Kerosene Heights

Keep moving, we don't sell kerosene here. 

What's up with this sign on the highway to Lake Placid? It must be an artifact along the road to the 1980 Olympics, a more rustic age when the smell of kerosene was synonymous with cold weather.

Kerosene predates the petroleum industry, as it was originally refined from coal. That was a technological breakthrough 150 years ago. Suddenly, nighttime became available for common working people (notably barn workers, such as Kate O'Leary). 

Kerosene is more convenient than burning wood, and kerosene lamps are brighter than candlelight, so it became vitally important in the cold, dark North Country. 

Decades later it was discovered that kerosene can be refined from crude oil. Then its use really took off, as that was easier and cheaper than messing around with coal. Soon kerosene stoves, heaters and even refrigerators became commonplace. As gas and electric appliances replaced them, many old kerosene appliances found new lives in Adirondack camps. You can't wear out a kerosene lamp or heater. Many years ago it was considered sinful to dispose of something that was in good-enough working order. So those old workhorses were hauled to the camp. Thus, the demand for kerosene endured up here. 

Propane Wins the Cold War

Propane was discovered by a scientist wondering why his Model T gas cap occasionally popped off. Eventually he figured out that 'wild hydrocarbons' in gasoline back then were the culprit. Those wild hydrocarbons were fizzing away in the tank and the high vapor pressure popped the gas cap. (To a scientist, nothing is too trivial to research.) The substance was isolated and dubbed liquefied petroleum (LP) gas. Soon a method of taming the wild hydrocarbons, refining them out of gasoline, was invented. The main component of LP gas is propane, interesting stuff because it has characteristics similar to natural gas. Many assume that natural gas is synonymous with propane - it's not. 

The propane industry seems to attract kooks, as evidenced by a bizarre marketing campaign in 1955. Our government was on an atmospheric nuclear testing binge at the time. No one destroys the environment as thoroughly and efficiently as the government. A small suburb was constructed at the Nevada Test Site, complete with instrumented housewives tending to their kitchens. The LP gas industry 'convinced' the government to install LP appliances in those kitchens. Then, after the traditional countdown and with high speed cameras recording, Survival Town was nuked with a Hiroshima-sized bomb. Each test shot had a name, this one was called, no kidding, 'Apple-2'. The industry proudly advertised that all the appliances worked perfectly after the blast. They were supposedly used to cook meals for the support crew. Certainly all this gave the Russians pause. If they expected our housewives to stop baking just because a 20 kT bomb detonated in the neighborhood, they were dead wrong. That's presumably what's depicted in the poster above - the blast appears to be rather more energetic than your typical runaway gas grill incident. 

Boy, they really knew how to sell appliances 60 years ago.

One of our gas lamps, probably 60 years old.

Woodman's Lee has an assortment of propane lamps, not one of them purchased new. Their warm glow is quite pleasant and they provide plenty of light to read by, much more than a kerosene lamp. We experimented with kero lamps and candles for lighting - we were disappointed.

Most of the gas lights came with the place, but they didn't work. No worries, I bought three used gas lights on ebay, parted out some, rebuilt some, lost some parts and eventually wound up with our current lineup - plus spare parts. These are like the "Frenchman's ax": Everything is original - except for the head and handle.

We also have a nice, functional little GE gas range. It's also used, no telling the vintage, and come to think of it, perhaps it's a Survival Town refugee. I always wanted a Geiger counter, and if I get one we'll see if the stove is radioactive. With all these appliances, you'd think we'd rapidly deplete a 20 lb propane cylinder (especially the exchange ones that actually have only 15 lb of propane in them). But we get about two weeks of use, even in the winter time when we often use the lights.

The trusty Kero-Sun and ever-present pot of water.

Ah, but back to where we started...kerosene. We have a Kero-Sun heater, rated as dangerous by Consumer Reports. Heck, just walking up the driveway is plenty dangerous around here, so what's a little more risk? Respecting the time-honored North Country camp tradition, it's a re-purposed appliance, one that my parents bought on October 10, 1981 (I still have the owner's manual, and the receipt. When my parents bought something, they saved everything.) We've used it for 14 years, and it's providing the heat as I type. We usually put a big pot of water on it, supplying unlimited hot water and humidity. These devices are dangerous if you're not careful.

It used to be easy to find kerosene fourteen years ago, when we first came up here. My first kero purchase was out of a 55 gallon drum in someone's garage in AuSable Forks, and it cost 85 cents a gallon. Now we're lucky to have a solitary source at $4.33/gal - a rather nice Stewart's, 20 miles away in Keeseville. We'll pass two dozen businesses selling propane on that drive to Keeseville. But I've never seen a Propane Heights sign, somehow it's just not the same.