Description

SET OF THIRTEEN WORLD WAR I STEREO VIEWERS, American, 1919, by Charles T. Buell & Co. Each fixed-focus viewer is 4-1/2″ x 4-3/8″ x 2″ (11 x 11 x 5 cm) overall, with its rectangular varnished wood box, turned and blackened wood eyepiece surrounds, ground glass window, original insertable glass stereo view, brass latch, and printed descriptive card tacked atop. The views show scenes of loss in the trenches and fields of France, cemeteries there, etc. The descriptions are exceedingly patriotic. Condition is generally good, with signs of active use. This unusual set was undoubtedly made for viewing in the classroom or in public displays.

Charles T. Buell & Co. is recorded in Newark, Ohio, in the early 20th century, and is listed as U.S. copyright holder of numerous images. By the late 1940’s the firm claimed to have been builders of “Walk-Thru Shows,” for 23 years, sold with their interchangeable frames, viewing boxes, and scenes, and with themes such as “What our Boys saw in Paris,” and “Famous Prisons, Convicts and Torture Chambers of the World.”