Anderson, Clair Elmore

About the author

Clair Elmore Anderson was an early 20th-century American inventor and technical writer, active during a transformative period in electrical engineering. Although few personal details are readily available, his work The Fifteen Watt Tungsten Lamp marks an interesting intersection between cutting-edge industrial developments and the everyday lighting needs of modern households. His analysis documented how incremental innovations in filament materials, design geometry, and manufacturing processes contributed to more energy-efficient lamps—a major step in the broader shift from gas or carbon-filament bulbs to the tungsten-filament electric lamps that eventually became ubiquitous.

Published in an era when General Electric and other companies were racing to improve incandescent light bulbs, The Fifteen Watt Tungsten Lamp highlights the specificity of design choices, such as the coiling method of tungsten wire, the inert gas environment, and the glass enclosure’s thickness. Anderson systematically dissects how these elements influenced luminous efficacy (lumens per watt) and bulb longevity. In some respects, the text reads like a forensic investigation of engineering decisions that allowed households to achieve better illumination at a fraction of the previous energy draw. Indeed, smaller wattage bulbs, once viewed as too dim for practical use, could be adapted to reading lamps or decorative fixtures, thereby expanding lighting options for diverse environments.

Anderson does not merely present technical specs: he also contemplates the social implications of cheap, reliable lighting, arguing that it democratizes comfort, safety, and productivity. Lower-wattage tungsten bulbs, while modest, were an essential component in rural electrification programs and in cost-cutting measures among city dwellers, especially those of lower income who required low-priced lighting solutions. Moreover, Anderson draws attention to the synergy between bulb design and the electrical grid, noting how local voltage standards influenced bulb performance and vice versa.

In context, The Fifteen Watt Tungsten Lamp exemplifies how technical pamphlets of the time also served a marketing function for emerging technologies. They spread awareness, built consumer trust, and stimulated further tinkering by hobbyists and smaller manufacturers. Although overshadowed by grander works on power distribution or the development of fluorescent lamps later in the century, Anderson’s modest monograph serves as a valuable snapshot of incremental engineering progress during a formative chapter in American electrical innovation. It underscores how meticulous refinements—in materials science, filament winding, and sealing processes—cumulatively reshaped domestic lighting, brightening homes and workplaces while curbing energy consumption.