The Betty Lamp
March 2nd, 2008
I recently redesigned a website for one of the AAFCS state affiliates. To inspire myself a bit, I visited other affiliate websites to see what they had to offer the general public. Most had this one thing in common – their logo. I couldn’t tell what it was, though, but I knew I had seen it somewhere before. I visited the main association’s website, and they did not use it as a logo, so I was a bit confused. Then…I found it in their jewelry section:
The Betty Lamp. Once I knew its name, I wondered, “Who was Betty?” I honestly couldn’t remember any famous “Betty” in the history of Home Ec. All students in the major have heard of Ellen Swallow Richards and maybe a few of the other famous founders, but who was Betty and why does she get her own lamp?
Needless to say, Michigan gave me my first answer. It was a lamp, used in colonial times as a “better” alternative to the clay dish lamps that smoked up the room as they burned. Apparently, a lady named Mildred Chamberlain of Chicago submitted the lamp as a design for the Association’s logo, stating, “The lamp in colonial days had provided light for all household industries.” (MAFCS, 2007)
Wikipedia provided a good description of the lamp as well as another brief history. Apparently, the lamps are still made today and are quite a hit with history buffs. Maybe I should get one as a reminder of my own professional choice to be a Home Economist.
Of all the symbols we could have chosen as a discipline, I think the lamp is a pretty good one. Some of our critics and mockers may suggest an update of our logo to a broom, spatula, or apron, but bah to them. The lamp is great. As the MAFCS’ website states, “To family and consumer sciences professionals, the Betty Lamp represents joy, knowledge, fellowship, cooperation, service, achievement, and the light of the home and the mind.”
So, props to you, Mildred, for suggesting the design of our logo that has lasted almost a hundred years. Thanks, MAFCS, for shedding some light on the issue. And to all Home Economists or Family & Consumer Scientists out there – keep the light burning.
It’s well worth it, isn’t it?