|
![[ Back to the main page ]](indextitle.gif)
| Info about this bulb |
|
Rating: unknown (16 c.p.?) Came from: U.S.A. Manufactured: 1890's Purchased: November 2002 Price paid: $20 plus sh. Bulb rarity: common Best feature: True 19th century bulb |
| Thomson-Houston Base Packard Lightbulb |
This is a Packard lightbulb sporting a Thomson-Houston base, a base which became popular in the 1890's. Thomson-Houston based bulbs are not super easy to find, but they aren't that rare either. There are many different variations of the Thomson-Houston base, there's even one that is made entirely of porcelain. Most TH bulbs (TH is short for "Thomson-Houston") are 100+ years old, but some were made after the year 1900, especially those of the full porcelain-based variety. Some of these even use cement (instead of plaster) to hold the bulb to the base, which indicates post-1900 manufacture. When the 20th century arrived, many homes did not change their old TH sockets in favor of the Edison base type, until several years later (in 1900, 10% of all sockets in use were Thomson-Houston sockets). This is partly due to the fact that TH-Edison adapters were made, enabling TH sockets to hold Edison bulbs. My Packard bulb has an intact filament, however it has no continuity. That is quite strange because this lightbulb shows signs of having been used for many hours before it lost its continuity. This is why there's no picture of it lit too! How do I know that this is a bulb made by Packard? Because there's a Packard label on the inside of the base. This bulb is held together to its base with plaster, and is insulated at the bottom with porcelain. Thomson-Houston bases look much larger in pictures than they really are. Someone who has never seen one in person may think that they are as large as a mogul base... But they're not. Actually, they are slightly larger than a regular Edison base. The neatest thing about TH bases is that the bulbs can be displayed very easily, since they can stand upright!
|
