JeffPo's Dietz #39 Lantern Page
Last update: 08/04/05
This Dietz #39 lantern does not have any railroad markings. Like the #6, the Dietz #39 was introduced in the late 1890s and used until the early 1900s. This particular one has a red globe. Interestingly, it is not a solid red glass globe. It was "flashed", meaning that a red coating was applied (bonded) to clear glass. During the time frame when this globe was produced, the quality of solid red glass was too low for railroad service. Technology improved to the point of making high quality solid glass globes around 1900. The red globe indicates that it was used as a stop signal.
The #39 lantern utilized
a twist-off and drop down fuel fount that was attached to the bottom
"bell". Like the #6, the wick adjuster on the burner was inside the
globe during use, so it had to be adjusted before the fuel fount was attached.