about us
Our history
Since 1992, we’ve made and sold approximately
half a million Magnabrites®
The Magnabrite® Light Gathering Magnifier began around 1950 with inventor, Chester Rorie
Michael Smithson, the founder of Magnabrite®, lived across the street from Rorie – whom he called “Doc” – as a kid in South Dallas. Doc was like a second father to Michael. When Doc retired in 1962 to a 175-acre farm in Melissa, Texas, Michael began learning from him how to make glasses and magnifiers by hand, using 1940’s technology involving spherical grinding and polishing tools. Michael helped Doc with the manufacture of the 2” dome magnifier in the summer of 1962. Doc called it the Light Gathering Magnifier due to its unique property of enhancing the magnified image by gathering the available light in the room and focusing it on the image.
Fast forward thirty years to Michael Smithson’s garage in 1992 in Dallas
After school and a career designing other visual aids and optical devices, Michael began thinking about the great attributes of the little 2” Light Gathering Magnifier he had made with Doc when he was twelve years old. With the help of his wife, he set about finding the necessary equipment to make the magnifiers again, this time using modern technology. Originally they sold to bookstores, map stores and photography stores (before digital). They also sold to dentists for use in viewing x-rays on back-lit x-ray boxes. Since 1992, we’ve made and sold approximately half a million Magnabrites®.
From Distribution to Acquisition:
Mattingly Low Vision, Inc. Secures
Legacy of Magnabrite®
At some point in the late 1990’s, we figured out that Magnabrites were great for those with visual impairments. We began receiving testimonials from people with different visual acuity issues: from Diabetic Retinopathy, to Hyperopia, to Macular Degeneration. In the Low Vision space, Smithson and Mattingly Low Vision, Inc. began a distribution relationship. In June 2021, when Smithson retired, Mattingly Low Vision, Inc. acquired Magnabrite®.
We are proud to continue the history of an American-made product, now in El Paso, Texas. We continue the family-owned and operated tradition and take great pride in being manufacturers of such a timeless classic.