New England Coke automatic heat regulator... braided wire... ?

[aaron7]

Found this in the basement of our old building.

Can't find any info about the "New England Coke Company" other than a newspaper article from 1952 when there was a fire.

I don't think whatever this thing was is collectible for that reason but it would look cool as a display piece!

Anyone have any info on this or the company?

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

Did you try plugging it in?

 

[creskol]

Check out some of the listings here: http://tinyurl.com/6kbuo75

 

[bradyboy]

Electric ckoke - coal - gas requlater
early 1900s
http://books.google.com/books?id=Aa...&resnum=1&ved=0CCEQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false

Brady

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

For those that dont know coke is made from coal. We used to have mountains of coke in Pittsburgh as it was used to make iron and/or steel. We used to shovel coal in our back yard for our coal furnace but it seems that others may have burned coke I cant remember. Pittsburgh was such a great town to grow up and it still is. Lots of good memories. The Stillers play tonight BTW.


I guess its some kind of regulator for a coke (coal) furnace.

 

[High Plains Digger]

I think rich people used coke, and coal was for the common people.

I don't know if this is connected or not, but I once sold a house that had an automatic coal feeder into the furnace--sort of a chain thing with ridges that went through the pile of coal and then into the furnace. I suppose this feeder would be what was regulated by the subject. Other than that, I have absolutely no experience with coal, I was 25 when I saw my first piece of coal at an abandoned farm house, and then this feeder. I know a lot of the houses in the area had coal chutes and coal rooms, but that is probably pretty normal for you Eastern folk.

 

[traderoftreasures]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coke_(fuel)

 

[aaron7]

Thanks for the help guys! I knew coke meant coal but knew nothing about this particular company.

Searching for New England Coke comes up with the cola... nothing really pertaining to this thing.

Thinking I might just drive to the local heating oil places and see if anyone wants this in their office

 

[dozer dan]

the way i understand it, coke is the mineral version of charcoal.

they put coal in a airless oven so it wont ignite and apply heat to cook off the gasses and sulfur that are burned off on the outside of the oven. the end result is coke which when burned in a furnace is a lot cleaner, less smelly and less polluting.