Image Gallery
The First Coal Gas Street Lighting
An 1809 engraving by Thomas Rowlandson from an original drawing by Woodward showing the public's reaction to the first coal gas street lighting in Pall Mall, London in 1807. The new lights were invented by Frederick Albert Winsor (1763-1830) and the idea was a winner. By around 1820, London had 40,000 gas streetlights.