Manhattan Optical Company Antique New York Photo Advertising Letterhead 1895

Original Historical Ephemera   Manhattan Optical Company - Cresskill, New Jersey Manufacturer of Cameras, Tripods, Photographic Lenses Florograph, Collodion, and Geletin photography Antique graphic advertising letterhead, signed 'Harwood' likly J.C. Harwood, and dated 1895   The Manhattan Optical Company was a prominent manufacturer of optical equipment in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Founded in the 1870s, Manhattan Optical became one of the pioneering American firms in the field of photographic and optical technology, competing with European manufacturers who had dominated the market for cameras and precision lenses. In the 1890s, the company was known for its "Manhattan Magazine Camera," a popular model at the time, and it developed a range of products that included stereoscopes and various types of field lenses. In 1895, Manhattan Optical merged with Gundlach Optical Company of Rochester, New York, forming Gundlach-Manhattan Optical Company, with manufacturing moving to R