Science & Mathematics

The Museum's collections hold thousands of objects related to chemistry, biology, physics, astronomy, and other sciences. Instruments range from early American telescopes to lasers. Rare glassware and other artifacts from the laboratory of Joseph Priestley, the discoverer of oxygen, are among the scientific treasures here. A Gilbert chemistry set of about 1937 and other objects testify to the pleasures of amateur science. Artifacts also help illuminate the social and political history of biology and the roles of women and minorities in science.

The mathematics collection holds artifacts from slide rules and flash cards to code-breaking equipment. More than 1,000 models demonstrate some of the problems and principles of mathematics, and 80 abstract paintings by illustrator and cartoonist Crockett Johnson show his visual interpretations of mathematical theorems.

William Healy and Grace Fernald of Chicago used puzzles to study to abilities of delinquent children. This one shows one day in the life of a schoolboy. It was given to soldiers who failed the Army group examinations.This test is in a black, cloth-covered paper box.
Description
William Healy and Grace Fernald of Chicago used puzzles to study to abilities of delinquent children. This one shows one day in the life of a schoolboy. It was given to soldiers who failed the Army group examinations.
This test is in a black, cloth-covered paper box. It consists of two nearly square boards which are displayed next to one another. Each board has a cloth backing. A picture printed on paper is attached to the front. The pictures show a total of eleven scenes from the life of a schoolboy. Each scene has a square hole cut in it. The teat also has sixty square wooden pieces that fit into the holes in the boards. Each piece has a picture on the front and is numbered on the back. The pieces fit, ten to a row, into a wooden rack with six long indentations. Places on the rack are numbered from 1 to 60. A piece of black cloth nailed to the bottom front of the rack allow it to be removed from the box. The test also contains a blue pamphlet: William Healy, Manual for Pictorial Completion test II Cat. No. 46235, Chicago: C.H. Stoelting.
This test is a version (differing, at least, in its box) of a test described in; C.H. Stoelting, Apparatus, Tests and Supplies, Chicago, 1936, p. 157. See also C.H. Stoelting, List 350, Apparatus and Supplies for Practical Mental Classification Used by Dr. William Healy, p. 7 in Stoelting’s publication Psychology and Physiology Apparatus and Supplies, Chicago, 1921.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1917
maker
C. H. Stoelting Company
ID Number
1990.0570.03
accession number
1990.0570
catalog number
1990.0570.03
During World War I, the U.S. Army needed to sort out the thousands of recruits arriving at training camps. Psychologists claimed that their young science offered an objective, efficient way to classify men, weeding out the mentally unfit.
Description
During World War I, the U.S. Army needed to sort out the thousands of recruits arriving at training camps. Psychologists claimed that their young science offered an objective, efficient way to classify men, weeding out the mentally unfit. Intelligence tests available at the time had been designed for children, given individually, and in many cases were unstandardized. No one knew precisely what they measured or how these measurements related to military performance. Nonetheless, over 1,700,000 American soldiers took intelligence tests during the war.
Group Examination Alpha was for men who could read English. It tested the ability to follow oral directions, arithmetic, vocabulary, pattern recognition, general information, and “common sense.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1918
maker
United States Army. Medical Department. Division of Psychology
ID Number
1990.0334.01
catalog number
1990.0334.01
accession number
1990.0334
In the early nineteenth century, lighthouses in the United States were considered inferior to those in France and England.
Description
In the early nineteenth century, lighthouses in the United States were considered inferior to those in France and England. American mariners complained about the quality of the light emanating from local lighthouse towers, arguing that European lighthouses were more effective at shining bright beams of light over long distances. While American lighthouses relied on lamps and mirrors to direct mariners, European lighthouses were equipped with compact lenses that could shine for miles.
In 1822, French scientist Augustin-Jean Fresnel was studying optics and light waves. He discovered that by arranging a series of lenses and prisms into the shape of a beehive, the strength of lighthouse beams could be improved. His lens—known as the Fresnel lens—diffused light into beams that could be visible for miles. Fresnel designed his lenses in several different sizes, or orders. The first order lens, meant for use in coastal lighthouses, was the largest and the strongest lens. The sixth order lens was the smallest, designed for use in small harbors and ports.
By the 1860s, all of the lighthouses in the United States were fitted with Fresnel lenses. This lens came from a lighthouse on Bolivar Point, near Galveston, Texas. Galveston was the largest and busiest port in nineteenth-century Texas. Having a lighthouse here was imperative – the mouth of the bay provided entry to Houston and Texas City, as well as inland waterways. The Bolivar Point Light Station had second and third order Fresnel lenses over the years; this third order lens was installed in 1907. Its light could be seen from 17 miles away.
On 16-17 August 1915, a severe hurricane hit Galveston. As the storm grew worse, fifty to sixty people took refuge in the Bolivar Point Light Station. Around 9:15 PM, the light’s turning mechanism broke, forcing assistant lighthouse keeper J.B. Brooks to turn the Fresnel lens by hand. By 10 PM, the vibrations from the hurricane were so violent that Brooks began to worry the lens might shatter. He ceased turning the lens, trimmed the lamp wicks and worked to maintain a steady light through the night. The next morning, Brooks left the lighthouse to find Bolivar Point nearly swept away by the water.
Bolivar Point Light Station used this Fresnel lens until 1933. It was donated to the Smithsonian Institution by the National Park Service.
date made
1822
late 1800s
all United States lighthouses outfitted with Fresnel lenses
1860s
lens used during a severe hurricane at Bolivar Point
1917-08-16 - 1917-08-17
donated to Smithsonian
1933
inventor
Fresnel, Augustin Jean
ID Number
TR.335567
catalog number
335567
accession number
1977.0626
At the time of World War I, American psychologists hoped to extend intelligence testing from children to adults. They persuaded the U.S. Army to test its recruits in order to weed out those mentally unfit for duty overseas.
Description
At the time of World War I, American psychologists hoped to extend intelligence testing from children to adults. They persuaded the U.S. Army to test its recruits in order to weed out those mentally unfit for duty overseas. Tests were given to groups of soldiers, with paper and pencil replacing the puzzles and other objects used in earlier tests . Over 1.6 million soldiers took the exams. This 1918 form of the test was called the Army Beta Examination. It was designed for illiterates and those who spoke no English. Instructions were given by pantomime. In the portion of the test shown, inductees were asked to draw the missing part of the pictures.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1918
maker
Office of the Surgeon General. Division of Psychology
ID Number
1990.0334.02
accession number
1990.0334
catalog number
1990.0334.02
The “Stenquist Construction Test of Mechanical Ability” was devised by John Langdon Stenquist (1885-1952), a PhD student at Columbia University Teachers College, and used to evaluate Army recruits during World War I.
Description
The “Stenquist Construction Test of Mechanical Ability” was devised by John Langdon Stenquist (1885-1952), a PhD student at Columbia University Teachers College, and used to evaluate Army recruits during World War I. This example was used in the Psychology Department at Carnegie-Mellon University.
Ref: John L. Stenquist, Measurements of Mechanical Ability (New York, 1923).
“Dr. Stenquist, Educational Leader, Dies,” [Baltimore] Sun (Nov. 9, 1952), p. 38.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1918
used at
Carnegie-Mellon University
ID Number
MG.311913.10
catalog number
311913.10
accession number
311913
People from ancient times knew that rubbing certain materials and then touching something caused a spark. Studying what is called electrostatics laid the groundwork for understanding electricity and magnetism.
Description (Brief)
People from ancient times knew that rubbing certain materials and then touching something caused a spark. Studying what is called electrostatics laid the groundwork for understanding electricity and magnetism. Natural philosophers, scientists, and instrument makers created many ingenious devices to generate electrostatic charges starting in the 1600s. These machines varied in size and technique but all involved rotary motion to generate a charge, and a means of transferring the charge to a storage device for use.
Many early electrostatic machines generated a charge by friction. In the later 19th century several designs were introduced based on induction. Electrostatic induction occurs when one charged body (such as a glass disc) causes another body (another disc) that is close but not touching to become charged. The first glass disc is said to influence the second disc so these generators came to be called influence machines.
This influence machine appears to be a duplex design from Robert Voss of Germany. In 1880 Voss combined the ideas of August Toepler and Wilhelm Holtz and produced an influence machine with two plates (see catalog #315900). A few years later he revised his design and added a third plate as seen in this object. Two plates rotate on either side of a fixed plate. The fixed plate has two paper sectors covering tin foil conductors and two brushes are mounted on the edge (one is missing from this unit). The front rotating plate has six brass contacts (one is missing) but there are no windows as would be seen on a Holtz machine. The second rotating plate has no contacts or windows and is simply a blank plate to prevent the charge from dissipating from that side of the fixed plate. There is a switch on the bottom to connect the two Leyden jars. The neutralizer arm attached to the center of the axle has brass brushes set amid the brass combs. This unit almost matches the design seen in Voss' US patent #410053 of 27 August 1889, though one of the electrodes differs slightly from the patent design.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1910
ID Number
EM.322936
catalog number
322936
accession number
249200
Postcard showing a woman sitting on the observing chair in front of a large refracting telescope. The accompanying text reads, “Prof. Maria Mitchell in the Observatory at Vassar College.
Description
Postcard showing a woman sitting on the observing chair in front of a large refracting telescope. The accompanying text reads, “Prof. Maria Mitchell in the Observatory at Vassar College. June 1878.” The back is divided, with space for the address on the right and space for a message on the left. It is marked “Printed in Germany for Henry S. Wyer, Nantucket, Mass., U.S.A. No. 582” and indicates that a 1¢ stamp is required for domestic use and a 2¢ stamp for foreign use.
Maria Mitchell (1818-1889) was America’s first woman astronomer, America’s first woman scientist of note, and the first professor of astronomy at Vassar College.
Henry Sherman Wyer (1847-1920) was a photographer from Nantucket who published many of the earliest postcards of that island community. He was also active in the Nantucket Historical Society and the Maria Mitchell Association.
While the photograph on this postcard was taken in 1878, the postcard was published between March 1, 1907, (when postcards with a divided back were first permitted in the U.S.) and 1917 (when the domestic postage for a postcard was raised to 2¢).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1907-1917
sitter
Mitchell, Maria
maker
Wyer, Henry Sherman
ID Number
2009.0212.01
accession number
2009.0212
catalog number
2009.0212.01
Refracting telescope with a 3½ -inch an achromatic objective, equatorial mount, nickel-plated tube, and wooden tripod.
Description
Refracting telescope with a 3½ -inch an achromatic objective, equatorial mount, nickel-plated tube, and wooden tripod. The inscription on the faceplate reads “The Alvan Clark & Sons Corp’s, Cambridgeport, Mass.” This form was introduced around 1915 (replacing a similar signature, but with date, that had been used since the incorporation of the firm in 1901).
The number “438” and the letter “A” are scratched on both elements of the objective lens. This number does not appear in the ledger kept by Carl Axel Robert Lundin, the skilled Swedish optician and mechanician who spent 41 years with the firm, but the ledger indicates that “439” was sold in 1915. The “PAT. JAN 3, 1899”on the telescope mount refers to Lundin’s patent (#617108) for a simple and compact equatorial mount.
The Smithsonian purchased this telescope from Henry E. Paul, an accomplished amateur astronomer in Norwich, New York.
Ref: Deborah Warner and Robert Ariail, Alvan Clark & Sons. Artists in Optics (Richmond, 1995), pp. 140-141.
Carl A. R. Lundin, “Telescopic Mounting,” U.S. Patent 617,108 (Jan. 3, 1899).
“Carl A. R. Lundin Dead,” New York Times (Nov. 29, 1915), p. 11.
Henry E. Paul, Outer Space Photography (Garden City, N.Y., 1960).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1915
maker
Clark, Alvan
Alvan Clark & Sons
ID Number
PH.320241A
accession number
241909
catalog number
320241
320241A
This full-keyboard printing adding machine is manually operated. It has a metal case painted black with glass sides and green felt covering the keyboard. There are nine columns of black and white color-coded plastic keys.
Description
This full-keyboard printing adding machine is manually operated. It has a metal case painted black with glass sides and green felt covering the keyboard. There are nine columns of black and white color-coded plastic keys. At the top of each column of keys is a red button for clearing the column. To the right of the number keys are repeat and error keys. To the left are non-add, subtotal, and total keys. The crank for operating the machine is on the right side and has a metal handle. At the front of the machine are nine number wheels that show the accumulated total. The wide carriage and printing mechanism are at the back of the machine, with printing invisible to the operator. The carriage can be set at several different positions. Either a roll of paper tape or single sheets of paper may be used. Changing the ribbon requires that the operator remove the case. Extensions on the right side of the case can hold a stand, but there is no stand.
The machine is marked in the glass at the front: Burroughs (/) THIS MACHINE PROTECTED BY U.S. AND FOREIGN PATENTS. It is marked on a metal tag at the base of the front: No 9 - 177887. The Burroughs Style 9 was introduced in 1905.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1911-1913
maker
Burroughs
ID Number
1986.0092.01
catalog number
1986.0092.01
accession number
1986.0092
As scientists found that even the best dip circles gave unreliable results, they began using earth inductors to determine magnetic dip. In 1912, the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism of the Carnegie Institution of Washington developed a new earth inductor for use at sea.
Description
As scientists found that even the best dip circles gave unreliable results, they began using earth inductors to determine magnetic dip. In 1912, the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism of the Carnegie Institution of Washington developed a new earth inductor for use at sea. It had three key elements: an improved gimbal stand, a means for rotating the coil without disturbing the gimbal rings, and a sensitive galvanometer.
This example marked "D.T.M. C.I.W. E.I. N° 3" is the third Carnegie marine earth inductor. When the Carnegie closed its program in terrestrial magnetism, it was lent to the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey. The U.S. Geological Survey acquired it in 1973 when it took over the geomagnetic program of the federal government, and transferred it to the Smithsonian in 1982.
Ref: J. A. Fleming, "Description of the C.I.W. Marine Earth
Inductor," Terrestrial Magnetism 18 (1912): 39-45.
C. W. Hewlett, "Report on the C.I.W. Marine Earth Inductor," Terrestrial Magnetism 18 (1912): 46-48.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1912
maker
Carnegie Institution of Washington. Department of Terrestrial Magnetism
ID Number
1982.0671.05
accession number
1982.0671
catalog number
1982.0671.05
This German silver instrument is a curved bar with a short arm, on which a short cylindrical weight is placed, and a longer arm, to which a tracer point is screwed. The middle of the bar has a thin cross-rod, on which a measuring wheel rotates against a wedge-shaped vernier.
Description
This German silver instrument is a curved bar with a short arm, on which a short cylindrical weight is placed, and a longer arm, to which a tracer point is screwed. The middle of the bar has a thin cross-rod, on which a measuring wheel rotates against a wedge-shaped vernier. The wheel is numbered from 0 to 14, with each unit divided into five parts. The vernier is corroded and may be a different type of metal from the rest of the instrument. The bar is marked: THE ASHCROFT MFG. CO. (/) — SOLE MANUFACTURERS. — (/) COFFIN'S PAT. JUNE 6. 1882. The underside of the bar is marked: No. 1423. The serial number suggests this object is not as old as MA.323705.
A wooden case is covered with dark brown leather and lined with purple silk and velvet. The top of the case is marked: MADE BY (/) THE ASHCROFT MANF'G CO. (/) NEW YORK & BRIDGEPORT.
John Coffin of Syracuse, N.Y., applied for a patent on this variation on a planimeter in July 1881. He designed his "averageometer" to calculate areas in diagrams of work performed by steam engines. The Ashcroft Manufacturing Company of New York City and Bridgeport, Conn., was the first of several American firms to make the device. Ashcroft, best known for making pressure gauges for steam engines, often sold the arm for Coffin's planimeter separately from its base, as in this example. In 1910, Frederick C. Blanchard, Ernest B. Crocker, and Philip G. Darling, who all probably worked for Ashcroft, patented an improvement to Coffin's planimeter so that it could be clamped in place. The planimeters made by Ashcroft after 1910 utilized this improvement, so this example was made between 1882 and 1910.
In 1912, company founder Edward H. Ashcroft sold his interest to Charles A. Moore, who renamed the firm Manning, Maxwell, and Moore (MM&M). Dresser Industries, Inc., purchased MM&M in 1964. Ashcroft survived as a brand name.
The instrument was found in the collections in about 1981.
References: John Coffin, "Averageometer, or Instrument for Measuring the Average Breadth of Irregular Planes" (U.S. Patent 258,993 issued June 6, 1882); N. Hawkins, Hawkins' Indicator Catechism (New York: Theo. Audel & Co., 1903), 140–142; James Ambrose Moyer, Power Plant Testing (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1911), 73–78; David R. Green, "Coffin Planimeters," June 16, 2008, http://www.planimetervault.com/coffin.html; Richard Oliver, "Ashcroft Manufacturing Co. History," http://www.clockguy.com/SiteRelated/SiteReferencePages/AshcroftManufacturingCoHistory.html.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1882-1910
maker
Ashcroft Mfg. Co.
ID Number
1987.0107.03
catalog number
1987.0107.03
accession number
1987.0107
The Department of Terrestrial Magnetism of the Carnegie Institution of Washington bought this Kew pattern dip circle in 1919.
Description
The Department of Terrestrial Magnetism of the Carnegie Institution of Washington bought this Kew pattern dip circle in 1919. The inscription reads "Dover, Charlton Kent, Circle 240." With four needles, tripod, case, Kew certificate of examination, and importation charges, it cost $184.70. The vertical circle is silvered, graduated to 30 minutes, and read by opposite verniers to single minutes. The horizontal circle is silvered, graduated to 30 minutes, and read by vernier to single minutes.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
ca 1919
maker
Dover
ID Number
1983.0039.02
accession number
1983.0039
catalog number
1983.0039.02
This object is a 50 mL volumetric flask made from Pyrex glass.
Description (Brief)
This object is a 50 mL volumetric flask made from Pyrex glass. Volumetric flasks are calibrated with great accuracy, for the purpose of preparing dilutions and solutions of a precise volume.
Pyrex has its origins in the early 1910s, when American glass company Corning Glass Works began looking for new products to feature its borosilicate glass, Nonex. At the suggestion of Bessie Littleton, a Corning scientist’s wife, the company began investigating Nonex for bakeware. After removing lead from Nonex to make the glass safe for cooking, they named the new formula “Pyrex”—“Py” for the pie plate, the first Pyrex product. In 1916 Pyrex found another market in the laboratory. It quickly became a favorite brand in the scientific community for its strength against chemicals, thermal shock, and mechanical stress.
This object is part of a collection donated by Barbara Keppel, wife of C. Robert Keppel. Robert Keppel taught at the University of Nebraska-Omaha after receiving his B.S. in Chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley, and his Ph.D. in organic chemistry from M.I.T. The glassware in the Keppel collection covers the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Sources:
Dyer, Davis. The Generations of Corning: The Life and Times of a Global Corporation. Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.
Jensen, William B. “The Origin of Pyrex.” Journal of Chemical Education 83, no. 5 (2006): 692. doi:10.1021/ed083p692.
Kraissl, F. “A History of the Chemical Apparatus Industry.” Journal of Chemical Education 10, no. 9 (1933): 519. doi:10.1021/ed010p519.
Markel, Howard. “Science Diction: The Origin Of The Petri Dish.” ScienceFriday.com. December 16, 2011. http://www.sciencefriday.com/segment/12/16/2011/science-diction-the-origin-of-the-petri-dish.html.
National Museum of American History Accession File #1985.0311
Petri, R.J. “Eine Kleine Modification Des Koch’schen Plattenverfahrens.” Centralblatt Fur Bacteriologie Und Parasitenkunde 1 (1887): 279–80.
“University of Nebraska Omaha.” 2015. Accessed May 4. http://www.unomaha.edu/college-of-arts-and-sciences/chemistry/student-opportunities/scholarships.php.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
after 1916
maker
Corning Incorporated
ID Number
1985.0311.085
catalog number
1985.0311.085
accession number
1985.0311
This hood belonged to to Richard Philip Baker (1866–1937) who received his PhD in mathematics from the University of Chicago in 1910. The color of the velvet on the hood represents the type of doctorate awarded, with dark blue used for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.
Description
This hood belonged to to Richard Philip Baker (1866–1937) who received his PhD in mathematics from the University of Chicago in 1910. The color of the velvet on the hood represents the type of doctorate awarded, with dark blue used for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. The color of the reverse (interior) side of the hood, maroon, represents the school that awarded the degree, i.e., the University of Chicago whose colors are maroon and white. A matching hood (1985.0820.03) was acquired by Baker’s daughter, Frances Ellen Baker (1902–1995), when she was awarded a PhD in mathematics from Chicago in 1934.
R. P. Baker’s doctoral dissertation, The Problem of the Angle-Bisectors (1985.3145.01), was directed by E. H. Moore, while his daughter Frances’s doctoral dissertation, A Contribution to the Waring Problem for Cubic Functions, was directed by L. E. Dickson, E. H. Moore’s first doctoral student. R. P. Baker’s younger daughter, Gladys Elizabeth Baker (1908-2007) earned a doctorate, in botany and mycology from Washington University in St. Louis in 1935.
R. P. Baker is best known in the mathematical community for constructing mathematical models that he believed were necessary for the proper teaching of geometry. His 1931 catalog offered several hundred models. Several museum accessions include models made by Baker. See MA.211257.04 for a description of one of these models.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1910
date used
1910
user
Baker, Richard P.
ID Number
1985.0820.02
accession number
1985.0820
catalog number
1985.0820.02
This section of a Burroughs Class 4 adding machine has a metal mechanism with a black metal case and handle, a black wooden knob on the handle, and a dark brown wooden base with a felt bottom. The case is open on one side.
Description
This section of a Burroughs Class 4 adding machine has a metal mechanism with a black metal case and handle, a black wooden knob on the handle, and a dark brown wooden base with a felt bottom. The case is open on one side. Thesingle column of black plastic keys has keys numbered 1 to 9. Also part of the model are a white repeat key, part of a carriage, a paper tape holder, two numeral wheels at the front, and a metal handle.
The model has a metal support that attaches to a wooden base. This is model #243 from the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation. The Burroughs Class 4 was introduced in 1912.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1912
maker
Burroughs Adding Machine Company
ID Number
1982.0794.53
catalog number
1982.0794.53
accession number
1982.0794
This model of a section of a Burroughs Class 4 adding machine has a metal mechanism with a black metal case and handle, a black wooden knob on the handle, and a dark brown wooden base. The single column of black plastic keys with has keys numbered 1 to 9.
Description
This model of a section of a Burroughs Class 4 adding machine has a metal mechanism with a black metal case and handle, a black wooden knob on the handle, and a dark brown wooden base. The single column of black plastic keys with has keys numbered 1 to 9. There is a white repeat key, part of a carriage, and one spool of a ribbon.The side is of metal. At the front are two black numeral dials, and on the right is a handle. The model fits on two screws in the wooden base, but is not held tightly.
This is model #242 from the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation. The Burroughs Class 4 was introduced in 1912. A metal tag attached to the object reads: DONATED TO (/) The Smithsonian Institution (/) by (/) Burroughs Corporation.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1912
maker
Burroughs Adding Machine Company
ID Number
1982.0794.52
catalog number
1982.0794.52
accession number
1982.0794
This object is a boiling flask made from Pyrex glass. The boiling flask, also known as a round bottom flask, is a chemical vessel with a spherical body and a cylindrical neck.
Description (Brief)
This object is a boiling flask made from Pyrex glass. The boiling flask, also known as a round bottom flask, is a chemical vessel with a spherical body and a cylindrical neck. It is most often used when heating solutions, particularly for distillation.
Pyrex has its origins in the early 1910s, when American glass company Corning Glass Works began looking for new products to feature its borosilicate glass, Nonex. At the suggestion of Bessie Littleton, a Corning scientist’s wife, the company began investigating Nonex for bakeware. After removing lead from Nonex to make the glass safe for cooking, they named the new formula “Pyrex”—“Py” for the pie plate, the first Pyrex product. In 1916 Pyrex found another market in the laboratory. It quickly became a favorite brand in the scientific community for its strength against chemicals, thermal shock, and mechanical stress.
This object is part of a collection donated by Barbara Keppel, wife of C. Robert Keppel. Robert Keppel taught at the University of Nebraska-Omaha after receiving his B.S. in Chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley, and his Ph.D. in organic chemistry from M.I.T. The glassware in the Keppel collection covers the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Sources:
Dyer, Davis. The Generations of Corning: The Life and Times of a Global Corporation. Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.
Jensen, William B. “The Origin of Pyrex.” Journal of Chemical Education 83, no. 5 (2006): 692. doi:10.1021/ed083p692.
Kraissl, F. “A History of the Chemical Apparatus Industry.” Journal of Chemical Education 10, no. 9 (1933): 519. doi:10.1021/ed010p519.
National Museum of American History Accession File #1985.0311
“University of Nebraska Omaha.” 2015. Accessed May 4. http://www.unomaha.edu/college-of-arts-and-sciences/chemistry/student-opportunities/scholarships.php.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
after 1916
maker
Corning Incorporated
ID Number
1985.0311.036
catalog number
1985.0311.036
accession number
1985.0311
This adding machine model has a metal mechanism with a black metal case and handle, a metal brace, and a dark brown wooden base. The case is open on one side. The single column of black plastic keys has keys numbered 1 to 9. The keyboard is painted dark green.
Description
This adding machine model has a metal mechanism with a black metal case and handle, a metal brace, and a dark brown wooden base. The case is open on one side. The single column of black plastic keys has keys numbered 1 to 9. The keyboard is painted dark green. There is a white repeat key, part of a carriage, a paper tape holder, a compartment for one reel of a ribbon, and two numeral wheels. The model has a metal support that attaches to a wooden base.
A metal tag attached to the object reads: DONATED TO (/) The Smithsonian Institution (/) by (/) Burroughs Corporation.
The Burroughs Class 4 was introduced in 1912. This is model #244 from the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1912
maker
Burroughs Adding Machine Company
ID Number
1982.0794.54
catalog number
1982.0794.54
accession number
1982.0794
This full-keyboard non-printing key-driven adding machine has twelve columns of plastic keys numbered from 1 to 9. The rightmost column has 10 and 11 keys at the top and 1/4, 1/2, and 3/4 keys below. Fourteen result wheels are at the front.
Description
This full-keyboard non-printing key-driven adding machine has twelve columns of plastic keys numbered from 1 to 9. The rightmost column has 10 and 11 keys at the top and 1/4, 1/2, and 3/4 keys below. Fourteen result wheels are at the front. A black cloth cover and numerous spare parts are present.
A red paper tag attached to the machine reads: PATENT DEPT. (/) #232. The machine is marked on the front: Burroughs (/) DETROIT, U.S.A.. A metal tag below the keys reads: 209662. A white paper tag attached to the machine reads: Reference Machine (/) 9 Columns (/) Style 520 - 1/4 Pence Const. (/) Style 13. A mark on the cover reads: BURROUGHS.
This was model 232 from the collection of the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation. There are numerous associated parts.
The shape of the front of this instrument is that of an early Burroughs calculator. The number of columns would be that of a Burroughs model 550, although the tag refers to a Burroughs 520. From 1915, the shape of the front of the Burroughs calculator was quite different.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1913
maker
Burroughs Adding Machine Company
ID Number
1982.0794.50
catalog number
1982.0794.50
accession number
1982.0794
This full keyboard printing electric adding machine has a black metal frame and ten columns of round black and white color-coded plastic keys. No complementary digits are indicated.
Description
This full keyboard printing electric adding machine has a black metal frame and ten columns of round black and white color-coded plastic keys. No complementary digits are indicated. Function keys are to the left of the number keys, with an addition bar and further function keys to the right. A row of number dials is at the front of the machine, and a row of five smaller dials on the left between the keyboard and these dials. This may be a revolution counter.
The machine has a motor beneath it, and a wide carriage and printing mechanism at the back. The printer ribbon has spools between the keyboard and the carriage and also extends from the right side. A metal plug on the right blocks the hole where the handle would go. The machine has a black rubber cord. The Burroughs Class 4 was introduced in 1912. According to McCarthy, it was intended to be used in multiplication, and the carriage could be shifted to the right or to the left to accomplish this. This object does not correspond precisely to the Burroughs Class 4 as described in McCarthy.
This is model # 195 from the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation. It is marked on the front: Burroughs. It has a red paper tag that reads: PATENT DEPT. (/) #195. There is presently no stand.
Reference:
J. H. McCarthy, The American Digest of Business Machines, Chicago: American Exchange Service, 1924, p. 34.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1912
maker
Burroughs Adding Machine Company
ID Number
1982.0794.36
catalog number
1982.0794.36
accession number
1982.0794
This object is a stoppered 1000 mL Erlenmeyer flask made of Pyrex glass. The Erlenmeyer flask is named for Emil Erlenmeyer (1825–1909), a German organic chemist who designed the flask in 1861.
Description (Brief)
This object is a stoppered 1000 mL Erlenmeyer flask made of Pyrex glass. The Erlenmeyer flask is named for Emil Erlenmeyer (1825–1909), a German organic chemist who designed the flask in 1861. The flask is often used for stirring or heating solutions and is purposefully designed to be useful for those tasks. The narrow top allows it to be stoppered, the sloping sides prevent liquids from slopping out when stirred, and the flat bottom can be placed on a heating mechanism or apparatus.
Pyrex has its origins in the early 1910s, when American glass company Corning Glass Works began looking for new products to feature its borosilicate glass, Nonex. At the suggestion of Bessie Littleton, a Corning scientist’s wife, the company began investigating Nonex for bakeware. After removing lead from Nonex to make the glass safe for cooking, they named the new formula “Pyrex”—“Py” for the pie plate, the first Pyrex product. In 1916 Pyrex found another market in the laboratory. It quickly became a favorite brand in the scientific community for its strength against chemicals, thermal shock, and mechanical stress.
This object is part of a collection donated by Barbara Keppel, wife of C. Robert Keppel. Robert Keppel taught at the University of Nebraska-Omaha after receiving his B.S. in Chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley, and his Ph.D. in organic chemistry from M.I.T. The glassware in the Keppel collection covers the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Sources:
Dyer, Davis. The Generations of Corning: The Life and Times of a Global Corporation. Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.
Jensen, William B. “The Origin of Pyrex.” Journal of Chemical Education 83, no. 5 (2006): 692. doi:10.1021/ed083p692.
Kraissl, F. “A History of the Chemical Apparatus Industry.” Journal of Chemical Education 10, no. 9 (1933): 519. doi:10.1021/ed010p519.
National Museum of American History Accession File #1985.0311
Ridley, John. Essentials of Clinical Laboratory Science. Cengage Learning, 2010.
Sella, Andrea. “Classic Kit: Erlenmeyer Flask,” July 2008. http://www.rsc.org/chemistryworld/Issues/2008/July/ErlenmeyerFlask.asp.
“University of Nebraska Omaha.” 2015. Accessed May 4. http://www.unomaha.edu/college-of-arts-and-sciences/chemistry/student-opportunities/scholarships.php.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
after 1916
maker
Corning Incorporated
ID Number
1985.0311.075
catalog number
1985.0311.075
accession number
1985.0311
This machine was used to punch paper cards for use in data entry for tabulating machines. The tabletop machine accommodates 24-column cards and punches round holes. On the right are ten digit, a V and X keys.
Description
This machine was used to punch paper cards for use in data entry for tabulating machines. The tabletop machine accommodates 24-column cards and punches round holes. On the right are ten digit, a V and X keys. Pushing one key at the back moves a card one space to the left and depressing a second one all the way to the left. All the keys have rubber key tops. Cards were manually inserted and removed by the operator. The machine rests on an iron base that fits into a wooden stand painted black.
A tag attached to the front reads: THE TABULATING MACHINE COMPANY (/) NEW YORK CITY. A mark on the card bed on the left reads: 8-28 (/) 36666.
According to the catalog card, the machine was a product of the Tabulating Machine Company and was first used by the Bureau of the Census prior to 1920, possibly in 1917 or 1918, to prepare punched cards for vital statistics. The 1920 population Census cards were punched on the older-style pantograph punch.
The Tabulating Machine Company was formed by Herman Hollerith in 1896 and merged to form the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company in 1911.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1918
maker
Tabulating Machine Company
ID Number
MA.316864
accession number
229657
catalog number
316864
This rugged manually operated and non-printing stepped drum calculating machine has a brass and iron case painted black. The eight data entry levers are linked to both number dials and brass stepped drums. The number dials record digits entered.
Description
This rugged manually operated and non-printing stepped drum calculating machine has a brass and iron case painted black. The eight data entry levers are linked to both number dials and brass stepped drums. The number dials record digits entered. Levers in front of the dials zero the entry. An addition & multiplication / subtraction & division lever is on the left, and an operating crank is on the right. The plate at the front is easily removed to show the levers and a bell.
In back of the levers is the carriage, with nine revolution register dials and 16 result register dials. The zeroing bars for these registers are on the right of the carriage. A knob for lifting the carriage is on its far left. The entry levers, the revolution register, and the result register have sliding decimal markers. A bell rings to indicate overdivision. The entire machine has a steel cover painted black.
The machine is stamped on the front: Ludwig Spitz & Co. (/) TIM (/) TIME IS MONEY (/) TRADE MARK, and: THE OSKAR MULLER Co., New-York. A mark on the right side of the machine under the carriage reads: 05187. A mark on the left side, also under the carriage, reads: 3684. Left of the setting levers, the machine is marked: BREVET. A metal disc attached to the front cover reads: OSCAR MÜLLER & Co. (/) Sole Agents (/) for (/) U.S. & Canada (/) NEW YORK.
This object was a gift of the Brooklyn, New York, engineer Harold G. Wening.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1912
maker
Ludwig Spitz & Co.
ID Number
MA.328127
catalog number
328127
accession number
270026
maker number
05187; 3684
This 21" German silver hinged parallel rule has two small knobs for positioning the instrument. Brass round pieces cover the screws securing the two hinges. An indentation is on both blades at the center of the rule, with a line marking the center.
Description
This 21" German silver hinged parallel rule has two small knobs for positioning the instrument. Brass round pieces cover the screws securing the two hinges. An indentation is on both blades at the center of the rule, with a line marking the center. The edges of the top blade are marked as a rectangular protractor, and the edges of the bottom blade are marked for nautical compass points.
The center of the top blade is marked: U. S. C. & G. S. NO. 331. The right end of the top blade is marked: CAPT. FIELD'S IMPD. The right end of the lower blade is marked: H. HUGHES & SON LTD. LONDON. The left end has the firm's "HUSUN" logo, with a sun above the letters and waves below the letters.
Capt. William Andrew Field (about 1796–1871) of Britain added a protractor and compass scales to hinged parallel rules in 1854. This made it easier for ship navigators to move the rule without losing track of the ship's course. Henry Hughes & Son made marine and aeronautical navigational instruments in London from 1828 to 1947 and incorporated in 1903. According to the accession file, the U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey acquired this rule on August 21, 1919, and last issued it on September 5, 1922. Compare to MA.309662 and MA.309663.
References: "Field's Parallel Rule," The Nautical Magazine and Naval Chronicle 23, no. 5 (May 1854): 280; Peggy A. Kidwell, "American Parallel Rules: Invention on the Fringes of Industry," Rittenhouse 10, no. 39 (1996): 90–96; National Maritime Museum, "Captain Field's Improved Parallel Rule," Object ID NAV0602, http://collections.rmg.co.uk/collections/objects/42814.html; Science Museum Group, "Henry Hughes and Son Limited," Collections Online – People, http://collectionsonline.nmsi.ac.uk/detail.php?type=related&kv=58792&t=people.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1919
ID Number
MA.309661
catalog number
309661
accession number
106954

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.