The Berkshire Dust Goggles, manufactured by the Standard Optical Company of Geneva, New York (organized in 1893) and dating to 1915, are a wonderful artifact of the early automobile age — a time when motoring was an adventure that required specialized protective equipment unavailable to previous generations. In the years before enclosed automobiles became standard, drivers and passengers in open-air vehicles faced constant exposure to road dust, flying debris, insects, and wind, making quality eye protection not merely a comfort but a genuine necessity for safe motoring.
This model is constructed in grey leather with amber lenses — the amber tint providing contrast enhancement and glare reduction in addition to physical protection, making them particularly useful for driving in bright sunlight. The clamp on the lens holder is a sophisticated feature that allows the lenses to be changed or even replaced with prescription lenses, making these goggles customizable for motorists who wore corrective eyewear — a remarkably forward-thinking design for 1915. Contemporary motorist news from that period illustrated three models of Berkshire goggles, and this stoco model was among the most refined of the range.
As the description notes, these are also a prime example of what collectors today would call “steampunk” aesthetic — the combination of grey leather, amber glass lenses, and industrial metal fittings perfectly captures the romance of early mechanical transportation. The Standard Optical Company was one of several Geneva, New York optical firms that made that city a center of American optical manufacturing in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
