Making Coal Fires In The 40S And 50S

[hellywelly4]

In the 40s and 50s my mother used to make coal fires every day, and made special things using newspaper which she folded in a certain way. I can't remember what she called them, the word 'skewers' come to mind, but I'm sure that's not correct.
Any ideas please?

[Mosaic]

and some zip firelighters. Still sold today.

[mrs.chappie]

I still have a container of spills on my fireplace, as I use them regularly. The container is a miniature black coal scuttle. I think it's rather cute, although I expect some folk would think it quite naff.

[e.crespo]

Spills are also twisted, rolled newspaper, see here: spill 2
(spl)
n.
1. A piece of wood or rolled paper used to light a fire.
2. A small peg or rod, especially one used as a plug; a spile. That is from the Freedictionary, I couldn't cut and paste the link.
In the fifties I knew these rolled and twisted paper fire lighters as spills, it was a childhood chore that I had to perform after school for next mornings fire lighting.

[hellywelly4]

Thanks to all of you for your suggestions, but the answer hasn't come up. Perhaps she had a local name for them. I'll ring my cousin tomorrow to see if he remembers - his mum was my mum's sister. Or it may remain a mystery lost in the mists of time!

[BlackadderV]

Anyone remember the gas poker?

[tonyav]

Yes I do, Blackadder. My grandparents used to have one.

[Prudie]

I don't know what you mean but a search on internet has thrown up that some people called them paper screws?

[decmangan]

Tapers?

[BlackadderV]

I think everyone had them in those days, but they were used only in emergencies, as it cost 1d or more in the meter to work it.

People think that substance abuse is a relatively modern phenomen, but that is not the case. Junkies would pour a glass of milk, insert the gas poker and turn it on (unlit, of course) and end up high as a kite.

[BlackadderV]

Sticking your head in the gas oven was a frequent method of suicide. Once we switched from town (coal) gas to North Sea Oil gas the practice ceased.

[tonyav]

Ah, North sea gas. The end of the gasometers.

[andres]

We used to call them ----Wrip wraps.(Don't know whether the spelling is right ) Long pieces of newspaper folded and sort of twisted. Spills were kept in the spill vases on the mantelpiece and they were very thin slivers of wood

[abubbler]

Take several sheets of newspaper, crumple them roughly along their length and then twist them (as if you were trying to dry out a towel). If you can tie the length of twisted paper into a simple knot so much the better, as the intention is to create a dense lump of newspaper that will burn slowly enough to light heavier material such as wood. I can't recall what my mother called them, I think she just called them firefighters. Hope this helps.

[FrogNog]

Tapers?

[sandyRoe]

Did nobody use sticks along with the newspapers? Kindling would probably be the posh word.

[naomi24]

I have coal fires, but I use kindling and firelighters to light them. I don't suppose that helps. :o/

[BlackadderV]

Yes, we used sticks. The woodman came round every week, shilling a bundle.

[naomi24]

//Kindling would probably be the posh word. //

To me, kindling is wood. I don't know if 'wood' is 'posh'.

[boxtops]

My abiding memory of my childhood coal fires was of a large sheet of broadsheet newspaper placed across the front of the fireplace, held in place with the long brass fire tongs and the poker, trying to get the fire to "draw" so that it would be alight when my dad got home. Much to my mum's despair, it always seemed to go out about 430pm.....