Before we get to the question and answer, I want to say that the blog is designed to answer questions about tanning beds and lamps, but sometimes I get a question that is outside our goals, yet so dang interesting, I just have to investigate. This is the winner of the “Most Unexpected Question Ever” award, which I just made up. – Dennis

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Hi Dennis. I have a question you may be able to answer.

I read once about a device used in the early 1900s (It was actually used on the Titanic!) called the “Electric bath”. It consisted of a horizontal chamber, much like an iron lung, with a green case, wooden stand to support it, and UV-lamps inside the green case. I don’t know anything about it and was wondering if you could tell me anything about it.

I believe if you do a google search in images for “Electric bath” or “early sunbed”, there are a few photos floating around, mainly black and white, there is one of an open electric bath on the viewimages website, you may get a glance at the frightening old looking machine.

Thanks for your time mate,

Cheers
-James

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Dear James,

Hello from the other side of the pond, and congratulations for completely stumping me! Additional points for asking the most off-the-wall question about tanning in the history of the blog. This is a new one for me, and I felt it worthwhile to do some research. What I found wasn’t very conclusive, but here are some links and my impressions. Although you don’t mention “water” specifically, most of the links I found DO talk about water being part of the bath.

www.massagemag.com – Annoying pop up ad when you go there, and nothing about UV in the Electric Bath. May or may not be the same thing.

www.victorianturkishbath.org – Talks about the Electric Bath (which they also call a Turkish Bath) and how one from the titanic sold for £900 at Onslow’s Auction sale on 11 April 1990. Very good article. here is a ticket for the Turkish/Electric Bath offered on the Titanic. Again, no mention of UV.

I found US patent #853,033 (Inventor: H. H. Roberts Issued: May 7, 1907)
which is “A portable electric bath cabinet, consisting of a casing open upon one side and closed upon the other sides, groups of different colored electric lamps projecting into the box in a mixed relation…” (phototherapy). It was being referenced in another patent at www.patentstorm.us.

Another patent on that same page, #670,184 (Inventor: W. B. Morrison Issued: Mar. 19, 1901) speaks of a “In a radiant-heat bath, a cabinet provided with an opening, an arc lamp with its arc-forming part extending through said opening into the interior of said cabinet…” which COULD be used for ultraviolet. Arc lamps can produce UV if made of quartz and there is mercury inside, although they produce a great deal of UVC, which is harmful. The time line adds up as well. Again, no specific mention of ultraviolet + electricity + bath combined, per se, in any of these patents.

When all is said and done, I can find lots of info about Electric Baths without UV, including some with other light therapy, and there are enough patents at the time (including #558,394 from J.H Kellogg of breakfast cereal fame, for using light to “cure disease”) I found a great deal more links as well, but all seem to be similar to what else I found.

The conclusion is: The Electric Bath on the Titanic *might* have had UV, but I can’t find any evidence to substantiate it. I find pictures of old sunbeds from 1900, which use high pressure lamps (and no UVC filter, holy cow!) but none combined with a bath. I can find Electric Baths, including some that use light therapy, but none said they used ultraviolet specifically. I am not convinced that the combo of electricty/water/UV was used, or was at least common in the early 1900s. But it might have been ;)

Thanks for submitting a truly interesting question!

Dennis