Poster advertising a meeting to discuss lighting a town by gas, 21 January 1854

Poster advertising a meeting to discuss lighting a town by gas, 21 January 1854. Broadsheet notice advertising a meeting to discuss the 'propriety and possibility' of lighting the town of Berkeley, Gloucestershire with gas. The first gas street lights in England were introduced in Pall Mall in 1807 by F A Winsor and by the mid 19th century gas light was in use across the country. Initially, the use of gas was unpopular with the general public, due to its unpleasant smell. Prior to gas lighting, the streets were lit by oil lamps. Taken from a collection of prints and books documenting the early history of the gas industry amassed by Sir Arthur Elton. ©SSPL/Science Museum