Here we list some of the BOA museum's archives of potential interest to scholars. These collections should be considered for use alongside those held separately in the BOA Library. We also outline how we can assist with family history research.
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- Correspondence of George Bernard Shaw with his optician John Cole, FBOA (May 1947-December 1949): Four letters, three postcards and a compliments slip in which the cantankerous old writer seeks correction of a bifocal lens, enquires what to do with his old lenses cases and frames, enquires about stronger spectacles for reading The Times at breakfast, performs a self-diagnosis after reading an article in The Lancet (written on Christmas Day!), cancels an order, refers to a helmet-mounted device for supporting a magnifier and asks for a replacement of a lens he has broken by walking upon it. He finally declares his new reading glasses to be a success, no doubt to the relief of all concerned
- Correspondence received by Mr T. Henri Esq. Optician of Brighton: Letter of William Ewart Gladstone (1887), relating to a broken pebble spectacle lens and offering nine books as a reward for his attentions. Also a letter from the Irish politician and novelist Justin McCarthy (1892) relating to a promise by the author to his optician to take him some books as soon as he (the writer) recovers from sciatica
- Two letters of William Kitchiner to Sir Joseph Banks
- Correspondence of Dr T.M.Porter with the Carl Zeiss (Jena) company, 1890s
- British Optical Association Fellowship, Honours, Dioptric, Intermediate, Contact Lens, Dispensing, Orthoptics and Honorary Membership certificates. Also awards of the Institute of Chemist-Opticians, Institute of Ophthalmic Opticians, Institute of Optical Science, National Association of Opticians
- A manuscript on the eye, probably extracted from a
bound ms. German. (Probably Augsburg). 16th c. (c.1520)
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Declaration of indulgences (remission from posthumous punishment for sins in this life) issued by Pope Paul V to the benefactors of the Church and Hospital for poor blind persons in Paris. 17th c. (1607)
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Business receipts (Dudley Adams, George Adams III, P & J Dollond, Benjamin Martin Jr, Henry Shuttleworth, Francis Watkins, Edmund Wells etc.)
- Handwritten lecture notes of Dr Douglas Argyll-Robertson representing a very early account of the uses of an ophthalmoscope. Scottish. 19th c. (1863)
- Correspondence relating to the Army Optical Appliances Depot in the Second World War
- Also invitations, menu cards, optical prescriptions, order forms, business cards, ophthalmic letterheads, examination papers, apprenticeship indentures, scrapbooks, selection charts, grading scales, newspaper cuttings, advisory leaflets....etc.
We even have a tinned fish label and a chocolate bar wrapper!
The Harry Freeman Archive
A remarkable set of notes and photographs documenting the work of a renowned optical practitioner in London's East End, who was also an energetic teacher and occasional inventor. Harry Freeman established the London Course of Optometry and designed the Freeman-Archer Subjective Unit, wrote many articles and maintained links with former students from across the world.
The Paul Fairbanks / Arthur Bennett Archives
Both these men attached to the City University kept extensive cuttings files on topics of contemporary interest. These files, together with their notes and correspondence on modern and historic subjects have been amalgamated with the museum's records.
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The Museum holds trade catalogues, price lists, promotional leaflets and other archival material relating to the following companies (amongst others). Coverage of the companies named is somewhat variable and most of the material is post 1950 in date, with only a little pre 1930.
- Allied Instrument Manufacturers Ltd (AIM)
- Abdel Floating Eyewear Ltd
- Advanced Eyecare Research
- Alcon
- Allergan
- Alges
- Altomed Ophthalmics
- AMA Optic
- American Optical Company Ltd
- Anglo American Eyewear
- Anglo American Optical Company
- R. Archer & Sons Ltd
- Asda Opticians
- Aspect
- Autoflow
- Balzers
- Frederick Bateman & Co. Ltd
- Biocompatibles Hydron
- K.Blyth (Optics) Ltd
- Bausch & Lomb
- Birmingham Optical Group (inc. Archer-Elliott Ltd)
- Henry Beaumont
- (Takara) Belmont (UK) Ltd
- Bentlay International Ltd
- Birch-Stigmat Group
- Briot
- Booth & Bruce
- British American Optical Company Ltd (BAO)
- Bryant Symons
- Mariella Burani
- Cambridge Instruments Ltd
- Cambridge Optical Group Ltd
- The Canadian Connection
- Canon
- Cantor & Nissel
- Cantor & Silver
- Carleton Optical Equipment
- Caseco
- Centro Style Ltd
- Cerium Visual Technologies
- Chevassus
- CIBA Vision
- Clement Clarke Ltd
- Clic Goggles UK
- Coates Optical Equipment
- Coconuts Eyewear
- Coliseum Group
- Combined Optical Industries Ltd (COIL)
- Contact Lens Centre Ltd (Hampshire)
- Contact Lens Precision Laboratories Ltd (CLPL)
- Contamac
- Continental Eyewear Ltd
- John Cooper (Optics) Ltd
- CooperVision
- Copenhagen Eyes
- Corning
- Coventry Optical Group Limited
- Crazy Lenses
- Crofton Optical Group
- Curry & Paxton Ltd
- Dailytec
- Deeside Optical Company Ltd
- Design Features Ltd (Isle of Man)
- Christian Dior
- Dollond & Aitchison Group
- Duckham's (Alexander Duckham & Co Ltd)
- Dunbar & Cook
- Dunelm Optical Company Ltd
- Ellis Optical Company
- H.W. English
- Essel
- Essilor
- Europtica International
- Evans Instruments Ltd
- Eyeclass Eyewear UK
- Eyeplan Ltd
- J. & R. Fleming Ltd
- William Gowlland (1916) Ltd
- Gowllands Ltd
- Grafton Optical Company Limited (inc. Eyco Instruments)
- Grand Seiko Co. Ltd
- Paul Green Ltd
- Groos Ltd
- Haag-Streit UK (inc. Luneau)
- The Hadley Company Limited
- Theodore Hamblin Ltd
- Hamblin Ltd
- Heine Optotechnik GMBH
- The Heritage Centre
- Hilco Europe
- Hilton International Eyewear Ltd (inc. Conti Opticals)
- The House of Vision Inc.
- Hoya Lens UK
- Igel Optics Limited
- Indo (Industrias de Optica SA)
- Inspecs Ltd (inc fcukvision and Nicole Farhi Eyewear)
- International Eyewear
- I.O.O. Marketing Limited
- Jewellery That Works
- Keeler Ltd
- Kelvin Lenses Ltd
- Kirk Brothers Wholesale Opticians
- Kowa Company Ltd
- Lessar Brothers Ltd (Lesbro)
- J. Lizars, Glasgow
- Jai Kudo
- Johnson & Johnson Vision Care
- L'Amy
- Lapis Lazuli International NV
- Lens-Online.com
- Lentoid Lens Manufacturers
- London Optical Company Limited
- London Williamson Ltd
- Luneau Ophthalmologie
- Luxottica s.p.a
- Lux de Morez
- Magnon/Nidek (H. Ogino & Co Ltd, Yokohama)
- Mainline Optical Ltd
- Marcolin
- Marco Ophthalmic Inc
- Edward Marcus Ltd
- Mark'ennovy UK
- Medicornea
- Menicon
- Meso
- Midas Eyewear Ltd
- Metzler International
- Mexx International (inc. OWP Brillen GMBH)
- Mewscraft Spectacles Display Systems
- Menrad - Ferdinand Menrad Group (FMG)
- E. Meyrowitz Ltd
- Neitz Instruments Co. Ltd
- Newbold & Bulford Ltd
- Newbold & Co Ltd
- Niche Sports and Optical Products
- Nicolet Instrument Corporation
- Nigura
- Nikon Spectacle Lenses
- Nitsche & Gunther
- No1
- Norville Optical
- Ocular Sciences Inc.
- Oculus Optikgeräte GmbH
- Olympus Eyewear
- Optec Services Ltd (inc Bobes S.A. Instrumentos Cientificos)
- Optical Sciences Group Inc (OSG)
- Optical Services (UK) Ltd (inc. Eyewear Visage, Kangol Eyewear, Ferucci)
- Optico-Utrecht
- opticvideo.com
- Optiprecision (Southampton) Ltd
- Optix Software
- Optos
- Optyl Eyewear Fashion International (inc Paloma Picasso)
- OWP Brillen GmbH
- Paragon Vision Sciences
- PCS Cheltenham
- Pell Optical Ltd
- Pennine Optical Group
- Permalens
- Pilkington (various guises) e.g. Pilkington Barnes Hind
- Polaroid Eyewear
- Progressive Chemical Research Ltd
- Provis Ltd
- Purevision
- Raphaels Ltd
- Franz Rapsch Optische-Fabriken
- Raycroft Ltd
- Randolph Optical Supply Co. Ltd
- Rayner Ltd
- W.T.Rees Ltd
- Reichert Opthalmic Instruments
- Rimmer Brothers (Rimbros Ltd)
- G. Rodenstock GmbH
- Safilo Group s.p.a
- Sauflon
- Shamir Optical
- Sight Care Trading Ltd
- Sigma Optical
- Silhouette
- Skaga
- Siltint Industries Ltd
- Sisley
- Sola
- Specialist Optical Services Ltd (SOS)
- Spectacles Direct
- Spectrum Ophthalmics
- Sport Sight
- The Standard Optical Company
- Stigmat Ltd
- The Surgical Manufacturing Co. Ltd
- Storz Instrument Company
- www.sunoptic.com
- Sussex Britchford Export Ltd (Sussex Vision)
- Takagi Seiko Co. Ltd
- J. & H. Taylor Ltd
- Taylor Optical Products
- David Thomas (Contact Lenses) Ltd
- T.K. Optical
- Topcon (inc Tinsley Medical Instruments (TMI).)
- Ultralase
- UltraVision
- United Kingdom Optical Co. Ltd (UKO) (inc AA Prescription Service, Savile Row)
- Trident Optical Co. Ltd
- Uni Optics
- Vertex
- Viennaline Ltd
- Visibilia Group
- John Weiss & Son Ltd
- Welch Allyn Ltd
- Martin Wells Pty. Ltd
- H. Williamson Optical Company (1932) Ltd
- Willmotts Ltd
- M. Wiseman & Co. Ltd
- Wöhlk-Contact-Linsen
- Ernst Würtz & Co
- Young Optical
- Carl Zeiss (Jena)
- Carl Zeiss (Oberkochen)
- Zeiss Ltd
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Our colleagues at the Arts and Heritage section of the Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNIB) have deposited in the Museum a CD of images drawn from the RNIB archive. Due to unresolved copyright issues these images can only be viewed on the museum premises, but here is a list to aid researchers.
- Accessible products for everyday living 1981
- Adding Machine
- Assembling aero engines
- Audible Thermometer at Worcester College
- Belgian Musicians
- Braille Chess Clock
- Braille Gauge
- Braille Map
- Braille Music
- Braille Periodicals
- Braille Plate
- Braille Production Collation
- Braille ‘Scrabble’
- Braille Watch
- Carpentry
- Chorley Wood Sixth Formers
- Chorley Wood Student 1
- Chorley Wood Student 2
- Close-up of Tactile Map produced by RNIB
- Deaf-blind Manual 1
- Deaf Blind Manual 2
- Early CCTV
- Fellowship House
- Geometrical Instrument
- German Postcard 1
- German Postcard 2 (Shows image of St Luke in spectacles!)
- Homework
- Indian Visitors and Demonstration of Maths Equipment
- Jamaican Blind Motor Mechanic 1
- Jamaican Blind Motor Mechanic 2
- Japanese Studying Anatomy 1
- Japanese Studying Anatomy 2
- Jive
- Let’s Have The Music!
- Letter-writing
- Marchers
- Moon Alphabet 1
- Moon Alphabet 2
- Musicians 1
- Musicians 2
- NIB Braille Periodicals
- Portable Braille Machine
- Rhodesian Typing
- Selection of Accessible Games and Hobbies
- Stall
- Strolling
- Student Using Perkins and Tactile Map
- Tactile Chess
- Tactile Globe
- Tactile Image
- Woodwork
- Worcester College For Boys
- Workshop 1
- Workshop 2
- Young Students Measuring Potatoes
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Was your grandparent an ophthalmic optician? We can check the early BOA registers and examination records or the BOA Yearbooks for 1914, 1927, 1930, 1938, 1951 and 1960 (the only years which were published). We have less complete records for some other membership bodies which amalgamated with the BOA and most GOC Registers from 1960.
We do not charge for making such checks although the supply of photocopies will incur a fee.
Case Study
Mr MacKenzie of Fife asked if we had any records of his father who died whilst his son was still a boy in 1930. We not only found a reference to him in the Institute of Ophthalmic Opticians Directory for 1927 but also his obituary in 'The Optician' journal. We were also able to explain the three less familiar sets of letters after his name.