©AWMoore 2004
The story of the Best Street Light Company begins with Martin Best, born in Pennsylvania in 1825. There were four children to his marriage with Elizabeth Clark - William, Clem, Eva and Jay. Martin worked a manager to the stove and tin company Sharp & Craig in Steubenville before moving to Canton and setting up his own business. Working with one Henry Russell, he bought out the tinners shop of Little & Horn. After a series of impressive deals, Martin Best sold all of his interests and set up his own metalworking shop, his endeavours culminating in the invention in 1881 of a gas burner which he named the Sun Vapor Burner. Along with L and J Miller, he set up the Sun Vapor Street Light Company in 1888, and took the post of vice president and general manager. In 1890, he sold out again, but retained a nominal directorship. The Sun Vapor Co manufactured burners used in street lighting, and also arranged the lighting to operate using naptha when coal gas was not available. It is considered probable that they did not produce portable pressure lamps and lanterns.
Martin's second son Clem V. Best was born in 1853, and it was only natural that the boy would follow in his fathers footsteps. Clem was eventually to spend the rest of his life in Canton, and become a very well respected elder of the society. While still a boy, Clem became very interested in lighting and the kinds of metalworking techniques his father used. He was curious about how the various types of light making equipment worked, and in a short time he found himself working in the lighting trade. Eventually he became head of a local company, the Ohio Lighting Company, which soon merged with the Sun Vapor Company. In 1896 Clem left Sun Vapor and with his brother Jay Grant Best, pooled their interests and knowledge, and started The Best Street Light Company. He served as its president and superintendent, and was the holder of a number of patents relating to lights and lighting appliances. He retired from active business in 1920, and although the Best Street Light Co did not appear to trade after that date, he was still identified with the lighting industry in Canton until his death in 1929. His older brother J. Grant Best died in 1923. His son Howard Best (1874-1962) was superintendent of Best Street Lighting for a period of time as well
In the early days the company concentrated on wick type lighting devices burning kerosene, mainly the type that would be used in street lighting, but by the end of the 1890s they were trying and testing gasoline burners in the plant at 25 East 5th Street, Canton. The range included pressurised lamps for indoor and outdoor use, and hollow wire system lighting. By 1905 the company had a 48 page illustrated catalogue of gas and oil lamps for the home, inside and outside. Lighting included street lamps, chandeliers, student lamps, floor lamps and table lamps. Several styles of decorative domes are shown in this catalogue. Model numbers include the 58 and 81, 82, 84 and 94 Air Pressure Arc Lamps, along with 237 bracket lamps, 226 and 227 table lamps, 222 high output outdoor lamp, and lamps 94 and 95 in the style of the old harp-frame Arc lights. There are many other models, some with known catalogue numbers, others without an identifying number. All are very much sought after among collectors, and are comparatively rare. The range does not appear to include any pressure lanterns, a surprising observation considering the versatility of incandescent vapour devices.
This is a model 82 lamp, 1000cp, shown lighting a wharf.
Most of the surviving products from Best Street Lighting seem to be the gravity feed type, and I do not know whether this reflects a specialisation in that particular area and larger numbers of lamps, or whether it results from examples of a simpler, trouble free style surviving better than a more complex design that required constant maintenance.
After the company closed, the premise were acquired by the Hupp Corporation, and used for production of their Hercules engine.
Good quality pictures of working Best Street Lighting equipment are rare, so if you would like to contribute to this page I would be please to hear from you.
References:
Canton Repository (1929) Obituary, Best, Clem. Internet
submission (1998) by Ross McClain
http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/oh/stark/obits/cvbest.txt
Canton Repository (1962) Obituary, Best, Howard G. Internet
submission (1998) by Ross McClain.
http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/oh/stark/obits/hbest.txt
Hobson A. (1997) Lanterns that lit our world Book two. Golden Hill Press, New York.
Stark County Ohio (1883) Portrait and Biography Record of Stark County Ohio pages 346-347. Internet submission by Ross McClain (1998) http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/oh/stark/bios/mlbest.txt
The Best Light (1903) Advertising Brochure. The Best Street Light Company, Canton.
The Best Light (1905) Maximum Light and Minimum Cost - The Best Street Light Catalogue. The Best Street Light Company, Canton. 48pp
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