With increasing car ownership in the early decades of the twentieth century came the necessity to improve the lighting of our roads and footpaths.
Lamp standards are often overlooked assets, but they can be as attractive as they are functional.
On the bend of Church Street in the town of Oldcastle, Co. Meath is a fine pair of concrete lamp standards (lighting poles) - thanks is due to UK street lighting collector Simon Cornwell, who confirmed the lamp standards as Stanton 7B models made by Stanton Ironworks in Nottingham, dating from c.1949.
They were ideal for suburban roads as their elegantly suspended lamps cast light both downwards and outwards. The brown, reinforced concrete columns are 15 ft 16 in in height and erected approximately thirty metres apart, built into the front boundary wall of two houses.
These stylishly tapered lamp posts have Art Deco characteristics in their filled counterweight fins, ladder rests (which were an optional extra) and detailing around the door of the octagonal base.
Again, Simon identified the lantern as a battered GEC Z5540 series model. It’s lost its bowl and refractor ring and the copper canopy now has a good patina. The piece dates from 1945 which means it's contemporary with the column and bracket. He commented that 'Irish street lighting is now far more diverse and interesting than in the UK.’
These simple yet elegant lamp standards are representative of the design principles of the interwar years, and it is heartening to see that they are on Meath County Council’s Record of Protected Structures (RPS No.90306).
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