Photographs from the Perkin-Elmer-Applera Collection

Richard Perkin and Charles Elmer founded the Perkin-Elmer Corporation in 1937 as an optical design and consulting company specializing in optical systems for astronomical instruments. During World War II, Perkin-Elmer notably produced aerial camera lenses and high precision tank periscope prisms, products that effectively established its reputation as a preeminent source for military optics and electronics. Following the war, the company extended into the manufacture of precision analytical instruments, including infrared spectrometers, flame photometers, vapor fractometers, spectrophotometers, and other infrared analytical equipment. As the beneficiary of various government contracts for Research and Development, Perkin-Elmer expanded throughout the 1950s from its home base in Norwalk, Connecticut to include plants and offices in Chicago, New Orleans, Pasadena, and Zurich. Other significant expansions included the acquisition of Bodenseewerk Apparate und Machinenbau G.m.b.H., an optical and aircraft testing instrument plant in Ueberlingen/Bodensee, Germany in 1954 and the establishment of the Nuclear Magnetics Corporation as a new subsidiary of Perkin-Elmer in 1955. In the 1990s, Perkin-Elmer's growing focus on life science technologies led to a merger with Applied Biosystems, Inc. and a recapitalization as PE Corporation in 1999. PE Corporation subsequently sold off its analytical instruments business, as well as the Perkin-Elmer name, and rebranded itself as Applera Corporation in 2000.