Technology, Invention, and Innovation Collections

The Archives Center holds a wide variety of collections documenting technology, invention, and innovation in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Both individuals and companies are documented in subject areas including railroads, pianos, television, radio, plastics, ivory, and sports equipment. The largest collection is the Western Union Telegraph Company Records, ca. 1840-1994. Other collections of significance include the Earl S. Tupper Papers, ca. 1914-1982, documenting the inventor Tupper and his invention Tupperware; the SmartLevel Collection, 1985-1996, which documents a Silicon Valley engineering story of inventing a high-tech electronic digital level; and the Darby Windsurfing Collection, 1946-1998, documenting the invention of the sailboard.

The Archives Center collaborates with the Museum's Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation to acquire and make accessible collections documenting the history of invention. The finding aids below marked with a double asterisk (**) are located in electronic form on the Lemelson Center's web site. When you click on those titles you will open a window to the Lemelson Center site. To return to this page close that window.

Collection Finding Aids Currently Available On-Line

• Accessible Snowboard Collection, 1996-2000, #747
• Richard Adlard Collection,1936-1998, #692
• Charles Adler, Jr. Collection, ca. 1920-1980, #351
• Solomon Adler Papers, 1919-1980, #1157
• Albany Billiard Ball Company Records, 1869-1973, #11
• Aladdin Industries Inc. Records, 1889-2003, #844
  Anglo-American Telegraph Company, Ltd. Records, 1866-1947, #73
• **Atomic Clock Collection, 1955-1968, #547
• **Mike Augspurger Innovative Lives Presentation and Oral History, 1998; 2000; 200, #689
• **Emile Bachelet Collection, ca. 1880s-1973, #302
• **Ralph H. Baer Papers, 1943-1953, 1966-1972, 1991, 2000-2006, #854
• Anders K. Bak Papers, 1917-1970 (bulk 1920s), #1065
• **Patricia Bath Innovative Lives Presentation and Interview, February 17, 2000 and March 1, 2000, #753
• **S. Joseph Begun Papers, 1888 (bulk 1927-1995); 2000, #535
• Everett H. Bickley Collection, 1919-1980, #683
• Alexander Binder Company Records, #1100
• Binney & Smith Inc. Records, 1897-1998, #624
• **Henry Booth Collection, 1942-1974, #726
• Rubin Borasky Electron Microscopy Collection, 1930-1988, #452
• Orlan W. Boston Dynamometer Papers, 1927-1950, #811
• Boyd Family Papers, 1874-1945, #707
• Uriah A. Boyden Papers, 1806-1879, #982
• Brannock Device Company Records, 1925-1998,  #672
• Herbert M. Bratter Collection, 1919-1971, #137
• Brooklyn Edison Company, Edison Wonder House Records, 1936, #1237
• **F. C. Brown Papers, 1902-1964, #693
• **John Bucheimer Papers, 1954-1977, #889
• Felix P. ("Phil") Caruthers Automatic Machine Control Papers, 1952-1991, #812
• Celluloid Corporation Records, 1892-1935, #9
• Robert G. Chamberlain Numerical Control Collection, 1954-1984, #527
• **George H. Clark "Radioana" Collection, ca. 1880-1950, #55
• Coal and Gas Transit Investigation Collection, 1858-1929, #1049
• **Computer Oral History Collection, 1969-1973, 1977, #196
• Robert Scofield Condon Engineering Papers, ca. 1924-1973, #428
• Madison Cooper Papers, 1900-1963, #1054
• **H. Irving Crane Papers, 1927-1950, #1119
• Cummings Structural Concrete Company Records, 1884-1952 and undated, #218
• S. Newman Darby Windsurfing Collection, 1944-1998, #625
• Del Mar Avionics Holter Monitor Records, 1951-2011, #1249
• Marion O'Brien Donovan Papers, 1949-1996, #721
• Draper Family Collection, ca. 1826-1936, #121
• J. Harry DuBois Collection on the History of Plastics, ca. 1900-1975, #8
• DuPont Nylon Collection, 1939-1977, #7 
• Saul Dushman Papers, 1924-1954, #101
• Thomas Alva Edison Photoprints, 1890s-1933, #299
• **Arthur Ehrat Papers, 1865-2005 (bulk 1970s-1990s), #907
• ** Eisler Engineering Company Records, 1885-1988 (bulk 1920-1950s), #734
• **Electric Guitar Video Documentation, November 9, 1996 to November 16, 1996, #610
• Erie City Iron Works Collection, 1869-1960 (bulk 1875-1912), #1050
• The Eskimo Pie Corporation Records, 1921-1996, #553
• **Fellows Gear Shaper Company Records, 1896-1999 (bulk 1915-1970), #856
• Foresight Institute Newsletter Collection, 1987-2004, #863
• Joseph B. Friedman Papers, 1915 - 2000, #769
• Garfield & Company Records, 1909-1969, #820
• **Elmer Gates Papers, 1894 -1988 (bulk 1894-1910), #1123
• General Electric Nela Park Collection, circa 1890s-1969, #789
• **Gerber Fabric Cutter Video Documentation, 1995-1996, #609
• ** Gerber Scientific Instrument Company Records, 1911-1998, #929
• Cass Gilbert Collection, ca. 1931-1935, #214
• **Gordon D. Goldstein Collection, 1948-1957, #554
• Grand Central Terminal Collection, 1831-1978 (bulk 1903-1933), #1071
• Herb Grosch Papers, 1945-1998,  #703
• William J. Hammer Collection ca. 1874-1935, 1955-1957, #69
• Howard Head Papers, 1926-1991,  #589
• Daniel Henderson Portable Electronic Devices Documentarty Collection, 1968-2002, #875
• Grace Murray Hopper Collection, 1944-1965, #324
• William R. Hutton Papers, 1830-1965, #987
• Grace Jeffers Collection of Formica Materials, 1913-2003, #565
• Leonard Karr Collection, 1930-1995, #762
• Kiehl's Pharmacy Records, 1920-1973 (bulk 1960-1970), #819
• Max Kronenberg Collection, 1954-1971, #813
• **Harry Kroto Innovative Lives Presentation, 2001, #792
• **Kryptonite Lock Company Records, 1972-2003, #840
• Stephanie Kwolek Innovative Lives Presentation, 1996, #596
• Edmund A. Laport Collection, ca. 1920-1950, #16
• **Robert Ledley Papers, 1972-1981, #1135
• **Lifwynn Foundation Eye-Movement Camera Records, 1938-1954, #20
• Lockwood Greene Records, 1784, 1872-2004, #1113
• **Harold Lyons Atomic Clocks Collection, 1935-1991, #701
• Louisan E. Mamer Rural Electrification Administration Papers, 1927-2002, #862
• Nicholas C. Mandragos Papers, 1927-1959, #484  
• Nathaniel Mathis Collection of Barbering and Beauty Culture, ca. 1970-1998, #641
• Reuben Moffat Correspondence, 1852, #1101
• Ann Moore Innovative Lives Presentation and Interview, 1999, #706
• The Morton Family Collection, 1849-1911, #118
• **Marvin E. Mundel Industrial Engineering Collection,1937-1996, #676
• Niagara Falls Bridge Commision Records, 1848-1946 (bulk 1890-1929), #1060
• **Nobel Voices Video History Project, 2000-2001, # 771
• **Nordic Ware Records,1940-2006, #980
• Norwich Eaton Pharmaceutical, Inc., Collection, 1900-1985 (bulk 1920-1940s)
• Victor L. Ochoa Papers, circa 1894-1945, #590
• **Joseph Pedott Papers, circa 1976-2005, #898
• ** William Phillips Innovative Lives Presentation, 2001, #770
• **Van Phillips Video Oral History and Papers, 1991-2004, #859
• **Sherman Poppen Papers, 1966-2008, #1159
• Quebec Bridge Photograph Collection, 1905-1986 (bulk 1905-1916), #1026
• James W. Queen & Company Collection, 1850-1952, #15
• **Jose L. Hernandez-Rebollar Innovative Lives Presentation, August 3, 2005, #917
• Reddy Kilowatt Records, 1926-1999, #913
• **Holton Duncan Robinson Papers, 1889-1938, #963
• John A. Roebling Collection, 1836-1975 (bulk 1930-1950), #981
• Fred S. Rosenau Papers, 1944-1945, #478
• **Charlotte Cramer Sachs Papers,1905-2002, #878
• **Safko International, Inc. Records, 1984-1998 (bulk 1989-1995), #911
• **Serge A. Scherbatskoy Papers, circa 1925-2002 (bulk 1970s-1990s), #936
• SHARE Numerical Analysis Project Records, 1964-1979, #498
• SHARE Records, 1955-1986, #567
• **John Clifford Shaw Papers, 1933-1993, #580
• Shriners Hospital Patient Isolation Unit Records, 1956-1981 (bulk 1969-1972), #1142
• **Records of Small Beginnings, Inc., 1986-2006, #940
• J.Parker Snow Collection, 1882-1933 (bulk 1930-1933), #1000
• Society for the History of Technology (SHOT) Records, 1956-1998, #400
• **Janese Swanson Innovative Lives Presentation and Oral History,1998, #642
• Kenneth M. Swezey Papers, 1891-1982, #47
• Charles Sumner Tainter Papers, 1878-1937, 1919, #124
• **Superconducting Super Collider Collection, 1985-1992, #538
• **"Tantalus" Synchrotron Radiation Source Collection, 1965-1987, #532
• Telescoping Shopping Cart Collection, 1946-1983 and 2000, #739
• Elihu Thomson Collection, 1890-1974, #103
• United States Capitol Dome Drawings, 1855-1862, #1010
• United States Department of Agriculture Building Construction Glass Plate Negatives, 1906-1907, #1096
• United States Fish Commission, 1871-1892, #256
• John George Vasquez Papers, 1942-2005, #942
• Washington National Cathedral Stained Glass Formulae Collection,1926-1936, #90
• Paul G. Watson Collection, 1960-1965 #104
• **Records of Wedge Innovations, 1985-1996, #534
• George Eli Whitney Papers, 1898-1957, #463
• **Western Union Telegraph Company Records, circa 1820-1995, #205
• **West Coast Computer Faire Collection, 1977, 1980, #1118
• Whirlwind Computer Collection, 1945-1959, #290
• Milton S. Wirtz, D.D.S., Artificial Eye Collection, 1941-1947 and 1973-1988, #501
• **A. Bernie Wood Papers, 1942-2001 (bulk 1960s), #962
• Henry Wurtz Papers, 1733; 1861-1885, #6

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