CECIL E. HANSON COLLECTION
ANTIQUE SURVEYING INSTRUMENTS

AMERICAN LEVELS

F. E. Brandis, Sons & Co - Brooklyn, NY - ca. late 1890's
(Sold on EBay - 1/27/2024)

Serial Number: 1985
Type: Wye Level with inverted image
Telescope Length: 20"
Spirit level Length: 8-1/2"
Height: 9"
Weight: Instrument - 13.4 lb, Instrument + Case - 20.4 lb
Condition: Good. Has nice patina. Has lens cap and shade
Case: Wooden, shows wear but well constructed and in good condition, 23" x 9-1/4" x 5"
Found: Bought from Buff & Buff, Boston, MA. October 19,1966
CEH Inventory# L4

The marking on this instrument indicate it was manufactured by E. F. Brandis, Sons and Company who did business under this name between 1890 - 1916. The telescope and cradle appear to be the same as shown in the 1902 Brandis catalog (see above) for their No. 4B Engineers' Wye Level (B for 20" telescope); however, the base/leveling screw configuration is somewhat different.

I haven't found a public record correlating the Brandis instrument S/Ns with year of manufacture. However, a E. F. Brandis, Sons & Co transit (Style 26A) with S/N 1703 was sold on LiveAuctioneer (5/25/18). The label inside the case shown below indicated it was delivered on April 8, 1896. Also, Smart cited a Brandis transit that was in the Gurley Museum with S/N 6290 and stated it was manufactured around 1906. So it is probable this Wye Level (S/N 1985) was manufactured in the late 1890's and the base design was revised as shown in the 1902 catalog.

The wooden case is marked with a metal Buff nameplate and inside is a card recommending Buff & Buff Mfg Co for instrument repairing. Possibly the instrument was sold by Buff although manufactured by E. F. Brandis, Sons and Company. There is a tag in the case indicating it was received by Buff & Buff on December 22, 1930 and that the owner at that time was the Department of the Interior. Possibly, it was traded in for a newer instrument and Buff & Buff keep it in their inventory until 1966 when they decided to liquidate a number of their instruments, several of which were acquired by Cecil Hanson including this level.