QUOTE : building and private home. Gas lighting expanded slowly in America, however. “By 1850,” writes historian Christopher Castaneda, “about 50 urban areas in the United States had a manufactured gasworks. Generally, gas lighting was available only in medium-sized or larger cities, and it was used for lighting streets, commercial establishments, and some residences. . . . Other than gas, whale oil and tallow candles continued to be the most popular fuels for lighting.”67 Tallow is the rendered fat of cattle. Whale oil comes from whales.