In 1924, New York Times Magazine profiled the precipitous decline of a once-common NYC profession: the lamp-lighter.

The journalist Bertram Reinitz briefly explained the history:

The first electric street lamps were employed in New York City in 1880… In 1904 the unified control of current was introduced, making it possible to regulate the lighting from the sub-station.

This technological development changed the occupation tremendously:

No great measure of skill is required to press a button and turn on a light. The oil lamps required constant, almost loving, care. There was a deft twist necessary to the insertion of the lighting stick into the gas lamp’s aperture, followed by the pulling down of a hook and the application of the flame. Mastery of that deft twist enabled a man to support a family — large families were quite common among lamplighters — and even to send his oldest boy to high school. Now the boy can do the lighting and not miss his schooling.

In 2024, is there anybody in America who still works as a lamp-lighter professionally? At least full-time?

According to the history and culture website Clio, NYC still has two gaslight streetlamps standing, both of which were designated as official landmarks in 1997.

---

The Descent of Lamp-Lighting

Published: Sunday, May 4, 1924