Optical Heritage Museum
Southbridge, Massachusetts
Housed in the hometown of American Optical, which once was the world's preeminent manufacturer of eyeglasses. Much of the collection, some of it from an earlier museum, was saved by curator Dick Whitney, who worked for the company in Southbridge until it closed in the 1990s.
The museum exhibits all kinds of lenswear, of course, but also displays mass-produced optician office art, and has a showcase of "Eskimo Sunglasses," carved from wood and bone. The "Eye for an Eye" exhibit notes that the company went into the plastic eyeball business when the supply of glass eyes from Germany vanished during World War II. In another display, the American Optical Hobby Kit promises its recipients: "Become a Junior Optical Engineer -- earn a beautiful diploma-like certificate."
President Kennedy was so impressed with American Optical's stylish "Executive Bifocals" that he ordered three pairs. The display notes that, unfortunately, they arrived at the White House the day he was assassinated.