Cam,
I don't know how they did it there, but up north where I am, they got the gas from coal. I would guess that they heated the coal and the gas was released. We used to have a large coalgas plant on the west edge of the town and that supplied the gas for the lamps both on the streets as well as in the houses that could afford to have it. I would imagine it was kind of like coal gassifacation that they talk about today. FC