Henry McCartney’s lamp: a Patterson B7 from Houghton Colliery
Most old lamps reach us anonymous. This one still has its man.
It’s an officials’ lamp by Patterson of Gateshead, the Type B7, brass from top to bottom. It belonged to Henry McCartney, undermanager at Houghton Colliery, Houghton-le-Spring, Co. Durham. “12 H McCARTNEY” is stamped round the vessel.
Following the paper trail
Andy traced Henry’s career. Henry gained his Manager’s 2nd Class Certificate, No. 3857, in Newcastle on 23 November 1938, and by 1939 he was undermanager at Houghton. The Durham Mining Museum still lists “H. McCartney, 3,857” as undermanager there into the mid-1960s, and Andy has him retiring in 1966.
In Andy’s words: “How’s that for loyalty? If he hadn’t retired, his lamp would have needed a new hanging loop!” Look at the worn ring on top and you’ll see what he means.
The pit knew what a bad light could do
In 1850 an explosion at Houghton killed 26 men and boys, 20 of them under 21. The inquest blamed a naked light used where a safety lamp should have been. A century on, undermanagers like Henry carried lamps like this on their rounds to test for firedamp. Houghton closed on 24 September 1981, known as the oldest colliery in the county.
What a complete B7 should have
- Brass bonnet with top ring and side hook
- Glass cylinder between the pillars
- Gauze with a metal chimney inside (the Mueseler feature)
- Burner and wick, marked PATTERSON
- Vessel, numbered to match the plate
Gallery
Lamp record
| Maker | Patterson Lamps Ltd, Gateshead-on-Tyne |
|---|---|
| Model | Type B7 (stamped on the base), a Mueseler-type flame safety lamp |
| This lamp | All-brass officials’ version, lamp No. 12, stamped “12 H McCARTNEY” |
| Used at | Houghton Colliery, Houghton-le-Spring, Co. Durham |
| Price guide | A pair of ordinary brass-and-steel B7s sold for £75 hammer (about A$140) at Thomson Roddick, Carlisle, October 2023. A plain B7 is common; the name, certificate and career make this one special. |
| Status | In the Andy Jones Collection. Not for sale. |
Credit. Lamp, photos and story: Andy Jones, shared with his kind permission. Thank you, Andy.
