CECIL E. HANSON COLLECTION
ANTIQUE SURVEYING INSTRUMENTS

AMERICAN TRANSITS

Buff & Buff - Boston, MA ca.1920-25

Serial Number: 14091 (PAT. FEB 3,1903)
Telescope length: 10-1/2"
Length of level on telescope: 5"
Diameter of horizontal circle: 5"
Needle length: 3-1/2"
Diameter of Vertical Arc: 1/2 Arc, 5"
Height: 12"
Weight: 11.4 lb
Box: Wooden in good condition - 15" x 10-1/2" x 9-1/2"
Accessories: Lens Cap and Shade; Tripod head (no legs)
Condition: Good - Shows typical wear from use. Appears to be fully functional. Telescope focuses, cross hairs present, compass works. Missing vernier shades and one cracked vernier glass cover was replaced.
Found: Unknown
CEH Inventory# T48

Buff & Buff Manufacturing Company was founded in 1898 by George L. Buff (1837-1923) and his sons. Prior to that he worked for Thomas Cooke & Sons in York, England and then came to the United States about 1865 where he went to work for Stackpole & Brothers in New York City. In 1871 Buff and C. Louis Berger joined together to start the partnership of Buff & Berger, which then dissolved in 1898.

While there is no publically available listing of the Buff & Buff instrument serial numbers with date of manufacture, dates have been reported for specific instruments (e.g. "The Catalog of the Charles E. Smart Collection - Antique Surveying Instruments" by William H. Sherritt). Based on this information, this transit was most likely to have been manufactured in the early 1920's

Note: This transit is very similar to the 5-1/8" Buff "Precise" Transit No. 2 B shown in their 1916 catalog, page 45:

Specifications for Buff & Buff transits from 1916 catalog, page 37: