Civil War Eyeglasses in dated case, as in the Gettysburg Museum and books

This is a cased pair of original Civil War era eyeglasses. The soldered tin case measures 6 ¼” x 1 ½” and faintly embossed on the front is "PATd. Jan. 24, 1860", which was manufactured by C. Parker. The eyeglasses have steel frames, and both lenses are clear with no cracks.

During the Civil War, although most soldiers were young men, there were still many who had vision difficulties, especially when reading with the lack of light in camps. In my book “The Civil War Soldier – His Personal Items”, I have a similar example (see pictures). Also, there is an example in the Gettysburg NPS Museum (see pictures). Those glasses belonged to Capt. Richard C. Horner, Battery B, 2nd PA Heavy Artillery.

The glasses and case are in good condition for their age and would be ideal to display alongside a letter or with a soldier’s personal effects.