Gas lamps use burnt piped natural gas for the purpose of illumination and, were widely used before the advent of electricity and before electricity took over, gas lamps were widely used in cities as well as suburbs. The early gas lamps were lit manually but, were soon able to light themselves. The use of gas lamps to light public street lighting took place in Pall Mall, London in the year 1807 and, five years later, Parliament in England granted a charter to the London and Westminster Gas Light and Coke Company, which resulted in the first gas company of the world coming into existence. This was followed, a few years later, in the lighting of Westminster Bridge in the year 1813.
A Popular Means Of Artificial Lighting
With artificial lighting s popularity increasing, more and more people began to get interested and, gas lamps were to prove to become a means of ensuring the safety of the public at large. With their successful implementation in England, it soon found application in other countries and, reached Baltimore, United States in 1816.
They were soon to become economically viable and, soon factories began to use them and, people could thus work for longer hours. By the early 20th century, a majority of all cities in the US were using gas lamps till they had to give way to sodium and, high pressure mercury lighting in the 1930s. This led to the coming of the incandescent electric lamp, which replaced them in homes during the 19th century though; the complete transformation was to take many decades to complete.
This is not to say that they have completely disappeared from cities. In fact, the biggest gas lighting network in Europe is at Nottingham Park Estate and, they are also used in the American city of Cincinnati, Ohio, where gaslight is still used in residential neighborhoods. Gas lamps are also found in a number of streets in central London and, the exterior of Buckingham Palace is still lit by such devices, which can also be found in many small streets in Berlin.
It is also common for much gas utility companies to quote a fixed periodic rate for customer used gas lamps and, many homeowners are still able to use them in their homes. Nevertheless, the higher cost of operating gas lamps is a major reason why most gas lamps have been converted to electricity.