Gundlach-Manhattan "Simplex" Case-Mounted Compound Microscope c.1910

Description

Gundlach-Manhattan "Simplex" case-mounted compound microscope, circa 1910. The instrument fastens to the case lid via a wingnut. The objective is original, and can be used as either a 2/3 inch or, divided, as a 1 inch lens. Coarse focus by drawtube. The fine focus uses a flat plate on the stage top, which can be tilted by turning the thumbscrew under the stage, thereby moving the slide closer or further from the objective lens.
Ernst Gundlach (1834–1908) founded a well-regarded optical business in Berlin, then emigrated to the USA in the early 1870s. He worked for several years with Bausch & Lomb, where he invented numerous improvements for microscopes. He left that company in 1878, and started his own business. This developed into a partnership. Gundlach left in 1895, and began another company. The original partnership, without Gundlach, retained his name. They acquired the Manhattan Optical Company in 1902, and became the "Gundlach-Manhattan Optical Company." The name changed to the "Gundlach Manufacturing Company" in the mid-1920s.