I could not resist buying this old light awhile back. It is a fine example from the early years of the automobile industry and has a great industrial look:
What really caught my eye was this light’s markings:
It says “Pittsburgh Six”. I knew that there was an automobile by that name, so I started researching and found that it was first manufactured by Fort Pitt Motor Manufacturing Company in Pennsylvania in 1908. It was a powerful car for its time, equipped with a 72-hp engine with six separate cylinder blocks. The total piston displacement was huge as cylinders had a 4 3/4-inch bore and 5 1/4-inch stroke. Unfortunately, my light is electric and the Pittsburgh Six automobile had gas headlights and sidelights that burned kerosene, so my light does not appear to be connected with the automobile of the same name which was only manufactured until 1911.
I kept looking and found this advertisement from 1917, so it looks like my “new” light was an aftermarket accessory dating to around that time when it could have been purchased for $3.45:
I am not finished with the Pittsburgh Six automobile, however, as that car also had a connection to German spies during the first world war. Stay tuned!