Energy & Power

The Museum's collections on energy and power illuminate the role of fire, steam, wind, water, electricity, and the atom in the nation's history. The artifacts include wood-burning stoves, water turbines, and windmills, as well as steam, gas, and diesel engines. Oil-exploration and coal-mining equipment form part of these collections, along with a computer that controlled a power plant and even bubble chambers—a tool of physicists to study protons, electrons, and other charged particles.

A special strength of the collections lies in objects related to the history of electrical power, including generators, batteries, cables, transformers, and early photovoltaic cells. A group of Thomas Edison's earliest light bulbs are a precious treasure. Hundreds of other objects represent the innumerable uses of electricity, from streetlights and railway signals to microwave ovens and satellite equipment.

This lamp was mass-produced for the 50th anniversary of Edison’s invention.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
This lamp was mass-produced for the 50th anniversary of Edison’s invention.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1929
associated date
1879 10 21
associated person
Edison, Thomas Alva
ID Number
EM.320684
catalog number
320684
accession number
242716
Experimental tungsten lamp with mercury pool. This lamp’s purpose is unclear but it appears similar early sunlamps.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental tungsten lamp with mercury pool. This lamp’s purpose is unclear but it appears similar early sunlamps.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1930
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1997.0388.62
catalog number
1997.0388.62
accession number
1997.0388
An early commercial Edison lamp. The bamboo filament is attached to the lead wires with copper-plated connectors.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
An early commercial Edison lamp. The bamboo filament is attached to the lead wires with copper-plated connectors.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1883
maker
Edison Lamp Company
ID Number
EM.318643
catalog number
318643
accession number
232729
Experimental incandescent lamp used at the U.S. Government Torpedo Station in Newport, Rhode Island.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental incandescent lamp used at the U.S. Government Torpedo Station in Newport, Rhode Island.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1880
maker
Farmer, Moses G.
ID Number
EM.181978
catalog number
181978
accession number
2015.0173
Mock-up of experimental tungsten halogen Gemini lamp with two 60 volt miniature halogen capsules wired in series.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Mock-up of experimental tungsten halogen Gemini lamp with two 60 volt miniature halogen capsules wired in series.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1974-01-17
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.10
catalog number
1996.0147.10
accession number
1996.0147
A coiled-tungsten filament lamp designed for use in the base-down position. Lamp has a pear-shaped envelope.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
A coiled-tungsten filament lamp designed for use in the base-down position. Lamp has a pear-shaped envelope.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1915
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
EM.307549
catalog number
307549
accession number
68492
A coiled-tungsten filament 100 watt lamp with a blue glass pear-shaped envelope. Known as a “daylight blue” lamp.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
A coiled-tungsten filament 100 watt lamp with a blue glass pear-shaped envelope. Known as a “daylight blue” lamp.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1918
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
EM.307553
catalog number
307553
accession number
68492
Experimental LEAP (Linear Exhaust And Processing) tungsten halogen lamp for a production method that used a laser.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental LEAP (Linear Exhaust And Processing) tungsten halogen lamp for a production method that used a laser.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1972
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1996.0082.02
catalog number
1996.0082.02
accession number
1996.0082
Second generation tungsten lamp with a pear-shaped envelope.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Second generation tungsten lamp with a pear-shaped envelope.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1914
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
EM.316017
catalog number
316017
accession number
223095
A lamp with Baltimore Gas & Electric anniversary wrapper. Mailed to customers as part of a load-building program.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
A lamp with Baltimore Gas & Electric anniversary wrapper. Mailed to customers as part of a load-building program.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1966
1966
maker
Westinghouse Electric Corp.
ID Number
1997.0387.19
accession number
1997.0387
catalog number
1997.0387.19
By the late 1890s, carbon filament lamps were no longer the hand-made devices demonstrated by Thomas Edison. He and many others had refined them into mass-produced, reliable products.
Description
By the late 1890s, carbon filament lamps were no longer the hand-made devices demonstrated by Thomas Edison. He and many others had refined them into mass-produced, reliable products. But the energy efficiency of carbon lamps remained poor, leading researchers—especially in Europe—to seek better filament materials. In 1902 Germans Werner von Bolton and Otto Feuerlien invented a filament made from element number 73, tantalum. Tantalum lamps produced 5 lumens per watt (lpw), much better than the 3.2 lpw of the carbon lamps of that day.
The electrical resistance of tantalum was lower than carbon, though. In order for the total resistance of a tantalum lamp to match the total resistance of a carbon lamp, it had to have a much longer filament. In order to support the longer filament inside a bulb of reasonable size, von Bolton and Feuerlien used a series of hooks attached to the lamp's central glass stem. The filament wound up and down within the bulb. Though the design looked complex, it worked well and was later adopted for the tungsten filaments that replaced tantalum around 1910.
This particular lamp was made by the inventors' employer, Siemens and Halske. Tantalum lamps became the first metal filament lamps offered for sale in the U.S. and in 1909 became the first lamps to carry the trade-name Mazda.
Lamp characteristics: Brass medium-screw base with skirt and porcelain-dome insulator. A tantalum filament with 11 upper and 10 lower support hooks. The support hooks are angled in order to keep tension on the filament, which tended to sag during operation. The stem assembly features soldered twist and crimp connectors, a Siemens-type press seal, and a cotton insulator. Tipped, straight-sided envelope.
Date made
ca 1907
date made
ca. 1907
maker
Siemens & Halske
ID Number
EM.239147
catalog number
239147
accession number
46578
Invented by Walther Nernst, this incandescent lamp could operate in open air and did not violate Edison’s patents. The housing is sectioned for study of the internal ballast resistance mechanism. The glower consists of six iron rods coated with rare-earth elements.
Description (Brief)
Invented by Walther Nernst, this incandescent lamp could operate in open air and did not violate Edison’s patents. The housing is sectioned for study of the internal ballast resistance mechanism. The glower consists of six iron rods coated with rare-earth elements. The coating gives off light when heated and protects the rod from oxidation.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1902
associated person
Nernst, Walther
maker
Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Co.
ID Number
EM.214330
catalog number
214330
accession number
38852
Edison lamp with carbon filament and frosted envelope. Unit was long-ago welded to a corner-iron for display.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Edison lamp with carbon filament and frosted envelope. Unit was long-ago welded to a corner-iron for display.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1883
Maker
Edison
maker
Edison Electric Light Company
ID Number
1997.0388.61
catalog number
1997.0388.61
accession number
1997.0388
GE incandescent Lumiline lamp, green-coated, ca. 1936. Characteristics: Double-ended with steel disc-bases. C-8 tungsten filament, with glass-bead insulated support-hooks attached to a spine paralleling the filament. Tubular envelope with an enamel, green coating.
Description (Brief)
GE incandescent Lumiline lamp, green-coated, ca. 1936. Characteristics: Double-ended with steel disc-bases. C-8 tungsten filament, with glass-bead insulated support-hooks attached to a spine paralleling the filament. Tubular envelope with an enamel, green coating. Color lamps were displaced by the development of the fluorescent lamp, though clear and frosted are still available as of 1997.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1936
Maker
General Electric
ID Number
1997.0388.49
accession number
1997.0388
catalog number
1997.0388.49
A set of 19 incandescent decorative Christmas lamps with cords, about 1937. Lamps are wired into 3 separate strings which are plugged into a common terminal block. The strings are disposable, with strings being replaced as they burn-out.
Description (Brief)
A set of 19 incandescent decorative Christmas lamps with cords, about 1937. Lamps are wired into 3 separate strings which are plugged into a common terminal block. The strings are disposable, with strings being replaced as they burn-out. Characteristics: Lamps: Double-ended glass with a lead emerging from each end. C-8 tungsten filaments with soldered-crimp connectors. Tipless, oval-shape envelopes with seams running lengthwise (clamshell assembly). All but three are enamel coated: colors as follows: 2 white, 3 blue, 7 red, 3 green, 4 yellow. Three of the red lamps are spray-coated. Two of the strings have 6 lamps each; the broken string has 7. Cord-set: 6 black-insulated plastic (?) plug-sockets which insert into a plastic block. Jacket is a green woven-fabric. Each sting is a series circuit with a connector at each end. There is space for four strings in the block, but only three were found. The block-leads are wired to a two-prong plug with an black plastic housing. "Mazda [GE logo] Lamps" printed on each string's end-connectors. Paper found in the bag with the set reads: "1937 Disposable string set".
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1937
Maker
General Electric
ID Number
1997.0388.39
accession number
1997.0388
catalog number
1997.0388.39
A third generation tungsten filament lamp with pear-straight (PS) shaped envelope.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
A third generation tungsten filament lamp with pear-straight (PS) shaped envelope.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1915
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
EM.307589
catalog number
307589
accession number
68492
Experimental LEAP (Linear Exhaust And Processing) tungsten halogen lamp for a production method that used a laser.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental LEAP (Linear Exhaust And Processing) tungsten halogen lamp for a production method that used a laser.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1972
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1996.0082.03
catalog number
1996.0082.03
accession number
1996.0082
“Meridian” lamps were designed for stylish installations. They featured a globe shape with no external exhaust tip.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
“Meridian” lamps were designed for stylish installations. They featured a globe shape with no external exhaust tip.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1904
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
EM.328073
catalog number
328073
accession number
270107
Only a few types of carbon lamps were made with coiled filaments.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Only a few types of carbon lamps were made with coiled filaments.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
EM.230844
catalog number
230844
accession number
43304
A coiled-tungsten filament 200 watt lamp with a blue glass pear-shaped envelope. Known as a “daylight blue” lamp.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
A coiled-tungsten filament 200 watt lamp with a blue glass pear-shaped envelope. Known as a “daylight blue” lamp.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1918
maker
General Electric Co.
ID Number
EM.307554
accession number
68492
catalog number
307554
An experimental 10,000 watt stage and studio lamp with a hydrogen-bromine fill gas.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
An experimental 10,000 watt stage and studio lamp with a hydrogen-bromine fill gas.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1970
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1996.0082.06
catalog number
1996.0082.06
accession number
1996.0082
Typical carbon filament lamp tested at the National Bureau of Standards.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Typical carbon filament lamp tested at the National Bureau of Standards.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1905
ID Number
1992.0342.03
catalog number
1992.0342.03
accession number
1992.0342
Brass lapel-pin with a non-functional light bulb. Resembles a typical carbon filament lamp of the early 1900s.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Brass lapel-pin with a non-functional light bulb. Resembles a typical carbon filament lamp of the early 1900s.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1905
ID Number
2002.0342.01
accession number
2002.0342
catalog number
2002.0342.01
Edison carbon lamp. A typical commercial incandescent lamp of the late 1880s.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Edison carbon lamp. A typical commercial incandescent lamp of the late 1880s.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1889
maker
Edison Lamp Company
ID Number
EM.181805
catalog number
181805
accession number
33407

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