Candles Part 1 - Technology

In 1860 the sources of illumination were solid, liquid and gaseous.

The solid source of illumination was candles composed of tallow, stearin, spermaceti or wax. The 1860 census data does not provide sufficient information to determine how much of each was produced. Moreover, the census data lumped the majority of candle production with soap production without indicating how much to attribute to illumination and how much to cleansing. Tallow was made by melting (rendering) the fat of animals, principally that of cattle and sheep. The liquid that remained after any solids were strained off was tallow. Tallow candles that were not made with the best materials were liable to smell, gutter and smoke. Various chemical and mechanical processes further reduced tallow into a solid component and a liquid component. The solid, called stearin (or stearine or stearic acid), was formed into candles that burned brighter than tallow candles. Candles made of stearin were called "adamantine candles", the label under which they appeared in the census. As the name suggests, adamantine candles were harder than tallow candles. They also had a higher melting point than tallow.

Spermaceti, a solid like stearin, was a component of the oily matter found in cavities of the heads of certain types of whales. The spermaceti could be filtered out and encouraged to separate from the oil by the application of chemicals. Wax candles were made from beeswax, the residue that remained when honey was extracted from honeycomb. Candles made from spermaceti or wax burned bright like adamantine candles.
The wick of an adamantine candle was braided, and the braid caused the wick to bend toward the side of the flame near its bottom where the candle's flame was its hottest, and the end of the braided wick that pushed against it was consumed completely.

The braided wick in a candle distorted the shape of the flame slightly, pushing one edge closer to the side of the candle. The uneven heat from using a braided wick in a tallow candle, with its lower melting point, would melt away the side of the candle and cause it to gutter. Accordingly, a tallow candle was made with a twisted wick that stood up straight in the part of the flame that was less hot and so was not consumed completely. As the partially burned top of the wick grew longer, the candle's light dimmed, and thus a tallow candle needed to be trimmed from time to time to keep its light bright.

The fact that other types candles did not need to be trimmed made them far more convenient to use.

Candles have ceased to be a component of daily life in the United States, and their use has become largely ceremonial or decorative or reserved for power outages.