, and the socket liner slipped over it. The housing should snap back together. Earlier ones are held together by a set screw while later ones just snap. Replacement wire that looks just like the original is available from multiple sources.

[Willa]

What should I do about the ceramic cap part ? Is the larger piece a findable thing on Ebay, etc. ? If so - is there a name for it ? Or is there something else which is a good substitute which is easy to find ?

Canada has a small population that is pretty spread out, particularly in the early 20th century. Technology that was up to date in cities took quite awhile to make it smaller towns and farming communities. While this may have been a brand new budget fixture in 1915 for city folk, this may have been a fancy electric light for a farmhouse in 1925. The shades look older, stylewise, which may have been small town taste - or older stock used due to frugality ?

[1918ColonialRevival]

What should I do about the ceramic cap part ? Is the larger piece a findable thing on Ebay, etc. ? If so - is there a name for it ? Or is there something else which is a good substitute which is easy to find ?

Canada has a small population that is pretty spread out, particularly in the early 20th century. Technology that was up to date in cities took quite awhile to make it smaller towns and farming communities. While this may have been a brand new budget fixture in 1915 for city folk, this may have been a fancy electric light for a farmhouse in 1925. The shades look older, stylewise, which may have been small town taste - or older stock used due to frugality ?

It took the power grid about 60+ years to be fully established across the US and Canada. While many of the larger cities on the East Coast had electric lighting by about 1890, some small rural locales in the Midwest didn't get connected to the grid until about 1940 or even later. There were several companies that sold small power generating plants marketed to farms where electricity had not yet spread. Of course, many people couldn't afford it.

As for the top piece, you have several options. You could fit a ceramic canopy over it, or there's a metal junction box top out there that has a single small opening for wiring like this to pass through. Both turn up on ebay from time to time, or you might want to check with an electrical supplier that has been in business for decades if there's one in your area. I've found that some of them have old stock stashed away in an attic, basement, or outbuilding.

[Willa]

Thanks for the info - I really did not know about any of this.

I spent some time looking at the antique lighting catalogs via the link in the reference section. I was surprised that gas lights were still available c. 1910, and also that what I had thought about dates for certain styles were off by about ten years. An excellent resource !

[1918ColonialRevival]

Thanks for the info - I really did not know about any of this.

I spent some time looking at the antique lighting catalogs via the link in the reference section. I was surprised that gas lights were still available c. 1910, and also that what I had thought about dates for certain styles were off by about ten years. An excellent resource !

Montgomery Ward was still offering a few gas lights and gas/electric combos in their 1919 lighting fixture catalog, though gas lighting was all but done by then in most areas. Kind of like a handful of electronics manufacturers still producing VHS players in the late 2000s.