Some history

Some forget that crude oil is not an
ancient phenomenon. Before cars and
electric lights, there was whale oil.

Whale oil was used to illuminate our
houses from the 1700′s until the mid
1800′s when the petroleum industry
took off.

In 1860 one could choose between
whale oil, coal oil, or petroleum to
light their lamps. Whaling was brought
to halt in April of 1861 due to the
Civil War and kerosene became the
lighting oil of choice.

Then, around 1872, natural gas was
piped into homes in Titusville,
Pennsylvania to light the homes. From
there it spread as quickly as the technology
of the day would allow.

As we see today, electricity took the
forefront as the source of illumination
of our homes. The incandescent light
bulb was invented in the 1870s, but
electricity really didn’t gain a
foothold until the mid 20th century.

And now, whale oil no longer is used
to make our candles or fuel our
lanterns, petroleum products are now
used to power our cars and roof our
houses, natural gas heats our homes,
and electricity lights our homes and
powers everything from computers to
compressors.

Just a little something to think about
on the weekend, or at least until the
race starts.
Comments are always welcome.