Wellsboro Glass Historical Association

The Lightbulb. We take it for granted today, but the invention is quite fascinating and the production behind the bulb itself is even more amazing!

Original bulbs were blown by hand. But in 1926, Billy Woods of Wellsboro, PA with the help of engineers from Corning Glass, invented a machine that would change history. The ribbon machine revolutionized the glass industry, turning out more than 1000 bulbs per minute! The Wellsboro Glass Historical Association is preserving this history unique to the small town of Wellsboro; remembering the innovation, production, and the people that worked here.

In January 2021 a group of passionate and creative folks founded the Wellsboro Glass Historical Association. We seek to build community pride and a deeper understanding of Wellsboro’s important role in glass manufacturing. The goal of our group is to acquire, preserve and present this history and its associated artifacts. The ultimate goal of the WGHA is to operate a museum which will house the 2 ribbon machines currently in storage, as well as all of the items that have been donated. Our hope is to educate the general public about the important contributions Wellsboro PA made to glass manufacturing history, and encourage the next generation of innovators to consider their own creative potential.