Irish Insulators & English Inks
by Otto J. Baum
Reprinted from "INSULATORS - Crown Jewels of the Wire", April 1978, page 8
Here are some pictures of insulators from Ireland, and hardware and inks from
England.
#2=white porcelain spool, #3=clear CD #179.6, #4=4" hi. x 2-3/8"
dia. F. P&T, #5=4" hi. x 2-7/16" dia. F.G.P.O, #6=tan porcelain 4-3/4" hi. x 3" dia. no letters, #7=wad of fiber which goes on #11 in
picture of "Hardware from England", #8=used to attach service wires to
houses. (all from Ireland)
#4 and #6 insulators have the skirts extending about 1/4". #5 the skirt
is the same length as the shell. The insulator on #8 is 2-1/8" high x 1-7/8" dia. and is attached to the galvanized screw by some sort of cement ie:
non-removable.
#11=a wad of fiber, #1=a rough surface (not threads), #2=wood screw threads,
#3=nut-machine screw threads, #4=flat washer, #5=machine screw threads.
Here are some terms regarding the lettering on the Irish insulators. They
were found in a "pit" (dump) in County Wexford, where they are
called "cups". P.T. -- Post & Telegraph; G.P.O. -- General Post
Office. These two companies install and maintain all lines pertaining to
telephone or telegraph. E.S.B. -- Electric Supply Board, a company that
maintains and installs all poles and lines pertaining to the supplying of
electricity.
#1=clear glass ink w/sheared top, about 100 yrs. old. Rest are heavy pottery,
all from England. All are called inks, though some are storage bottles.
A closer view of #'s 2-8 of the above inks.
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