Unusual Jobs: Exploring 10 Vanished Professions from History

4. Lamplighter: Illuminating the Night

Before the widespread availability of electric street lighting, lamplighters played a crucial role in urban areas. Their responsibility was to light and maintain candle or gas streetlamps. Using long poles with wicks or hooks, lamplighters would meticulously light the lamps every evening and extinguish them every morning. They were revered members of the community, as they made city streets safer and brighter. Today, a few places in the world still maintain gas lamps lit by these workers, serving as both a tourist attraction and a reminder of a bygone era.

September 10, 2023 | 5:07 pm