Free Shipping On All US Orders.Vintage glasses are usually all about style. But with antique glasses from Titmus, you can have glasses that look good and are functional safety glasses whether you want to wear them at work, on the sports field, or while riding your motorcycle. Eyeglasses Warehouse offers vintage Titmus eyeglass frames in classic styles like aviators, horn-rimmed, and cat-eye.
Check out our current inventory below and browse the rest of our site for the best online selection of vintage and antique glasses.
About Titmus Optical
Before they became the standard in safety glasses, Titmus Optical was founded in 1908 to make glass lenses. They operated out of Petersburg, Virginia to supply glasses frame makers with high quality lenses. Only in the 1950s did they expand their business to start producing their own frames, as well as sunglasses and contacts.
The 50s was the ideal time to make this expansion as eyeglasses and the newly fashionable sunglasses were becoming in-demand accessories and styles were changing fast.
Titmus made many of the popular styles between the 1950s and the 1970s. Horn rimmed glasses for men, particularly in the Tart Arnel or Wayfarer style with thick acetate rims, were a top seller. They even offered a cat-eye frame for women under their Grecian Beauty line. Their glasses were available in both safety and fashion models.
German optical company Carl Zeiss AG bought out Titmus in 1973, although the glasses still carried the Titmus name and were produced in Virginia. At the same time, Titmus was making 1970 styles like aviators in both plastic and metal frames, but moving towards producing only safety glasses. By 1995 when Zeiss sold the Titmus name to Honeywell, production was solely focused on prescription safety glasses.
While there are vintage fashion Titmus glasses in existence, most collectors are looking for antique safety glasses. They are still functional if you need a protective or durable pair of glasses but want vintage style. They also have a bolder look than many other glasses produced in the 50s and 70s due to their:
- Thick, Solid Frames
- Side Shields
- Safety Wires
The focus on durability improved not only the safety of the glasses, but their longevity as well. Many vintage Titmus glasses still exist in near original quality, free of cracks or crazing due to their high-quality materials.
Whether you want safety glasses in particular, or simply a long lasting pair of vintage horn rimmed, cat eye, or aviator glasses, Titmus glasses at Eyeglasses Warehouse provide functionality without sacrificing style. See our available selection ready for you to add your prescription lenses to, and come back often to see new glasses as we offer them.