If you have ever got up on a cold, dark morning and flipped a switch or struck a match, you will be glad you are living after the mid-19th century (unless you are at a Rendezvous). Until a short time ago (in terms of eons of history) anyone during a cold winter who did not keep their fire burning all night had to start the day by striking flint on steel to make a spark.

The two most common methods of fire-making before the advent of matches in the mid-1800s were friction and percussion. Of these methods, percussion (flint and steel) was preferred as it was faster. Anyone can quickly and easily master the skill of fire making with the right tools (including char cloth or other tinder). The most important part is getting a spark to fall on a piece of tinder. As natural flint and steel were commonly used, the firesteel or striker was often kept in a metal tinderbox together with the flint and tinder.

No iron age, no firesteels. The use of firesteels begins with the iron age in Europe, Asia, and the Mideast hundreds of years ago. It reached different countries over a long span of time at different times. For example, the iron age appeared in what is now England sometime around 500 BC. Neither the use of bronze nor iron was known in North America before Europeans explorers arrived, so Native Americans relied on various methods of fire making using friction. The simplest method was the rubbing of two dry pieces of wood together with a dry and easily combustible material sandwiched between them. Faster, more reliable methods developed that included the fire drill and the bow and drill.

The fire drill was a two-part tool consisting of a wooden stick and a piece of wood with a hole carved into it. The wooden stick was twirled rapidly around in the hole, where, after a while, the friction would heat the stick and make a spark that would land on tinder such as dried grass or crushed bark to start the fire. The bow and drill were like the fire drill. The bow and drill include a wooden bow with a thong secured to stick. The stick is attached to a fire-starting board with a hole in the bottom, as with a fire drill. The bow acts like a saw to push and twist the stick against the fire-starting board, creating enough friction to create the heat that starts a fire.

In the Northern Hemisphere, friction methods of fire making were the prevailing methods until sometime in the Iron Age (1200BC to 500BC) when metal fire strikers (also called firesteels) were developed. These would likely have been the main method used by the Celts (700BC – 40 AD), Romans, Vikings, and others until the 19th century and the invention of matches.

In early times, percussion fire making was often used to start fires even before the advent of steel using a variety of iron pyrite or with flint and other stones to produce a high-temperature spark that could be used to create fire. There are indications that the “Iceman” called Ötzi may have used iron pyrite to make fire. When flint and steel were used, the fire steel was often kept in a metal tinderbox together with flint and tinder. In Tibet and Mongolia, they were carried in a leather pouch called a chuckmuck. In Japan, percussion fire making was performed using agate or quartz.
Flint and steel fire starters of different shapes were used in different countries at difference periods in history. While studying the history of Europe, archaeologists have been mapped the migration of whole peoples based on the flint and steel fire starters they found. They could also judge the level of development of their craftsmanship and the extent of their trading relationships with other tribes and peoples from this study. Whatever their form, these metal fire strikers produced a spark much hotter than earlier Iron, which was sparked onto a highly combustible material such as char cloth or some other form of tinder.

The appearance of this percussion method of fire starting represents technological progress that led (after hundreds of years) to the development of flintlock. Such a weapon uses the same principles as the flint and steel fire starter, except that the descent of the rifle’s hammer ignites gunpowder rather than a piece of tinder. Even modern petrol and gas lighters with rotary wheels use the same principle.

Firesteels were still the main method of lighting fires until the mid-19th century. As time progressed, they were more likely to be made from higher carbon steel which gave hotter sparks more easily. In most camps and households, a tinder box usually a firesteel, flint, and tinder such as char cloth. The metal used in the striker cannot be made of simple cast iron. It must be made of high carbon steel as it is the presence of carbon in steel that causes the required sparks to be produced. The carbon enables the shards of metal released (by striking the sharp flint) to melt and produce sparks. These “metal plates” were forged by blacksmiths into beautiful and graceful shapes.

To make a fire, you needed to catch a spark on some flammable tinder and then somehow transfer this to a thin splint of wood or a scrap of cord. Blowing carefully on the tinder would help that spark grow into something more like a flame. Imagine waking to the sounds of “click, click, click” as someone strikes flint and steel over the tinder in the box. When the tinder was ignited, it was carefully blown upon until it glowed sufficiently to be further used in the task of fire making. The operation was not, however, always successful; however, as the tinder might be damp, the flint blunt, and the steel worn (it is the steel flaking off as the spark after all).

“Banking up” the fire meant maintaining a smoldering heat overnight. This was done in different ways such as covering the fire with a dense layer of fuel or, more economically, using a thick blanket of ashes. In the morning, embers would be blown back to life, feeding the fire anew.

Steels (Firesteels)

A piece of iron curved to fit over a hand and fingers could take various shapes. Some were simple, others decorative. The classic shape (see Crazy Crow Trading Post’s See Crazy Crow’s Traditional Striker, Traditional Striker with Curl, or Double Monkey Tail Striker with Tail) all easily fit the hand. The human hand’s shape guaranteed similarities between steels in different cultures. Those used at home and kept in a box near the fireplace or candle holder were usually quite plain. English and American tinderboxes often held a simple hook-shaped firesteel that would hang over fingers.

C-Shaped Firesteels

The classic C shaped fire steel is the most common style of flint striker. Examples can be found from early Roman times (1st-3rd century), through Medieval and Viking eras, through the entire time of European contact with North America. Some examples are quite simple having a straight taper on each end which is then curled round into the C shape. Some have small, tight curls on the ends. The ends can vary from almost touching each other, to barely looping back a full 180 degrees. The Vikings preferred a variation of the C fire steel that had a pronounced bulge or peak on the opposite side of the striking surface with the ends coming close to touching it (the British had a very similar style).

Oval Firesteels

Oval strikers appear in many centuries but became most prevalent in the 16th -19th centuries during the North American fur trade. Oval firesteels are listed in fur post journals and trade good orders, especially in the Great Lakes and Canadian areas. Many of these orders specifically mention brightly polished oval steels.

Fire steels made for trade were made as cheaply as possible while still sparking well. Steel was expensive while labor was cheap. Fire steels were made quickly, simply, and using as little steel as possible. Most excavated originals are thin (1/8 or 1/16 inch thick or less). A late 19th century style developed from the oval by tapering one end to a screwdriver point, shaped more like a teardrop, to provide additional utility.
Purchased in large quantities by the North West Company and The American Fur Company, flat oval fire steels of this type were widely sold by the American Fur Trade Company around the Great Lakes and throughout the west. They were mass produced in cities like Sheffield, England. Oval strikers were sent into the mountains by Pierre Chouteau Jr. and company in 1838, 1839 & 1840.

Other Firesteel Styles

Fancier more complicated patterns and styles were made, but they were more expensive to purchase, and a more valued gift. Local smiths working in their own shops or working for the trading companies and post also made fire steels for sale and trade. They worked in smaller quantities using new steel, and many times with recycled steel (from old files, saws, scythes, chisels, etc.). Local blacksmith made strikers tend to be thicker, and more decorative, even with the simplest styles.

Flints

A sharp-edged piece of hard stone to strike a spark on the steel is essential. A piece of flint works best, but any hard rock with a sharp edge will work. Flint just works better and holds a sharp edge longer. It is also easier to knapp the edge to sharpen it. The flint must be kept sharp or be replaced. What you are doing is cutting or scraping little bits of the steel off with the sharp edge of the flint. It is just like when you push a piece of steel into the bench grinder and get sparks. It takes a little practice, and you must be careful that you do not hit your knuckles on the sharp flint! Diaries and letters of the time were full of tales of scraped knuckles and other wounds from flint hitting skin. Someone experienced in the process might expect success within three minutes or so, while the slightest dampness or other problem might increase that time dramatically.

Tinder

While certain material was preferred, tinder could be anything dry and flammable. Charred rags (charcloth) were kept in many tinderboxes. After cloth had been partly burnt the remnants were thin and relatively easy to light with a spark. Dried moss leaves or fungus, and raw unspun flax were other alternatives.

What is Char Cloth and How to Make It

Making tinder was serious business before the advent of matches. The best linen rag was periodically burnt, and its ashes deposited in the tinman’s box, pressed down with a close-fitting lid upon which the flint and steel reposed. See Crazy Crow’s Tinder Box.

Char cloth is a swatch of fabric made from vegetable fiber (such as linen, cotton or jute) that has been converted into a slow-burning fuel of very low ignition temperature. It can be ignited by a single spark that can in turn be used to ignite a tinder bundle to start a fire.
Step one in making char cloth is to find a metal container that can be sealed. An Altoids tin is very suitable for this task. Punch a small diameter hole in the lid, to allow gases to escape as it is heated. The hole does not need to be large.

Next take pieces of cloth that are 100% cotton (an old t-shirt will do) and cut it into pieces that will fit in the tin. Put six to eight pieces in, being careful not to pack it too tightly. The entire char cloth making process is quick so you can easily make a large supply. Close the tin and place it over a flame source.

Once over the flame it does not take long to heat up. Smoke (gases) can be seen escaping from the hole. Do not be alarmed if flame occasionally spurts thru the hole. Continue the “cooking” process until smoke is no longer seen coming from the hole. This usually takes only take four to five minutes for this size tin. At this point, carefully remove the tin from the heat, allowing it to completely cool. After cooling enough for handling (it will be covered in soot), open the lid and carefully remove the pieces of char cloth. You might store your char cloth in a zip-lock bag until you want to place it in your tinder box/kit.

Tinder Boxes

Tinder Boxes came in many forms. Whether made of tin, brass, or wood (carved or plain) to be carried in a mountain man’s possibles bag or pocket they served the same purpose. In late 18th century London, you could buy a tin tinderbox with a steel and snuffers for eighteenpence, as advertised in The Times. These tin boxes were common and have survived better than the wooden ones which deteriorated faster than its metal equivalents over the years. In wealthier households there were brass, or even silver. In the camps of the North American fur traders, they would more likely be made of tin or brass, perhaps with a magnifying lens for making fires without the firesteel (see Early Fur Trade Tobacco Box.

Brief History of Human’s use and control of Fire Web Page

Tinderboxes In The Home Web Page

Fire Steels Web Page

Fire Starter: A Traditional Fire Making Tool Web Page

Fire Striker – Wikipedia Web Page

The Magic of FIRE from STEEL Web Page

Fire Strikers,” A.K.A., “Strike-A-Lites” In The American Fur Trade Web Page