BOSTON BULL'S-EYE IMPROVED "SPECIAL"

  Boston Camera Manufacturing Company, 380 Tremont Street, Boston, Massachusetts              1895

 

         

 

One variant of Boston's Bull's-Eye based on its general design, is actually a distinct model referred to in Boston Camera Manufacturing's 1895 advertisements as the Improved "Special". This camera appears to be the last iteration in the 3-1/2 x 3-1/2 Boston Bull's-Eye's history.

 

As noted in The American Amateur Photographer, Volume VII, No. 5 for May, 1895, "models of the improved Bull's Eye cameras" were exhibited at the Annual Exhibition of the Boston Camera Club held April 3-20, 1895. The report went on to state that "It will be noticed that the old idea of sliding one part of the camera, telescopic fashion, within the other is done away with, and the sides of the outer case, formerly rigid, are now hinged, thus saving weight and space. The danger of having more joints than formerly where light might enter the camera, is overcome somewhat by the use of a strip of black guard paper on the back of the film."

This "telescopic fashion" was in reference to previous versions of the 3-1/2 x 3-1/2 Boston Bull's-Eyes, such as the Ebonite example below, which were all constructed with a top and center section that separated from the bottom shell to facilitate loading:

                          Boston Bull's-Eye Ebonite

 

The Improved "Special" was constructed with leather-hinged side panels that swung out, along with a removable back panel. This particular model could also be used with an accessory back that replaced the standard panel with the D-shaped window. This permitted the use of glass plate holders rather than roll film:

       

    

          From The American Amateur Photographer, Volume VII, No. 5 for May, 1895     

 

     

           From The American Amateur Photographer, Volume VII, No. 7 for July, 1895

 

The Bull's-Eye Improved "Special" measures 4-13/16" wide, 6" deep and 4-1/2" tall. Compared against the standard Bull's-Eye version, it's about 1/8" wider and 1/8" deeper and reportedly measured approximately 1/2" deeper with the plate back accessory attached.

 

This example, with Serial No. 160 and retaining its "Boston Camera Mfg. Co." paper label, is stamped on the film carriage with the patent dates December 1, 1891 and January 9, 1894, with other patents pending:

 

 

    

 

 

These dates refer to Patent No. 464,260 granted to Abner G. Tisdell of Brooklyn, New York on December 1, 1891 for the camera's shutter design:

 

       

                   Source: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office                                               Boston Bull's-Eye Shutter    

 

And to Patent No. 512,655 granted to William H. Lewis of Huntington, New York, on January 9, 1894, for elements of his patent that applied to the Bull's-Eye's shutter. Lewis' patent was assigned to the Blair Camera Company of Boston, Massachusetts, and his shutter design is the one used in Anthony's P.D.Q. Detective Camera. The P.D.Q. also incorporated four of Lewis' other patents (one being shared with Erastus B. Barker), that were all assigned to E. & H.T. Anthony & Company.

 

         

                                                                       Source: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

 

            

                                       Anthony P.D.Q. Detective Camera

                  https://antiquephotographica.info/Anthony%20PDQ%20Detective%20Camera%20Web%20Detail%202-19-2019_files/image032.jpg

                                 Anthony P.D.Q. Detective Camera Shutter

 

Per Jos Erdkamp's great article, The Legacy of the Boston Bull's-Eye Camera, "The shutter was designed by Frederick H. Kelley at Blair Camera Company in 1892, and it was a modification of Abner G. Tisdell's shutter (United States Patent 464,260)".

Fred H. Kelley as a co-patentee, held at least five other patents with Thomas H. Blair, two of which were shutter designs for the Blair Hawk-Eye Detective and the Blair Kamaret. Comparing Tisdell's patent drawing alongside the Bull's-Eye's shutter, the similarities are evident. It's undetermined whether Kelley ever applied for or secured a patent for his modified design.

 

Probably introduced just four or five months before Boston Camera Manufacturing was acquired by Eastman Kodak in August, 1895, relatively few Bull's-Eye Improved "Special"s were built, making it one of the hardest models to locate today from this short-lived company.

 

    

 

 

          

 

As seen in the ad below, Boston Camera Manufacturing's Improved "Special", was also offered by the American Camera Mfg. Company as the Special Buckeye. Boston Camera Manufacturing's 3-1/2 x 3-1/2 Bull's-Eye and 4x5 Bull's-Eye were also offered by American Camera Mfg. Company as the Regular Buckeye and the 4x5 Special Buckeye, respectively:

 

       

         From Anthony's Photographic Bulletin, December, 1896            Source:  HathiTrust Digital Library