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Author: Admin | 2025-04-28
Light is essential to penetrate the absolute darkness of an underground mine. Hard, white stearic acid candles were the preferred choice, as they did not melt in the desert heat and burned slower. These candles were typically held in a steel holder with a looped handle, a thimble to hold the candle, along sharp point and a hook. The holders were either stuck into timbers* or hung from the rock walls of the mine.A miner’s candlestick in the Southwest Mine Conditions of the working area determined the number of candles a miner would use during a shift. Miners working in a stope with limited ventilation would use fewer candles than a mule driver who was constantly on the move and in areas of high airflow. Movement and wind caused a greater amount of wax to be lost to dripping rather than burn. In 1914 two of the largest mining candle producers, Mission Soap & Candle Works Company and E. Schneider & Company tested their candles in Bisbee mines. It was determined that Schneider candles burned longer. Generally, miners used between four and six candles a shift. Candle box ends from two manufacturers that competed for the Bisbee marketEven though candles were expensive in remote Bisbee, mules were also provided candles. These were placed in makeshift candle holders attached to the harness under the head. Candles continued to be a personnel light source even after electricity had been introduced underground in 1908, as only main workings were illuminated by electricity. Mine
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