1816 Gas-lighting is introduced in Preston

Gas street lighting in Lancaster Road, Preston
This photograph shows the Shambles, which were a row of shops that once stood on Lancaster Road. It was taken 1882 and shows the type of gas lamp, which were common in Preston Streets.

Preston was one of the first English towns to have a local gas supply and the first town outside London to have gas street lighting. New lighting in mills also meant that cotton workers could work longer hours and through the night.

Local businessmen founded the Preston Gas Company in 1815. The owners of Preston's cotton mills like Horrocks, Miller and Company wanted gas lighting in their mills and their homes.