Energy & Power

Gasoline Pump

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.

Date: 1900s

Just sintered tungsten filament lamp

Just non-ductile (sintered) tungsten-filament lamp, ca. 1908. First generation tungsten filament lamp. Characteristics: Brass medium-screw base with collar, porcelain-dome insulator. Four single-arch tungsten filaments in series with 4 upper, 6 lower supports.
Description (Brief)
Just non-ductile (sintered) tungsten-filament lamp, ca. 1908. First generation tungsten filament lamp. Characteristics: Brass medium-screw base with collar, porcelain-dome insulator. Four single-arch tungsten filaments in series with 4 upper, 6 lower supports. Welded or paste connectors, Siemans seal. Glass stem is mounted on two shock-absorbing springs (one set in the press, the other attached to a glass rod that is set in the exhaust tip). Tipped, straight-sided envelope with taper at neck. Lamp developed by Dr. Alexander Just and Franz Hanaman in Vienna in 1902. Mazda A type. Printed on lamp: “Just Tungsten Lamp Pats. Pending”. Written on lamp: “20246a.1628”. Something else is written at base, near neutral lead-weld. [See Bright, Electric Lamp Industry, pp. 184-94.]
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1908
maker
Just, Alexander
Hanaman, Franz
ID Number
1997.0388.55
accession number
1997.0388
catalog number
1997.0388.55

Nernst Incandescent Lamp

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 three 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 three 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 1904
maker
Nernst
ID Number
EM.318298
catalog number
318298
accession number
232729

Tungsten Filament Lamp

Heanysintered tungsten lamp, c1908. This tungsten lamp was at the heart of a Patent Office scandal that saw two men jailed and Heany’s patents disallowed. See Arthur Bright "The Electric Lamp Industry," for the Heany patent fraud case.
Description (Brief)
Heanysintered tungsten lamp, c1908. This tungsten lamp was at the heart of a Patent Office scandal that saw two men jailed and Heany’s patents disallowed. See Arthur Bright "The Electric Lamp Industry," for the Heany patent fraud case. There are also contemporary articles in Electrical World.
Brass medium-screw base with skirt, one glass insulator and one ceramic insulator. Seven single-arch non-ductile (sintered) tungsten filaments in series, 7 upper & 6 lower supports (note eyes on upper supports - insulators?), carbon-paste connectors, Siemens seal, asbestos(?) insulator. Tipped S-shaped envelope with taper at neck, 1/2 frost. Mazda A type. “Pat Oct. 15, 1907” stamped on base, “329458”(?) printed on base. “9” inked on one side of press, “H” molded on other side. Label reads: “Heany V Tungsten Pat Dec. 25. 06 Pat Dec. 03. 07 Other Patents Pending”. “Heany” on label in stem. Partial “H” on envelope appears to be remnant of a William Hammer Collection marking.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1908
maker
Heany, John Allen
Heany Lamp Co.
ID Number
EM.320466
catalog number
320466
accession number
241402

Carbon Incandescent Lamp

Standard carbon lamp for laboratory. "Electrical Testing Laboratories Lamp #3879 (Carbon) Standardized 6.24.40".Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Standard carbon lamp for laboratory. "Electrical Testing Laboratories Lamp #3879 (Carbon) Standardized 6.24.40".
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1908
ID Number
2001.0033.04
accession number
2001.0033
catalog number
2001.0033.04

Metal Halide Lamp

Typical GE metal Halide lamp for outdoor use.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Typical GE metal Halide lamp for outdoor use.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1985-04
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1992.0553.10
catalog number
1992.0553.10
accession number
1992.0553

Nernst Incandescent Lamp

This Nernst incandescent lamp was designed to replace an Edison-style lamp in a regular lamp socket.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
This Nernst incandescent lamp was designed to replace an Edison-style lamp in a regular lamp socket.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
maker
Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Co.
ID Number
EM.214332
catalog number
214332
accession number
38852

Non-ductile Tungsten Lamp

First generation "Mazda" tungsten lamp. GE used the"Mazda" name to differentiate this from older carbon lamps.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
First generation "Mazda" tungsten lamp. GE used the"Mazda" name to differentiate this from older carbon lamps.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1909
Maker
General Electric
ID Number
1997.0388.74
catalog number
1997.0388.74
accession number
1997.0388

Linolite Incandescent Lamp

Linear incandescent lamp with a carbon filament. Made by the Johns-Manville Company.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Linear incandescent lamp with a carbon filament. Made by the Johns-Manville Company.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1908
maker
H. W. Johns-Manville Co.
ID Number
1997.0388.68
catalog number
1997.0388.68
accession number
1997.0388

Titanium-carbide Filament Lamp

Crawford-Voelker lamp with titanium-carbide filament and U-shape envelope. Invented by William Lawrence Voelker.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Crawford-Voelker lamp with titanium-carbide filament and U-shape envelope. Invented by William Lawrence Voelker.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca 1895
date made
ca 1901
maker
Crawford-Voelker Laboratory
ID Number
1997.0388.59
catalog number
1997.0388.59
accession number
1997.0388

Nernst Incandescent Lamp

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

Carbon Incandescent Lamp

Carbon filament lamp with four filaments connected in series.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Carbon filament lamp with four filaments connected in series.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1905
ID Number
1997.0388.70
catalog number
1997.0388.70
accession number
1997.0388

Standard Carbon Lamp

Siemens & Halske carbon filament lamp tested at the National Bureau of Standards.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Siemens & Halske carbon filament lamp tested at the National Bureau of Standards.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1903
maker
Siemens & Halske
ID Number
1992.0342.05
catalog number
1992.0342.05
accession number
1992.0342

Nernst Incandescent Lamp Component

This glower assembly was the active element in a Nernst incandescent lamp. When it burned out it could be quickly replaced. The glower consists of iron rods coated with rare-earth elements.
Description (Brief)
This glower assembly was the active element in a Nernst incandescent lamp. When it burned out it could be quickly replaced. The glower consists of 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 1900
maker
Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Co.
ID Number
EM.334501
catalog number
334501
accession number
271855

Carbon Incandescent Lamp

Carbon filament lamp with helical filament.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Carbon filament lamp with helical filament.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1903
maker
Sterling Electrical Manufacturing Co.
ID Number
1997.0388.71
catalog number
1997.0388.71
accession number
1997.0388

Carbon Reflector Lamp

Carbon filament lamp with reflective coating. Inner layer is a silver reflector and the outer layer is a green enamel.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Carbon filament lamp with reflective coating. Inner layer is a silver reflector and the outer layer is a green enamel.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
Maker
General Electric
ID Number
1997.0388.73
catalog number
1997.0388.73
accession number
1997.0388

Carbon Filament Lamp

“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.318616
catalog number
318616
accession number
232729

Carbon Filament Lamp

“Meridian” lamp with reflector. This lamp has a frosted globe shape with no external exhaust tip.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
“Meridian” lamp with reflector. This lamp has a frosted globe shape with no external exhaust tip.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1904
ID Number
EM.328072
accession number
270107
catalog number
328072

Standard Tungsten Lamp

First generation tungsten lamp tested at the National Bureau of Standards. Filament is sintered tungsten.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
First generation tungsten lamp tested at the National Bureau of Standards. Filament is sintered tungsten.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1908
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
1992.0342.18
accession number
1992.0342
catalog number
1992.0342.18

Neon-type sign, "Helium"

Luminous Sign with helium gas designed by Perley Gilman Nutting (1873–1949) and made by Edward O. Sperling at the National Bureau of Standards. Exhibited at the St. Louis Exposition in 1904.Label found with object reads: "Luminous Sign Designed by P. G.
Description (Brief)
Luminous Sign with helium gas designed by Perley Gilman Nutting (1873–1949) and made by Edward O. Sperling at the National Bureau of Standards. Exhibited at the St. Louis Exposition in 1904.
Description
Label found with object reads: "Luminous Sign Designed by P. G. Nutting / Made by Sperling / National Bureau of Standards / Exhibited at St. Louis Exposition 1904".
From Rexmond C. Cochrane, Measures for Progress: A History of the National Bureau of Standards (Washington, D.C., U. S. Dept. of Commerce, 1974), 83.
“When free from Exposition commitments, the electrical staff carried out considerable routine testing and even some research in its Palace laboratory. More a novelty resulting from Nutting's gas spectra work than a piece of serious research, however, were the luminous script signs in glass tubing exhibited by the staff at the fair. When excited by electric discharges, the noble (inert) gas in the tubes—it was neon—lit up with a reddish glow.”
Note 59: “Dr. Nutting's neon signs—two special glass tubes blown by Mr. Sperling in the Bureau shops, one reading "HELIUM," the other "NBS"—resulted from a modification he made in the laboratory instrument known as the Plücker tube and reported in NBS Scientific Paper No. 6, "Some new rectifying effects in conducting gases" (1904). The Plücker tube, like the earlier Geissler tube, was used in the study of spectra of gases and metals. By substituting or disk aluminum electrodes for the thin platinum wire in the tube, Nutting obtained a much steadier and brighter light. Although never made public, the neon phenomenon has long been considered the Bureau's first notable laboratory accomplishment, and the forerunner of modern neon signs and fluorescent lamps. Interview with Dr. William F, Meggers, Aug. 4, 1964.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1904
associated date
1904
maker
National Bureau of Standards
Sperling, Edward O.
designer
Nutting, Perley Gilman
ID Number
EM.334754
catalog number
334754
accession number
314637

Metal Hallide Lamp

Production "MasterColor" metal halide lamp in original package. With cylindrical shield surrounding arc-tube.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Production "MasterColor" metal halide lamp in original package. With cylindrical shield surrounding arc-tube.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1996-03
maker
Philips Lighting Company
ID Number
1997.0389.07
accession number
1997.0389
catalog number
1997.0389.07

Standard Carbon Lamp

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
1992.0342.04
catalog number
1992.0342.04
accession number
1992.0342

Ship Model, Steam Barge Edward Smith

The three-masted wooden propeller Edward Smith was built in 1890 by F.W. Wheeler & Co. at West Bay City, Michigan. The 201-foot bulk freighter is best known for rescuing crew from the old wooden steamer Annie Young on 20 October 1890 in Lake Huron.
Description
The three-masted wooden propeller Edward Smith was built in 1890 by F.W. Wheeler & Co. at West Bay City, Michigan. The 201-foot bulk freighter is best known for rescuing crew from the old wooden steamer Annie Young on 20 October 1890 in Lake Huron. The Young was transporting a cargo of coal from Buffalo to Gladstone, MI when a fire began somewhere in the vicinity of the boiler.
Upbound from Marine City, Smith’s Captain Mitchell saw the Young on fire, dropped the two barges he was towing and began circling the burning ship, rescuing 13 crew and the captain. Nine men were lost when their lifeboat swamped and sank. Capt. Mitchell was awarded a lifesaving medal for his efforts; Annie Young had been insured for $55,000.
In 1900, the Smith was renamed Zillah, when transferred at Port Huron, MI to new owners. On 29 August 1926, Zillah was transporting a cargo of heavy limestone when it sailed into a summer storm in Whitefish Bay, Lake Superior. The old steamer began to take on water, and the crew removed their belongings while Zillah coasted in a circle. The crew was rescued without loss by the steamer William B. Schiller, with assistance from the Coast Guard. Shortly afterwards, the ship rolled over and sank. The Zillah’s wreck was located in 1975.
Date made
1966
ship transferred to Michigan
1900
ship sank
1926-08-29
ship wreckage located
1975
built ship, Edward Smith
F. W. Wheeler & Co.
ID Number
TR.326655
catalog number
326655
accession number
265603

Cooper Hewitt mercury lamp with laboratory luminaire

Cooper Hewitt mercury vapor lamp for Michelson interferometer. A Cooper Hewitt lamp mounted in a wooden luminaire. Linear double-ended lamp with single connector at each end, mercury-pool electrodes, T-shaped envelope with small reservoir at top, large reservoir at bottom.
Description (Brief)
Cooper Hewitt mercury vapor lamp for Michelson interferometer. A Cooper Hewitt lamp mounted in a wooden luminaire. Linear double-ended lamp with single connector at each end, mercury-pool electrodes, T-shaped envelope with small reservoir at top, large reservoir at bottom. Wooden luminaire holds the tube in a vertical orientation (high voltage pulse to start?) and has cardboard covers serving as light shutters. A white, metal trough reflector is mounted behind the lamp. Unit operates with auxiliary apparatus, catalog #2001.0033.02.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1908
maker
Cooper Hewitt Electric Company
ID Number
2001.0033.01
accession number
2001.0033
catalog number
2001.0033.01

Converse Provo Glass Insulator

Aqua - Large base chips - St. Paul Gas Light Company - 12/28/1900 - Converse - Used on St. Croix Power Company's high tension line, November, 1900, (Wisconsin). See Transactions of American Institute of Electrical Engineers, November 23, 1900. "Provo" type. 25000 volts.
Description (Brief)
Aqua - Large base chips - St. Paul Gas Light Company - 12/28/1900 - Converse - Used on St. Croix Power Company's high tension line, November, 1900, (Wisconsin). See Transactions of American Institute of Electrical Engineers, November 23, 1900. "Provo" type. 25000 volts. Same as used in Utah to carry 40,000 v.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1895
ca 1900
maker
Hemingray Glass Company
ID Number
EM.209183
catalog number
209183
accession number
37405

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.