John jacob bausch biography of albert

John Jacob Bausch

American optician and businessman

John Jacob Bausch

Born

Johann Jakob Bausch


()July 25,

Groß Süßen, Kingdom of Württemberg, German Confederation (now Süßen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany)

DiedFebruary 14, () (aged&#;95)

Rochester, New York, U.S.

Resting placeMount Hope Cemetery,
Rochester, New York
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)Optical instrument maker, businessman
Known&#;forCo-Founder Bausch and Lomb

John Jacob Bausch (born Johann Jakob Bausch; July 25, – February 14, ) was a German-American maker of optical instruments who co-founded Bausch & Lomb (with Henry Lomb).

  • Over six decades he transformed his small, local optical shop into a large-scale international enterprise, pioneering the American optical industry.[1]

    Early years

    Bausch was born Johann Jakob Bausch to Georg Bausch, a baker, and his wife Anna Schmid, in Groß Süßen (today part of Süßen) in the Kingdom of Württemberg, then part of the German Confederation.[2][3][4] At the age of eighteen he moved to Bern, Switzerland, where he worked as a lens grinder in an optical shop designing camera lenses.[5] In he emigrated to the United States.

    Upon his arrival, he made his way to a German community in Buffalo, New York, but because of a cholera epidemic there he settled in Rochester, New York, and Anglicized his name to John Jacob.[6]

    Business development

    In , Bausch opened a retail optical shop in Rochester. Bausch sold spectacles, thermometers, field glasses, magnifiers and opera glasses.

    His friend Henry Lomb, also a German immigrant (from Burghaun, Hesse-Kassel or Hesse-Cassel), who had immigrated in , invested his $60 in savings in Bausch's shop and in , on a handshake, became his partner. By , Bausch renamed the company the "Optical Institute of Rochester."[7]

    In the spring of , Lomb enlisted and served in the American Civil War for two years.[6] In Lomb's absence, Bausch accidentally made a fortuitous discovery: he found a piece of vulcanite rubber on a New York street.

    He took it home and experimented making eyeglass frames from the material. At that time wire frames were mainly made from gold, and horn-rimmed frames were made from either European deer horn or tortoise shell, so eyeglasses were considered an expensive luxury.

    Biography of albert einstein Arthur L. It was named to the Fortune list of America's leading companies in In they renamed the company "Bausch and Lomb, Opticians", and reorganized again as the "Vulcanite Optical Instrument Company" in Retrieved May 8,

    Bausch realized he could make stronger and less expensive vulcanite eyeglass frames, but soon he struggled to keep up with demand. During the Civil War, the blockade caused the price of gold and European horn to rise dramatically. This resulted in a growing demand for the Bausch and Lomb spectacles made from vulcanite.[6]

    In they renamed the company "Bausch and Lomb, Opticians", and reorganized again as the "Vulcanite Optical Instrument Company" in [6] They built the first machine in America to produce spectacles beginning in the early s.

    Lomb was in charge of sales and finance, while Bausch concentrated on the manufacturing side of the business.

    The firm took yet another name in , "Bausch and Lomb Optical Company", and began manufacturing microscopes. Later that year they exhibited at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition. The company also produced photographic lenses (), spectacle lenses (), microtomes (), binoculars and telescopes ().

    Carousel: Bausch, American Pioneer. Seven weeks after his marriage, Bausch hurt his hand in a buzz saw and had to have two fingers amputated. Bausch also acquired a manufacturer of fire-control instruments, George N. During the latter part of World War I the company's products were sold almost exclusively to the military.

    The firm was incorporated as "Bausch and Lomb Optical Company, Inc.", in , the year Bausch's long-time partner died.

    Bausch's company did very well during the First World War as the war created a demand for binocular telescopes, range-finders, gunsights, searchlight mirrors, periscopes and torpedo tube sights. The U.S. government became Bausch and Lomb's major customer as the company produced related optical instruments for the armed forces.[6][8] One of their famous products was Ray-Ban sunglasses, until they sold it to the Italian eyewear conglomerate Luxottica.[9]

    Bausch led his company for more than six decades.

    He died on February 14, , in Rochester, New York.[2][1] Bausch & Lomb continued to flourish under the leadership of his son Edward Bausch, remaining preeminent in its field. It was named to the Fortune list of America's leading companies in [1]

    References

    1. ^ abcKolbow, Berti ().

    2. Carousel
    3. John Jacob Bausch - Wikipedia
    4. John Jacob Bausch | EPFL Graph Search
    5. The Bausch + Lomb Story

      6. "John Bausch". Immigrant Entrepreneurship: The German-American Business Biography, to the Present. Retrieved May 20,

    6. ^ ab"John J. Bausch, Founder and Head of World-Famous Optical Firm Dies, Aged 95". Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, N.Y. February 15, pp.&#;1, 2.

      Retrieved May 15, &#; via

    7. ^Cronau, Rudolf (). German Achievements in America. New York: Rudolf Cronau. p.&#;
    8. ^"Bausch, John Jacob". Business Leader Profiles for Students. Retrieved May 8,
    9. ^"John Jacob Bausch". Innovation Hall of Fame, Gallery of Innovators.

      Rochester Institute of Technology. Retrieved May 20,

    10. ^ abcdeKeen, Ann. "American National Biography Online".

      Upon his arrival, he made his way to a German community in Buffalo, New York, but because of a cholera epidemic there he settled in Rochester, New York, and Anglicized his name to John Jacob. When the Civil War began and Lomb went into the army, he sent Bausch part of his pay as a soldier, which carried the business through four years. In Bausch opened a retail optical shop in Rochester. Wikimedia Commons Wikidata item.

      Retrieved May 20,

    11. ^"American National Biography Online: Bausch, John Jacob". Retrieved May 24,
    12. ^"John Jacob Bausch". Spartacus Educational. Retrieved May 24,
    13. ^e.V., Deutsche Zentrale für Tourismus.

      It was then that he decided to start his own optical business. Bausch"s company did very well during the First World War as the war created a demand for binocular telescopes, range-finders, gunsights, searchlight mirrors, periscopes and torpedo tube sights. Brausch's company did very well during the First World War as it created a demand for binocular telescopes, searchlight mirrors, periscopes and torpedo tube sights. He took it home and experimented making eyeglass frames from the material.

      "John Jacob Bausch, Bausch + Lomb". . Retrieved May 24,

    Bibliography

    • "The Bausch & Lomb Story." in About Bausch & Lomb. Bausch & Lomb. Retrieved May 20,
    • "John Jacob Bausch." in Innovation Hall of Fame, Gallery of Innovators. Rochester Institute of Technology.

      John jacob bausch biography of albert Day, director of the Carnegie Institute in Washington, supplied several scientists to assist in the project of producing glass to be used in range finders, binoculars, telescopes, periscopes, and other instruments for the armed forces. January 10, Bausch immigrated to America in and married Barbara Zimmerman six months later. Baur, Clara —

      Retrieved May 20,

    • Keen, Ann T. "Bausch, John Jacob and Henry Lomb." American National Biography Online. Retrieved May 20,
    • Kolbow, Berti. "John Bausch." in Immigrant Entrepreneurship: The German-American Business Biography, to the Present, vol. 2, edited by William J. Hausman. German Historical Institute. Last modified January 25,

    External links

    • Bausch Family Papers, D, Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester