“The Illuminating Engineer”: A Journal That Helped Define a Profession
Long before today’s lighting professionals could flip through polished issues of Lighting Design + Application or academic volumes of the Journal of the
Daniel McFarlan Moore and the Moore Tubes
The story of early electric lighting is often dominated by incandescent carbon-filament bulbs and, later, by the emergence of fluorescent
Lighting Below the Surface: A History of Dive Lights
Under the sea, under the sea! Darling it’s better down where it’s wetter, take it from me! Let’s investigate how
An Illuminating Welcome To Fabulous Las Vegas Nevada
Few pieces of roadside architecture have earned the mythical status achieved by the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas Nevada Sign.
Radiant History
“One Hot Night” NASCAR Under the Lights
Billed as "One Hot Night," the 1992 NASCAR All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway was the first superspeedway race run at night, thanks to a new $1.7 million lighting system installed at the 1.5-mile track.
X-Rays Discovered By Accident in 1895
Wilhelm Roentgen, Professor of Physics in Wurzburg, Bavaria, discovered X-rays in 1895—accidentally—while testing whether cathode rays could pass through glass. His cathode tube was covered in heavy black paper, so he was surprised when an
Stanley McCandless: The Father of Modern Lighting Design and His Brilliant Legacy
In the world of theater, film, and architecture, lighting design plays a crucial role in setting the mood, enhancing performances, and creating immersive experiences. Behind this art form stands one influential figure who revolutionized the
The Argand Oil Lamp
January 1780 The Argand lamp is a type of oil lamp invented in 1780 by Aime Argand and was extremely unique at the time. His wick consisted of a flat ribbon, shaped like a cylinder, sitting in a reservoir
The First Halogen Lamp
The first lamp to use halogen gas (chlorine) was patented in 1882, but the first commercial halogen lamp that used iodine as a halogen gas wasn’t patented until 1959 by General Electric. It was developed
Taming the Traffic Chaos: The Inception of the Electric Traffic Light
In the bustling streets of urban America during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, chaos and confusion reigned supreme; however, a beacon of order and organization would soon emerge to reign in the madness
Lite-Brite
The Lite-Brite toy is one of the all-time most popular toys and was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame in 2022. It was originally marketed in 1967. It consists of a light box
Train Headlights
Back in the 1890’s locomotives began adopting electric headlights but they were met with a great deal of debate about whether or not the light was actually a distraction to the engineer and obstructed the
The White House Gets Electric Lighting in 1891
December 4th, 1916 Electric lighting was installed in the White House in 1891 during President Benjamin Harrison’s administration. Few people at the time had enough faith in electric lighting to use it exclusively after all
In the Limelight: The First Theatrical Follow-Spot Light
Early theatrical lighting employed many different techniques and technologies, but arguable one of the most interesting in the mid-1800’s was an invention called the Limelight.
