Today’s compact fluorescent and LED bulbs might last longer than some older incandescent bulbs, but you’ll still have to pull out the ladder eventually. While that may be true today, in Livermore, California, there’s a bulb that, aside from a few moving mishaps, hasn’t burned out in 114 years.
The Origin of the Blub
Most of us attribute the invention of the light bulb to Thomas Edison, the man who invented everything from the phonograph to the movie camera. But, contrary to popular belief, he wasn’t the only one making light bulbs in the late 19th century. Since the 1850s, more than 30 years before Edison, Joseph Swann from Cincinnati, Ohio had been producing lamps and bulbs for a variety of purposes. In the 1890’s, a man named Adolphe Chaillet developed a bulb that would burn twice as bright as other bulbs and withstand a wide variety of voltages. Working with John Fish, he developed the Shelby Electric Company in Shelby, Ohio, and produced his bulb for mass consumption. Over the years, these bulbs burned out, were lost, or just broke, but one has outlasted the others. One of these bulbs produced by Chaillet made its way to Livermore, California in the early 1910’s, changing hands a few times, and eventually making its home in the #6 Fire Station. The light bulb that hangs in the #6 Fire Station in Livermore has been burning for 114 years, and is still going strong.
They Don’t Make ‘em Like They Used To
You may be looking up at the light in front of you right now, wondering how much more life this one has in before you’ve got to pull out the ladder. Well, that wouldn’t be quite as big a concern if it weren’t for Big Electric. On December 23rd, 1924, companies such as General Electric and Phillips, among others, created the Phoebus Cartel. The cartel set out to control the sale and manufacture of light bulbs. Whereas bulbs before the cartel would sometimes have life expectancies of up to 10,000 hours, the group set a maximum life for bulbs at 1,000 hours. This working time would eventually be cut in half before the cartel was disbanded in 1939.
That brings us back to Livermore. The bulb hanging in the rafters of the station has gone through quite a bit in its 114-year history. It has moved between four different locations, had Nerf footballs thrown at it by firefighters, and almost gone out on one occasion, but the bulb still swings there on its wire, reminding everyone that passes underneath it that, sometimes, the good old days were, in fact, the good old days.
Chances are you don’t have a light bulb that’s lasted 1/10th as long as the one in Livermore. CFLs and LEDs may last longer than some bulbs produced 20 and 30 years ago, but you’ll have to replace them eventually. When you do, don’t suffer from their bright, headache inducing glares. Click the button below to browse our selection of light diffusers and filters.
Sources:
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~ohscogs/shelbymuseum/ShelbyMuseum3.html
http://www.centennialbulb.org/
http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,803625,00.html
