Unusual late 19th-century illustrated advertising and instruction broadside for the Lutz Patent Fire Lighter, manufactured and patented by Henry Lutz of Logan, Ohio.
The device was designed to ignite a match mechanically inside a stove or fireplace. The broadside gives remarkably detailed instructions for loading the fire lighter, attaching it to a grate or stove, threading a cord through a doorway or keyhole, and firing the mechanism remotely.
Best of all, a separate section titled “TO USE IN CONNECTION WITH AN ALARM CLOCK” explains how to attach the cord to the winding stem of an alarm clock so that, at the appointed hour, the clock would trigger the mechanism and automatically light the household fire.
Two illustrations show the fire lighter itself and the device installed in a stove.
Henry Lutz was a German-born machinist who settled in Logan, Ohio, and became engineer of the Logan fire department in 1870. A surviving example of this same Lutz Patent Fire Lighter instruction broadside is held by the Ohio History Connection.
A terrific piece of American invention, domestic technology, fire-fighting, patent, and Ohio history.
Edition Details
Inventor: Henry Lutz
Title: Directions for Using the Lutz Patent Fire Lighter
Place: Logan, Ohio
Date: Circa 1890s
Format: Illustrated advertising and instruction broadside
Printing: Black ink on paper
Illustrations: Two illustrations showing the patented device and its installation in a stove
Subject: Patented inventions, domestic technology, fireplaces and stoves, fire starting, alarm clocks, Logan Ohio
Condition
Good antique condition. Overall age toning with scattered spotting and surface soiling. Horizontal fold lines from previous folding. Minor edge wear with small nicks and short tears, including along the right edge. Some handling creases and light discoloration. Printing remains dark and highly legible, and both illustrations are clear.
Please see photographs for the best description of condition.
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