Hi everyone, I know that many of our lanterns—like Petromax, Coleman, Tilley, and Vapalux—were used during the war. I’m wondering if there are any photos from that time showing soldiers or civilians with these lamps. (Or maybe others wars) Does anyone know of any websites, archives, or personal collections with such photos? I’d love to see them!
Here are two photos that I screenshotted from someone's facebook site. I don't know if they're genuine. If they are, then probably taken from a WWII battlefront involving the Finnish Army with probably a Petromax or a similarly styled lantern:
Actual photos taken during War time which happen to have pressure lamps in them are dificult to find. Hard to tell if whatever on the internet is real/authentic or some sort of re-enactment. Example: The 2nd picture in the above has something that looks suspiciously like a laptop computer in the background.
I have asked this myself too and I have never got a good picture of the use of pressure lanterns during the war. Maybe we overestimate the usage. Most if not all ww2 German bunkers had electricity. In open field locations the use of a 500Hk Petromax may not be a good idea. Also it is a fragile and heavy thing. In enclosed gas sealed bunkers a Petromax type of lantern is not good either considering CO and/or CO2. One or the reason the Swiss army banned, gasoline burning lanterns from enclosed spaces. It is also possible that photographers where rare or not nearby when the lantern where used. @MYN , that laptop maybe a mirror.
Hello Wim, When it comes to lighting in the Siegfried or Atlantic Wall bunkers, you have no idea! Only a very small number of these bunkers had their own power supply! These were, for example, divisional command posts or medical bunkers. Either every bunker would have had to be connected to the public power grid, or each bunker would have had to have a separate room with a diesel generator. But there was no such thing! All bunkers had light niches of various sizes in which a carbide lamp or a petroleum lamp could be placed. High-intensity lamps were suspended from the ceiling. The emissions from a Petromax or similar lantern were nothing compared to the powder fumes produced in combat! Attached are a few photos from World War II. The drawings are from a book by Robert Jurga, who gave me permission to publish them in a report on the lighting of the Siegfried Line that I wrote in 2015. The last two pictures are from the final resting place of the battleship Tirpitz. Dredging work was carried out there a few years ago. Best regards, Jörg
I'd not be sure how often were lanterns deployed during War time by the various armed forces. I suppose quite often. Electricrity was already widely available during WWII. But then, electricity supply lines or grid might frequently be destroyed or disrupted by aerial raids, artillery bombardments and other means. Not sure if generators had always been conveniently around the fighting troops but I guess they were not everywhere. Not to forget, there were also a much greater number of civilians than military personnel during the War. I suppose there had been more use of lanterns during that time. Even today when almost everyone has a smartphone, I'm sure most of the events in daily life were never photographed. I'm quite certain not that many people had cameras in the 1930s, 40s and throughout WWII years. Even less during WWI. Cameras were still quite bulky and processing the films were considered luxury and cumbersome, especially during a War. Therefore, I believe not that many photographs would have been taken unless they were important events. Most would have been taken by the those who can afford them like the Government, Armed units, enforcers and other Forces. Afterall, for normal civilians, there were much more important matters to worry about during such dire situations than taking pictures. Photos with lanterns would even be rarer. Not to mention...how many would have survive the War and after so many years? And top it all, how many of those that survived were actually found or ever uploaded onto the internet? @Jörg Wekenmann Nice photos and illustrations. Seems that they used the Aida on the fateful Tirpitz... @Anthony Looks like they had a blackout during an important meeting? Was that a Tilley that came in handy?
Indeed You are right. Pity of all the original German Atlantik Wall drawings I have access to and are shared for models 3D models. None of them show a pressure lantern light nice. But hey, silly me, I have no idea.
I did a quick search in the Australian War Memorial photo collection for WW2 and found the following photos. Unfortunately they are quite low resolution but that is all you can get unless you pay for it. I have also added the caption from the database. "NOEMFOOR ISLAND, DUTCH NEW GUINEA. 1944-07-08. FLIGHT LIEUTENANT G. ARMSTRONG, RAAF, OF EDGECLIFFE, NSW, FIXING A KEROSENE LAMP OUTSIDE HIS TENT." "El Daba, Egypt. c. 1943. Ground crew members of No. 451 (Spitfire) Squadron RAAF in the Western Desert relax in their tent in the evening writing letters and reading with the aid of a hurricane lamp. Note the bread and primus stove in the foreground. Pictured: 33437 Cec H. Cox; 26461 Len Justin; 14436 Sydney James (Joe) Branch, killed in action at Corsica 12 May 1944. Note the slices of bread, the water can and the primus stove." "Captain B J Brown (left), a Signals Officers at the 6th Divisional Headquarters in Palestine being shown how to operate a Coleman lamp." The last one is obviously a Primus 1020 even though they say a Coleman.
In the command bunkers of the K-W line ( started at Koninghooikt and ran to Waver, 4 lines of defence including anti-tank ditches, 4th line being command bunkers, first aid etc.), build during the 1930s Coleman 237A lanterns were used as emergency lighting during electrikerty breakdowns. They also had Coleman 3-burner ranges. The early 1950s saw the arrival of Coleman 238B lanterns followed in the late 1950s by Petromax lanterns for the army and AIDA ones for the air force, both 350CP, both made in the same factory. Sorry, no photos!
Thanks so much for your pics and comments. It’s always really nice to share this stuff with you. So, from what I know, pressure kerosene lanterns were used a lot during the Second World War. In Germany, the Petromax were everywhere (some photos below). They were used in tents, command posts, field hospitals, and workshops because they gave strong, reliable light even with low-quality fuel. The typical design was big and cylindrical, with a protective glass and a central mantle. They often came in Wehrmacht cases with spare parts and maintenance tools — really sturdy, built to survive rough handling and transport. In the UK, Tilley lamps were used in military camps, kitchens, guard posts, and ports. Everyone liked them because they gave a steady, clear light — much better than candles or oil lamps. In the US, models like the Coleman was common. They were used in camps and field hospitals too, but also for lighting airstrips and operational areas at night. They were tough lamps, sometimes double-mantle, made specifically for military use. The main uses were pretty much the same everywhere: lighting camps, kitchens, and tents, helping with work in field hospitals, allowing night-time repairs on vehicles, signalling or lighting airstrips, and even inside ships
Not a lantern but maybe a pressurized kerosene stove: Maybe during taken during the Blitz in 1940 Britain in one of the air-raid shelters.
