We thought you would find this article of interest about Jefferson’s eyeglasses. It appears he spent at least two years corresponding with an optician in hopes of receiving the perfect eye glasses to ensure he would be able to continue writing and reading.
“Thomas Jefferson’s Spectacles”
(Feb/Mar 2012 Issue of Albemarle Magazine)
Thomas Jefferson may have made a name for himself as a great thinker, reader and writer, however this did not exempt him from vision problems. Despite having declared his vision to be his faculty least impaired by age, Jefferson had a history of using eyeglasses for reading. It is not hard to imagine why: the hours on end he must have spent reading and writing by candlelight at Monticello would exhaust even those with twenty-twenty vision. He went through numerous pairs of glasses in his lifetime, searching for the perfect fit. During the second term of his presidency, he enlisted the help of Philadelphia optician John McAllister, from which a two-year correspondence grew. It would take about two weeks to produce a frame, which Jefferson would at times reject. In an effort to create a pair that would satisfy him, he began to become actively involved in the spectacle’s design. After exchanging ideas with McAllister, a design was reached that would effectively achieve the benefit of trifocals.
More resources on Jefferson’s spectacles:
www.monticello.org/site/research-and-collections/eyeglasses
http://wiki.monticello.org/mediawiki/index.php?title=Eyeglasses&printable=yes
As a lifelong nearsighted person recently made farsighted by cataract surgeries, I am curious about Jefferson’s vision in the garden. Examining plants close-up requires much the same correction needed for reading. Any discussion of him wearing his glasses as a gardener?
Deborah: That is certainly a good observation — one that I can increasingly appreciate from personal experience. No specific reference jumps to mind (nor to the expert that I contacted at Monticello), although we are still looking. At the same time, TJ had a small magnifier as well as a perspective glass that could aid his botanical observations. If we come across something else, I’ll let you know. John
Thanks for checking into this; I was hoping he might have had an innovative solution that I could copy! Perhaps routinely wearing the hand lens on a lanyard that I take on hikes and usually stow in a backpack is the answer.
I could have included a link: http://www.monticello.org/site/house-and-gardens/hand-magnifier
I do remember seeing this on display at the house; not what I’d expect him to carry to the garden, but perhaps he did.
AFTER THE MANY YEARS OF LEARNING ABOUT THOMAS JEFFERSON, THIS IS EXACTLY THE TYPE OF GUY HE WAS. I AM AN AUDITOR BY TRADE AND HE SEEMS TO FIT INTO MY THOUGHT ENTIRELY AT TIMES. GOING BACK TO THE FIRST START AND QUESTING ALL THE NEXT STEPS UNTIL THE FINAL RESULTS.
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Somewhat belated, but, as always, an excellent response to my inquiry from one of the librarians at the International Center for Jefferson Studies:
Hi John,
Well, anything’s possible of course but Jefferson claimed even later in his life that he only used spectacles during the daytime to read. “I use spectacles at night, but not necessarily in the day unless in reading small print.” (TJ to Vine Utley, March 21, 1819) And he apparently told a visitor in 1824 that he could “see in the daytime without glasses.” (Interview with Sam Whitcomb, UVA Special Collections MSS 6174) You may wish to refer your commenter to our article on Jefferson’s spectacles. There are also a pair of green-tinted spectacles, which he may well have worn outside. I’ve never been able to find much information on these, and I’m afraid that the article is not terribly informative, but according to Bedini they were used to “improve the vision out of doors.” http://www.monticello.org/site/research-and-collections/green-spectacles
Best,
Anna
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