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OBJECT TYPE: tumbler/single pole/surface
DATE: 1914
ARTIFACT NUMBER: 1992.2472.001

MANUFACTURER: DUNCAN ELECTRIC MFG. CO.
MODEL: Unknown
LOCATION: Lafayette, Indiana, United States of America

More Information

General Information

Serial #: N/A
Part Number: 1
Total Parts: 1
AKA: N/A
Patents: N/A
General Description: metal (brass) shell & switch handle/ porcelain base/ metal parts

Dimensions

Note: These reflect the general size for storage and are not necessarily representative of the object's true dimensions.

Length: N/A
Width: N/A
Height: 6.7 cm
Thickness: N/A
Weight: N/A
Diameter: 6.1 cm
Volume: N/A

Lexicon

Group: Energy-electric
Category: User site
Sub-Category: N/A

Manufacturer

AKA: DUNCAN
Country: United States of America
State/Province: Indiana
City: Lafayette

Context

Country: North America
State/Province: Unknown
Period: circa 1914+
Canada: An American made switch of a type used in Canadian households. Part of a large & varied collection of over 7500 electrical items acquired & documented by Ontario Hydro in the 1960s. The collection was thought to be the largest & most comprehensive of its kind in Canada & was donated to the National Museum of Science & Technology in 1992.
Function: An electrical wiring device used to make or break a connection in an electrical circuit, specifically in domestic lighting.
Technical: The tumbler switch was one of the most characteristic British contributions to wiring installation practice. Coming into regular use around 1890, it rapidly superceded all other movements in Britain & ultimately went abroad to replace the established turn & two-button arrangements in America & Europe. The Kelvin switch of 1881 showed a radical departure from the influence of the gas tap. In Canada, the tumbler switch became popular only after 1930 (Ref. 1&2). Beginning around 1905, the design of tumbler switches became simpler & thinner. In Canada, the flush type became popular faster than in England because of differences in methods of home construction. Until the late 1920s, the type of switch most commonly offered in Canadian catalogues were the turn (snap) & push-button types. The Duncan Electric Mfg. Co. was founded in 1901 (Ref. 1).
Area Notes: Unknown

Details

Markings: incised lettering on shell reads "D.E. CO./ 3A.250V. 5A.125V."
Missing: appears complete
Finish: brass coloured metal/ partially glazed white porcelain
Decoration: N/A

CITE THIS OBJECT

If you choose to share our information about this collection object, please cite:

DUNCAN ELECTRIC MFG. CO., Switch, circa 1914, Artifact no. 1992.2472, Ingenium – Canada’s Museums of Science and Innovation, http://collection.ingeniumcanada.org/en/id/1992.2472.001/

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