The Collector: Dan Ferguson’s collection includes flashlights and lamps used by Scouts, miners and military

Nowadays, if you need to shed some light on a subject, most of us reach for our cellphones and tap the flashlight app.

But if his phone isn’t charged and the power goes out in North Spokane, Dan Ferguson isn’t worried.

He has a collection of 75 flashlights.

“It started about 25 years ago,” he said.

While browsing at a Deer Park garage sale, he discovered an unusual object. The red metal square box was a Flash Aid – a vintage 1940s combination flashlight and first aid kit.

When he opened it, he found it contained all the original items; bandages, Mercurochrome, and first aid ointment.

“I paid $40 for it,” Ferguson said.

A quick Google search shows a similar item on eBay listed at $199, but Ferguson isn’t interested in investment or even if the flashlights work. He just enjoys them.

He has several like the Flash Aid that resemble lanterns consisting of a battery box with a handle and a reflector on the front, including a 1950s-era hammered tin torch made in Germany.

One of his oldest items is from the 1920s and features a black cardboard tube. And he was gifted a 1947 Bakelite torch.

“My niece bought it for me,” he said.

It stands under a glass dome with two bullet-shaped copper flashlights.

Ferguson picked up one of them.

“It’s art deco,” he said. “It doesn’t work, but I like it because it looks cool.”

He also has a couple of headlamps in his collection. One has sentimental value. It belonged to his deceased brother. The red battery compartment hooks onto a belt or backpack.

“He was a horse outfitter in the forest service in the Wallowa Forest in Oregon,” Ferguson said.

Other nostalgic items include a series of Scout flashlights.

“This was the standard Boy Scout flashlight in the 1960s,” he said, holding a green metal light with the Scout emblem above the switch.

It sits on a shelf next to its newer red plastic iteration and alongside a green Girl Scout torch and a small blue “Cub Lite” – the version used by Cub Scouts in the ’80s and ’90s.

A 1930s carbide lamp mining helmet from the Silver Valley sits on the top shelf, and a heavy-duty black Ray-O-Vac sits nearby. The flashlight features the Department of the Interior Bureau of Mines seal and the words “Permissible Electric Flashlight–approved for use in methane-air mixture.”

“It’s for use in explosive environments and guaranteed not to spark,” Ferguson said.

Another workhorse in his collection – a Bell System lineman light.

“You set it on the ground, and it shines up the power pole,” he said.

A small olive drab pocket lantern features three buttons that change the lens color to red, orange or green.

“It’s military style, but I don’t think it was for military use,” Ferguson said. “Red and green are for night vision.”

A similar style opens to reveal a mirror within and a Morse code button.

“Flashlights often had a button that would flash, so you could use them to signal with or use Morse code.”

Tabletop camping lights and military-issue flashlights mingle with those meant for home use, including a once ubiquitous turquoise plastic model found in many homes in the 1970s.

Likewise, a wall-mounted Panasonic emergency light was often a home fixture. When you remove the flashlight from the mount, it comes on. When you replace it, it shuts off.

“That’s so the batteries won’t corrode,” he said.

Reaching to the back of a shelf, he pulled out a 17-inch shiny chrome-plated flashlight.

“It’s a five-cell,” Ferguson said. “But wait there’s more!”

He deftly unscrewed the top and reconfigured the light.

“It converts to a two-cell. I found it at an antique store in Coeur d’Alene.”

One of his more unusual items resembles a blow dryer. The light is surrounded by brush bristles, and a cloth vacuum bag is attached beneath.

“It’s to clean up keyboards,” he said.

As he scanned the shelves that hold his collection, he said his favorite is the Flash Aid that started it all. He still frequents antique stores and garage sales in search of unique finds.

“I’m sort of a flashlight junkie,” Ferguson said.