Gas Lamp Post Outside Number 25

The gas lamp post outside number 25 Millington Road is a Grade II listed street lamp, erected by the Cambridge University and Town Gas Light Company around 1889. Made of cast iron, it features a design inspired by classical columns, with a fluted shaft that stands on a circular base set upon an octagonal plinth. The shaft tapers slightly before widening to form a plain banded capital. Atop the lamp is a simple four-sided lantern made of metal and glass, which is adorned with a spike finial and supported by four curved metal brackets. A ladder-rest extends from the base of the lantern.

Gas was first introduced to Cambridge around 1822 by John Grafton, who initially produced gas from oil for street lighting. He later transitioned to coal production and moved his operations to the riverside for easier coal delivery. The company became the Cambridge Gas-Light Company in 1834 and was renamed the Cambridge University and Town Gas Light Company in 1867. Gas production at the riverside site ended in 1969 with the introduction of North Sea gas. Millington Road was developed on land owned by King's College in 1889 and was supplied with gas by the Cambridge University and Town Gas Light Company shortly thereafter. The gas lamps, including this one, are still in use today.

This gas lamp post is notable for its finely detailed 19th-century design and remains lit by gas. It is part of a group of ten other listed gas lamps of the same design and date along Millington Road and has group value with the Grade II listed modernist house at number 26 Millington Road.