Aladdin lamps were unique in the use of a round wick to provide an even non flickering flame, and a rare earth mantle that glowed to produce the light of a 60 watt light bulb when heated by the flame from the kerosene lamp. The difference between the light of the Aladdin lamps and any other oil or kerosene lamp was so great that the company offered a one thousand dollar reward to any person who could show them an oil lamp that could equal its light. The reward was never collected, and by the early 1930's seven million Aladdins had been sold!
Aladdin was also one of the pioneers in modern sales techniques and would allow customers to trade in their old oil lamps on new Aladdin lamps. They were also one of the first companies to use radio as an advertising medium in the Midwest. They paid Henry Field, who owned the Henry Field Seed Company of Shenandoah, Iowa along with a 1000 watt station KFNF, five hundred dollars to talk about their lamp on his "Evening Letterbasket" program. Included in the program was a cash offer of twenty five dollars for the best ten word slogan submitted. The response was 2200 letters and 800 of those didn't even submit a slogan--they just wanted more information on the lamp! Later radio stations to carry adds included WLS Chicago, WHO Des Moines, and WSM Nashville. As radio grew so did Aladdin's coverage until it covered the nation.
Aladdin lamps were manufactured in a wide variety of styles. The first were made of metal, either brass or nickel plated brass. There were several models of the metal lamps including table lamps, bracket lamps, and some very unusual hanging lamps. The 1930's and 40's saw lamps made of colored glass, and included the now much sought after ruby crystal and cobalt blue, tall Lincoln drape Aladdin lamps. Another lamp that became the best selling lamp in Aladdin's history was the Alacite tall Lincoln drape. Alacite was a unique trademark of Aladdin and resembled ivory in its color and texture. Moonstone glass was also unique to Aladdin lamps and was so named because the glass itself seemed to glow like the pale moon. The glowing quality of moonstone is as popular with collectors today as it was with customers in the 1930's.
Aladdin lamps have become very collectable today, and for anyone interested in them, the following links will give you an insight into their development, along with pictures to help you identify the many different styles. I have devoted this site to the kerosene (oil) lamps, although Aladdin also manufactured many unusual electric lamps after the advent of electricity. For anyone wishing more information you will find a link within this site to the Aladdin Knights web site which is devoted in its entirety to collectors of all types of Aladdin Lamps. I hope you enjoy this site, and that it may be of some benefit to you as an owner, or collector of Aladdin lamps.
