19th Century Emergency Light [ Really Cool! ] 

This is the light that 'Ma' made in "The Long Winter'' by Laura Ingalls Wilder. She called it a 'button lamp'.

The basic concept for that lamp (oil, tallow, fat, etc) goes back thousands of years. We have many examples of simple dish lamps from ancient Mesopotamia, Greece, Rome, and throughout Medieval Europe. Some ideas never go out of style.

I’m surprised your scissors and knife are in such a state! Survival can depend on sharp blades!

Back in the late 1970s early 1980s , they sold a fancy version of this made from glass and it was called the "Un-candle" . You could use rendered fat ( bacon grease ) or used cooking oil as fuel , with the hardened fats ( lard ) it would stay solid until everything heated up

I use cork and vegetable oil for floating candles. I also make candles so I have a lot of cotton wicking, but 100% cotton yarn works too.

This is essentially a Mediterranean oil lamp. We do exactly the same in Greece but we use a rounded disc of wood or cork instead of a button. The cork floats on the oil reducing the oil consumption for a weaker, softer light which burns very little oil while the wooden cork usually sinks (unless it's poplar, balsa or other very light wood) in the oil for a stronger light which burns oil faster. Any oil will work, even lard will.

It's very cool to see how our ancesters did things before we had a power grid! Thanks for showing us this!

This is perfect timing! I had forgotten about button lamps. I discovered last night that I have developed a sensitivity/reaction to regular lamp oil and I was trying to figure out what “fuel” I could use instead. I have to rethink my whole set up but button lamps will certainly be a part of it. Thank you!!!🦋

I saw a video on making a similar lamp using half of an orange peel. I tried it and low and behold it worked. With it you took a navel orange oriented with the stem end down and cut just through the peel not piercing the flesh all way round . Carefully remove the stem end half of the peel making sure the long slender pith that sticks up in the center between the flesh segments stays intact. The result is a little orange peel cup with a pith wick in the center. The process is pretty much the same after that. Fill with oil and allow the wick to soak up the oil. Light it and follow the instructions as with the button one. Of course the one you made is a long term reusable one James. It puts out way more light as well. Very cool and ingenious concept. Thanks again for sharing “new” old ideas!

That was pretty cool and quite impressive with regards to how much light it seemed to emit. Thanks.

The button lamp is a simple and useful idea. Thanks for sharing it with us. I have really enjoyed the 1790 series.

I've been re-reading the "Little House" series, as an adult, and in "The Long Winter" they were out of kerosene so Ma made a button lamp and used a little axel grease in the dish. Thanks for the demo! Love your channel!

Next videos, scissor sharpening. Lol. In all seriousness thank you, love this stuff.

Excellent content Sir. Thank you. I did the same but used a small pet food bowl. Deeper, a bit safer and the shiny bowl reflected more light. ALWAYS appreciate your insightful vids. Thanks! Chuck

There's always something new (for me) to learn in this channel. I know about oil (vegetable) and a wick but this makes it easier to make with common household materials. There's always something interesting here, keep up the great work.

Pretty nifty James. The Eskimo used to make oil lamps that burned oil rendered from seal blubber. I don't doubt that bear fat or any vegetable oil would also work. Thanks for the video!

I really enjoy simple ways before technology.

Well done. I respect the fact you left in the problems with the scissors, good stuff.

I thought this was just stuff you should know before going outside. People need this.

Excellent video! I'd like to add a bit about "period fire safety." Keep a bucket of sand nearby. Should there be a spill - dump the sand without hesitation. Not only will it extinguish, it will also absorb much of the oil, preventing it from spreading. (Helps greatly in the cleanup, and saves your surfaces from absorbing too much.) Sand buckets - are GREAT modern-day fire extinguishes too for oily spills. Keep a few in your garage in case of a vehicle oil fire. (Use a real extinguisher on the engine, throw the sand under it to keep the fire from flaring back up from the oil on the garage floor.) Use it for lithium battery fires as well - not water!

I love to see people remembering the old ways! That's called a button lamp. The first time I heard about them was reading Little House On The Prairie. You can also use lard, but it will smoke. You can use vegetable shortening too and that won't smoke. Sir, please take those scissors to the blacksmith or use a whetstone on them. Great little video!

Wow that's really cool and useful. I didn't know it was called sweet oil back then. Amazing James keep it up.

If you use a smaller diameter dish for the oil, you won't need as much oil (though you will have to refill more often). You can also make something equivalent to this by hanging a piece of twine or cotton string over the edge of whatever flattish container you might have and light the bit that hangs free. This way, it resembles much older simple or improvised lamps, going as far back as the late stone age. Also worth noting that you can burn any oil or fat that stays liquid at room temperature -- any kind of cooking oil, clarified butter, oil rendered from tallow or lard, etc. (and, of course, kerosene or diesel fuel will work, too). Make one of these with several buttons and you can even cook over it, after a fashion...

Bet this button lantern would work awesome in a Mason jar. Make a quick wire handle to hang it. Thanks for another good video!

This is excellent! I'm ALWAYS amazed at what you come up with! Especially the cabin series! Well done!

Great tip! I have to imagine that you could do the same with a common quarter and a lid from a pasta sauce jar.

I personally want to thank you James for all of the detailed instructions on all of your videos. Also for speeding up videos when it comes to mundane tasks. Nothing more irritating than trying to watch a video and guess what the host is doing when they don't explain anything and you have to sit and listen to really bad music. Thank you for teaching us valuable lessons.

I have to say that I really appreciate your overall dedication to your passion. I've seen some less-than-nice comments in the past, here and there, but you are dedicated to teaching the most basic of survival hacks and tactics, while simplifying, and explaining/demonstrating/instructing, in a way that all should appreciate. Thank you...

Nice lamp bud! I lived off grid for over a year, built something similar out of a coat hang n Manson jar. Heck in a small enough room that could raise the temp a few degrees

Thank you for sharing. As things are going, people should be learning a lot of things for those early days. God bless you and your family.

As a child growing up in northern Spain, I remember most houses would have these lights on around All Saints' Day. The "lamps" we used were made of cork, had a small wick, and were (or are) available in many stores, but this video has brought many memories.

For anyone who's ever seen 'sweet oil' in the drugstore aisles, for treating earache. As you said, it's just olive oil.

I found out one very useful way to use the 19th century emergency light: It works very well for reheating coffee and hot beverages. Just put it into a bigger container/put a great over the top of it an heat a metal container full of water or hot beverage. I wish I could send you a picture of how it looks you would be totally amazed and proud of the way your invention is used. And it also gives off an incredible amount of light too. 😊 Your brother in Christ Jesus our King, Merle

That was really cool! A great technique for our survival toolbox! Thanks!

Respect for a man who obviously loves what he does and takes the time to read and reply to so many of the comments on his videos. Thank you for that, and again I apologize for being a smart alleck about your tools.

I love the vintage tips, it's awesome to reflect on the ingenuity and resourcefulness of our ancestors while learning a new tip I may need one day very soon. God bless.

As always another great video teaching us things that we may need in the future and I love the 1790s series always excited for those ones

That was very cool!

One candle for lighting. Two for central heating !. Thanks man. Dave

I'm going to remember this during a power outage. Thanks for the video.

Great content! This lamp is it has been around for thousands of years it was used during the time of Christ and I would assume long before that. The beauty of this lamp is olive oil is not flammable if someone should knock it over the flame will go out.

Thanks for watching! Please leave me a comment and a thumbs up (or down), I really appreciate it! Here are the links for the 1790s Survival Series: Intro to The 1790's Survival Series: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-wR73irxh_9E.html Episode 1 - Leaving Home - The 1790's Survival Series: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-CSn9b9uiZTA.html Episode 2 - The Fort - 1790's Survival Series: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE--D1B6z7yvHs.html Episode 3 - On The Trail - 1790's Survival Series: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-gtqAXqwagoo.html Episode 4 - Crossing The River - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-mSRZ50BzRLo.html Episode 5 - Terror On The Trail - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-u2o60VBvhWI.html Episode 6 - Captured - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-kxJxniCjJeo.html Episode 7 - Safety at Fort Logan - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-PAwhIjEqlPc.html Episode 8 - Halfway to Ohio - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-rrRGXxbI_xk.html Episode 9 - Disaster On The Trail - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-aYSIiJyfQek.html Episode 10 - Saved - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-U3qMAua1apY.html Episode 11 - Crossing The Ohio - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Y5HeuOUiNJs.html Episode 12 - Ohio Country - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-b0EiZetaJYM.html Episode 13 - Winter Wilderness - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-k1cxmRzxp6A.html Episode 14 - A New Home - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-zb938g8jmb4.html Episode 15 - Homecoming - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Z59VOhkZdwI.html 1790's Frontier Kit - What Am I Carrying? :ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-iXtfnR_OlD8.html My18th Century Fishing Kit - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-zTe8baZe01I.html Poem: I'm Proud To Be An American - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Bxu4g6xtcm4.html

I always wonder how people got along in the old days. Thank you.

Thanks for the video. I like the lamp. My daughter and I made oil lamps differently. We carefully kept the stem side of an orange, mandarins in our case, and I slit around the side to make it easier to retain that portion of the skin in one solid piece when peeling off the rest. Then one tries to remove the sections while leaving the pith of the stem in the center. We poured in oil into the dish formed by the skin, including over the center pith which acts as a wick. We then lit them. Not nearly as much light, but fun having the orange provide the lamp and wick. We have saved them and plan on floating them around in a bowl of water at some point, all lit. We will see how that goes.

Thank you James for always sharing such helpful hints for those times of emergencies!

Nice and cozy cabin. Thanks for sharing these pearls with us !

It is good to know the old ways if modern convenience items are not available. We had a blizzard around 20 years ago in the south that paralyzed the area for a few days. The meteorologist warned us but we didn't take it too seriously as we had not experienced a blizzard before. At the time we had wood heat and oil lamps so it was not as bad as some people had it.

Just a thank you... Thank you for sharing old simple and inexpensive ideas... I am so sick and tired of channels showing " traditional", " bushcraft ", " survival " etc. Who are using very expensive gear. I for one can not afford $500.00 for a pack, $200.00 + for a knife, etc. So thank you for being real, and realistic in your videos.

Thanks for sharing all these amazing techniques

So glad I found this channel! Really enjoyable and great tips for survival.

I remember in the mid to late 1950s that my grandmother taught me how to make these. We lived on the farm there was no electricity or plumbing we had an outdoor potty box so to speak. It was my job to make several of these. Thank you for the great memory

You can make a wick from a piece of corrugated cardboard. Cut a piece of cardboard about 1" by 3/4". Corrugations lengthwise. Slit the piece about 1/3 of an inch and open it up creating an inverted T. The upper 2/3" is now the wick. I use the bottom of a Coke can for the pan. The rest you know. Thicker cardboard works better. Great video by the way, thanks for sharing.

Once again! My apartment built in 1926 only has heat in one end. I've experimented with various such things, multiple candles, variations of buddy burners, different wick types, etc. Thought of using olive oil [since I use it already], but didn't try it. If the flames get any bigger than this, I start discerning an oxygen reduction. Last attempt was a mock alcohol burner using a small tin and piece of cotton drop cloth! Worked without O2 problems or smoke but burns less than 30 minutes. At the wick length you used, this burn time is fantastic! Does it smell like dinner is cooking? I'm going to upgrade my emergency stove, I am! Oh, I cut a circle out of a scrap of leather using a can and old paring knife to have a heat shield. That part worked very well, though a multi hour burn would be a better test! I'm looking for a scrap of tile for that [used those before]. THANKS once again! Love this "Ye Olde" stuff!

Great light Jim that 1790 series is awsome I watch it over and over

I'm glad to see you have these primitive videos, it brings back the days i used to buck skin with the Renegade Bore Clan,lol.

I’m learning something new by studying your videos on the old ways.

I really enjoy always the brilliant ideas of this talented guy!

It is very hard for me to believe they would have used up precious olive oil to make a candle. I guess it depends on how much you have and how badly you want a light.

This is a nice video. Clean and informative. I enjoy the presentation of the use of dull tools without complaint. He shows how to make a little light out of nothing with poor tools reliably. That's a good trick if I have ever seen one.

That's great ! Thank you very much.

This is a good use for "stale" cooking oil of any type instead of using perfectly good oil you could cook with.

Well James you've done it again, the button light. Honestly I love the cabin you've done a great job on that James. I'm going to try this one. The other light you made like the one you carry around made with a tuna can, I tried Every Which Way but Loose to try and get that thing to burn. I tried all types of wicks and I never could get it to burn past 30 seconds before the Wicks would burn up or just Peter out. I still have that thing and I think I'm going to try the carbon material the next chance I get but I am going to try this button lamp and see how that works. Thanks James you're always coming up with some of the clever stuff I love it. Y'all think about it now. Y'all stay vigilant and may God bless!

I remember Ma Ingalls describing this during the Long Winter. It's good to know alternate ways of doing things when the batteries and lamp oil run out.

How terribly clever! I never would have thought of that. I have rechargeable lighting, but what if it breaks? Well, now I know. Thank-you.

I look forward to your shows every night. Thank you for sharing!!

I’ve been watching the series and have enjoyed them very much. I do like the cabin it looks quite cozy. Cool little emergency lamp thank you for sharing.

A true survivalist would NEVER allow his tools and blades to become so dull.

A most informative Video. Thanks!

I read about this button lamp in Laura Ingalls Wilder's book "The Long Winter", thanks, now I know how it was done.

Thanks for telling me how to extinguish the lamp. I never thought of that really.

Hello 👋 James, greetings from Northern California. Thank you for sharing this helpful hint. Now I can impress my camping 🏕 friends. Take care out there. All the best to you and your family. 🤗 👋

THAT A PERFECT EXAMPLE 👍✔️ THANK YOU From Australia 👌

Now here is a project that Beautiful Bride will love while our young troops get to try out a piece of history. Thank you, James, for posting this wonderful video.

i have a book that i travel with ,half of it is songs as i am a guitar busker and been homeless many times,but the other half is mainly this mans brilliant hobo survival hacks ,we salute you james ,i have shared these designs with people on the road and am still waiting for his book to storm the shops,i cant wait for a copy of the hobo survival manual it would complete my survival collection!take care brother!

Awesome video James😊 thank you Have a wonderful week Maranatha Nicole

Always enjoy your videos. Have learned a lot about survival. I've used a lot of your techniques and survival skills In my kits.

Very cool James something to keep in mind when you are in a emergency. I wonder if you could use vegetable oil or corn oil or even lard that's been melted anyway stay safe and God bless you brother from the thumb of Michigan thanks for the video

Wow that’s a bright light! You teach some really cool tricks to people.

Thank you for the authentic tools you used ! Let’s us know what our ancestors had to deal with a little better.

You struck that match towards yourself, I winced.

Adding a bottle of cheap olive oil to the grocery list. Wouldn't want to use the good stuff lol 😎

Saw some in a movie and wondered how they made a bigger 🔥. Thx for sharing.🤔😊🙂

You can use shortening as well! 😊

Alright you got me as a subscriber. These sort of things are just incredibly fascinating and useful if we were to ever need it. Thanks.

Dude is lucky he survived this far with those knive skills.

Super interesting! Thanks for showing my friend!

Thank you for sharing this? What an awesome light!

Cool. Perfect for power outages. I'm in West Georgia and we're currently under a tornado watch.

Those dull scissors and knife were cracking me up.

What a great way to wake up in the morning...especially before work!!! James that was a very cool video and the things that you come up with are amazing!!! Till the next video, take care my friend and God bless!!

Good tip , amazing the light that gave out.

It took you 100 years to make this lamp! You started in the 18th century and ended up in the late 19th century! Still pretty cool though. I love the cabin!

This is wild, I was just describing how Caroline Ingalls made a button lamp in The Long Winter and my spy phone recommended this video. Good video though.

Cool. When I was a kid and caped out in Grandma’s back yard under a tent made by a old sheet over the clothes line grandma made us a torch in a can with lard or bacon grease or something....

Wow you're a genius. For your information, years ago I visited a cave in Torquay, England. In that cave they had a clam shell with animal fat and a lump of moss. This was a reconstruction of artifacts that they have found from stone age times in the mud inside that cave. What you cover in this video was not from the 18th century but from at least stone age times and perhaps long before. It's funny when people are ignorant to our extremely long human past.

Once we get that started with our scissors: Damn you Scissors, we're doing this in one take! 🤣

Such a simple trick, definitely worth knowing. Thanks!

A button lamp! What a great explanation for how to use one!!!

Thank you so much! I finally see a way that I can make an oil lamp that will work. Have had trouble in the past with them

Thanks for the demo. Really appreciate the knowledge you are sharing. God Bless.