General Information

Serial #

N/A

Part Number

3

Total Parts

3

AKA

N/A

Patents

N/A

General Description

Wood case and lid; metal hinges and fasteners; fabric interior padding

Dimensions

Note: These reflect the general size for storage and are not necessarily representative of the object's true dimensions.

Length

35.6 cm

Width

13.9 cm

Height

17.0 cm

Thickness

N/A

Weight

N/A

Diameter

N/A

Volume

N/A

Lexicon

Group

Exploration and Survey

Category

Miscellaneous

Sub-Category

N/A

Manufacturer

AKA

Consolidated

Country

Unknown

State/Province

Unknown

City

Unknown

Context

Country

Unknown

State/Province

Unknown

Period

Unknown

Canada

Thomas Pocklington Ltd. made and repaired surveying instruments in Toronto between 1925 and 1992. It was one of the few Canadian firms producing precision instruments before WWII. Thomas (b. 1882), the founder, was trained as an instrument maker in the U.K. He moved to Toronto in the early 20th century and worked for Consolidated Optical Co. until he started his own business in 1925. From that time until 1940 the firm occupied a location near what is now the Eaton centre; from 1940 to 1953 the firm occupied 30 Bridgman Ave (presently Tarragon Theatre); from 1953 to 1992 they occupied 208 Weston Rd. The CSTM has the Brightly circular dividing engine (CSTM ARTIFACT # 1992.1776) purchased by the firm in 1940. Thomas was succeeded by his son William, who was succeeded by his two sons John and Ronald. Very little is known about the small precision industry in Toronto in the late 19th and early 20th century. Our growing collection of archival material and artifacts related to Pocklington, one of the leaders in that community, provides a more complete picture of this history. (From the acquisition proposal)

Function

To store and protect a wye level.

Technical

Instruments like this one document important phases in the history of this firm. The Wye level represents Thomas's work at Consolidated before he went into business for himself.

Area Notes

Unknown

Details

Markings

Mfr.'s plate on lid says "MADE BY/ CONSOLIDATED OPTICAL CO./ LIMITED/ TORONTO,/ MONTREAL, WINNIPEG, CALGARY,/ VANCOUVER/ No. 1564"/ on the inside a label shows "IMPORTANT SHIPPING INSTRUCTIONS"/ a two paragraph set of handling instructions/ "CONSOLIDATED OPTICAL Co. LIMITED/ INSTRUMENT MANUFACTURERS/ 40 RICHMOND ST. WEST, TORONTO"

Missing

There is a piece of wooden board missing from the lid; there are the remains of a leather strap on both sides of the box, but it appears to have been torn off.

Finish

Dark brown wood, greens felt fabric strips in spots inside to cushion instrument

Decoration

N/A