Science & Mathematics

Chemical Balance

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.

Date: 1950s

Burroughs Style P401 Adding Machine, 1/8 Fraction

This full-keyboard printing electric machine has a tan metal case and tan, brown and black keys.
Description
This full-keyboard printing electric machine has a tan metal case and tan, brown and black keys. There are nine columns of keys with nine keys in each column, one column of seven keys (eighth fraction keys), one column of five function keys and two levers, and one column with addition and subtraction bars. A narrow carriage behind the keyboard has a plastic serrated edge for tearing the paper tape. The top lifts off for access to the ribbon and the printing mechanism. The machine has four rubber feet, and no cord.
The machine is marked above the keyboard: Burroughs. It is marked on a metal tag attached to the bottom: B3595. A red tag attached to it reads: PATENT DEPT. (/) #262. A metal tag attached to the object reads: DONATED TO (/) The Smithsonian Institution (/) by (/) Burroughs Corporation.
This is model #262 from the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation.
The Burroughs series P400 adding machine was introduced in 1952.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1952
maker
Burroughs
ID Number
1982.0794.63
catalog number
1982.0794.63
accession number
1982.0794

Burroughs Experimental Adding Machine

This model for a ten-key printing electric adding machine has a metal mechanism with tan and dark tan plastic keys and a rubber carriage and rubber feet. It adds eight digit numbers, and has a 10-column printout (one column may be of symbols).
Description
This model for a ten-key printing electric adding machine has a metal mechanism with tan and dark tan plastic keys and a rubber carriage and rubber feet. It adds eight digit numbers, and has a 10-column printout (one column may be of symbols). There is a block of nine gray plastic number keys with a 0 bar below. Two dark brown, square function keys to the left of the digit keys are marked “C” and “X.” Three similar keys rightt of the digit keys are marked “ST”, “*(/)TOT”, and “-.” A fourth function key on the right is unmarked. There is a place indicator, a 2-1/4” carriage, and a black ribbon. No cover or cord.
A red tag attached to the machine reads: PATENT DEPARTMENT (/) #161. A metal tag on the left side reads: 31794A.
This model, along with 1982.0794.28, was #161 in the collections of the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation. The accession file suggests that this was the invention of Althans, presumably Emile H. Althans of Burroughs.
Reference:
Accession file.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1950
maker
Burroughs Adding Machine Company
ID Number
1982.0794.27
maker number
31794A?
accession number
1982.0794
catalog number
1982.0794.27

Burroughs Adding Machine

The Burroughs Adding Machine Company, long a manufacturer of full-keyboard adding machines, faced stiff competition from less expensive ten-key adding machines. In response, in 1954 they introduced their own versions of the machine, based on the British Summit.
Description
The Burroughs Adding Machine Company, long a manufacturer of full-keyboard adding machines, faced stiff competition from less expensive ten-key adding machines. In response, in 1954 they introduced their own versions of the machine, based on the British Summit. This is a prototype, designed for British currency.
The manually operated printing machine accepts nine-digit entries and prints nine-digit totals. The gray metal machine has 11 white plastic keys in a block, numbered from 1 to 11. There also is a white zero bar and a white key labeled with a pound sterling symbol. There are 4 brown function keys right of the digit keys that are labeled ST, T, -, and R. The place indicator is in back of the keyboard and the printing mechanism, with 2-1/4” carriage, behind this. The ribbon is black. A lid lifts off the top for access to the ribbon and printing mechanism. The top part of a wheel is exposed through the case to allow one to advance the paper tape. A serrated edge assists in tearing off the paper tape.
The machine is marked in back of the keyboard: Burroughs. A red tag attached to the object reads: PATENT DEPT. (/) #330. A metal tag attached to the object reads: DONATED TO (/) The Smithsonian Institution (/) by (/) Burroughs Corporation.
Burroughs sold ten-key adding machines through at least 1965.
Compare to Summit adding machines 1982.0794.76 and 1982.0794.77, and Burroughs adding machine 1982.0794.85.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1950
maker
Burroughs Adding Machine Company
ID Number
1982.0794.84
accession number
1982.0794
catalog number
1982.0794.84

Psychological Test, Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal

After their widespread use during World War One, experts increasingly used psychological tests as a tool to rank and sort people in contexts including (but not limited to) education and employment.
Description
After their widespread use during World War One, experts increasingly used psychological tests as a tool to rank and sort people in contexts including (but not limited to) education and employment. The Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal (Form AM) was written by Goodwin Watson (Professor of Education, Teachers College, Columbia University) and Edward Maynard Glaser (Consulting Psychologist, Rohrer, Hibler, and Replogle, Los Angeles). It was published by the World Book Company and copyrighted in 1949 and 1952. According to the directions, the test aims to “find out how well you are able to reason analytically and logically.” To that end, the test contains questions about inference, recognition of assumptions, deduction, interpretation, and finally evaluation of arguments. The booklet is eight pages. For further context, see the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal Manual (1983.0168.21) and the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal Answer Sheet. (1983.0168.22)
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1952
ID Number
1983.0168.20
catalog number
1983.0168.20
accession number
1983.0168

Capt. Field's Improved Hinged Parallel Rule Signed Kelvin & White Co.

The lower blade of this 24" brass hinged parallel rule is marked: KELVIN – WHITE CO. BOSTON – NEW YORK. The instrument has one rectangular wooden handle and one rectangular black plastic handle. Both handles are attached by crude welding.
Description
The lower blade of this 24" brass hinged parallel rule is marked: KELVIN – WHITE CO. BOSTON – NEW YORK. The instrument has one rectangular wooden handle and one rectangular black plastic handle. Both handles are attached by crude welding. They may have been added by the previous owner, since Kelvin & White catalog advertisements show round knobs in 1931 and no handles in 1940. The side and top edges of the rule are divided as a rectangular protractor, numbered by tens from 180 to 10 and from 360 to 180. Unlike MA.309661, MA.309662, and MA.309663, the bottom edge is not divided for a protractor or nautical compass points.
Australian shipbuilder Wilfrid O. White (1878–1955) studied in Glasgow, Scotland, with William Thomson, Lord Kelvin (1824–1907), before settling in Boston in 1902. White served as an agent for the Glasgow instrument workshop in which Kelvin Australian shipbuilder Wilfrid O. White (1878–1955) studied in Glasgow, Scotland, with William Thomson, Lord Kelvin (1824–1907), before settling in Boston in 1902. White started as an agent for a Glasgow instrument workshop which Kelvin had helped establish, sstaying there until about 1918 (after Kelvin's death). He then established the American firm of Kelvin & Wilfrid O. White.The company was renamed Wilfrid O. White & Sons, Inc., in 1950. Throughout its existence the firm charged $28.00 for the 24" brass version of "Captain Field's improved parallel rule," model number 554. The markings in this example are like those shown in the 1940 catalog.
References: Kelvin & Wilfrid O. White Company, 1931 Catalogue of . . . Navigational Instruments and Equipment (Boston, 1931), 37; Kelvin & Wilfrid O. White Company, Catalog No. 40–Y (Boston, 1940), 35; Peggy A. Kidwell, "American Parallel Rules: Invention on the Fringes of Industry," Rittenhouse 10, no. 39 (1996): 90–96; Deborah J. Warner, "Browse by Maker: Kelvin & Wilfrid O. White," National Museum of American History Physical Sciences Collection: Navigation , http://amhistory.si.edu/navigation/maker.cfm?makerid=43; T. N. Clarke, A. D. Morrison-Low, and A. D. Simpson, Brass & Glass: Scientific Instrument Making Workshops in Scotland (Edinburgh: National Museums of Scotland, 1989), 252–275.
White is listed as running his own business on his World War I draft card, dated september 12, 1918. This is available on ancestry.com.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1932-1950
maker
Kelvin & Wilfrid O. White
ID Number
1984.1002.01
catalog number
1984.1002.01
accession number
1984.1002

Pamphlet, Solution of Right Angled Triangles

This small pamphlet consist of fifteen rectangular sheets of paper cut from a blueprint and stapled together on the left side.
Description
This small pamphlet consist of fifteen rectangular sheets of paper cut from a blueprint and stapled together on the left side. It has drawings and formula for the solution of right angled triangles, as well as tabulated values of openings required for plugs of differing sizes and different angles of opening. The pamphlet was owned by machinist and museum specialist George A. Norton. It may date from the time he worked as a machinist in the Washington Naval Gun Factory.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1960
ca 1955
ID Number
1986.3078.04
nonaccession number
1986.3078
catalog number
1986.3078.04

Summit Burroughs Adding Machine

The Burroughs Adding Machine Company, long a manufacturer of full-keyboard adding machines, faced stiff competition from less expensive ten-key adding machines. In response, the firm introduced its own versions of the machine, based on the British Summit.
Description
The Burroughs Adding Machine Company, long a manufacturer of full-keyboard adding machines, faced stiff competition from less expensive ten-key adding machines. In response, the firm introduced its own versions of the machine, based on the British Summit. This is an example.
This electric printing adding machine will add nine-digit-numbers up to nine-digit totals. A tenth key in the printing mechanism is for symbols. The machine has a brown metal case, 11 white number keys arranged in a block (for British currency), a white zero bar, a column of four black function keys, a black bar, and a black correction key. The function keys are labeled ST, T, -, and R. The place indicator is above the keyboard. The printing mechanism, paper tape, and motor are toward the back of the machine. Part of the case lifts off to give access to the ribbon and printing mechanism. A serrated edge provides for tearing the paper tape, and knobs on the right and left advance the tape. A ribbon and brown cloth-wrapped cord are in place. The machine is marked in back of the keyboard: Burroughs. It has serial number 1085. It is marked on a red tag: PATENT DEPT. (/) #331. It is marked on a white tag: SUMMIT BURROUGHS STERLING (/) #1985. A metal tag attached to the object reads: DONATED TO (/) The Smithsonian Institution (/) by (/) Burroughs Corporation.
Compare to 1982.0794.76, 1982.0974.77, and 1982.0794.84.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1950
ID Number
1982.0794.85
accession number
1982.0794
catalog number
1982.0794.85

Keuffel & Esser N4058-W Beginner's Simplex Slide Rule

This ten-inch wooden linear slide rule is painted white. The indicator is frameless plastic. The base has A, D, and K scales. The slide has B, CI, and C scales on one side and S, L, and T scales on the other side.
Description
This ten-inch wooden linear slide rule is painted white. The indicator is frameless plastic. The base has A, D, and K scales. The slide has B, CI, and C scales on one side and S, L, and T scales on the other side. The back of the rule is printed with a table of equivalents and abbreviations, based on National Bureau of Standards Circular No. 47. Compare to 1984.1068.01. The back is marked: KEUFFEL & ESSER CO.; BEGINNER'S SLIDE RULE. N4058W; MADE IN U. S. A. There is no serial number. The case is green leatherette and is marked: K+E.
In 1897, Keuffel & Esser began to sell a slide rule for students. It was constructed inexpensively and was intended to be replaced once students had mastered the basic operations. The version with this model number and these scales was offered between 1944 and 1959, although the all-plastic indicator was not introduced until 1954. Model N4058W sold for $2.50 in 1959. Longtime NMAH staff member Barbara Coffee donated this example to the Smithsonian.
Reference: Clark McCoy, "Collection of Pages from K&E Catalogs for the 4058 Family," http://www.mccoys-kecatalogs.com/KEModels/ke4058family.htm.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1954-1959
maker
Keuffel & Esser Co.
ID Number
1987.0184.01
accession number
1987.0184
catalog number
1987.0184.01

Curta Type II Calculating Machine

This compact cylindrical handheld calculating machine has gray metal sides and a black top and operating handle. There are 11 slots along the side of the cylinder with plastic red and black levers that are pulled down to set numbers.
Description
This compact cylindrical handheld calculating machine has gray metal sides and a black top and operating handle. There are 11 slots along the side of the cylinder with plastic red and black levers that are pulled down to set numbers. The digit entered appears at the top of the slot. Multipliers are indicated by numbers read through holes around the edge of the top and may be up to eight digits large. The result also is indicated around the edge of the top, and may be up to 15 digits large. The top may be rotated, as one one would move a carriage on an earlier stepped drum machine. Sliding markers indicate decimal divisions for entries, multipliers, and results.
To zero the machine, the carriage is raised and the black disc under the operating lever is rotated through one turn using a clearing lever with a ring-like handle. The operating handle is pulled up for subtraction and division. Moving a lever on the side of the cylinder causes subtraction rather than addition in the revolution counting register. Operating instructions were received with the machine and are stored with it. The machine fits in a black metal cylindrical case. The lid of the case turns clockwise to open.
The machine and case are marked: CURTA, A mark on the bottom of the object reads: Type II (/) No 517304 (/) Made in Liechtenstein (/) (Customs Union with Switzerland) (/) by Contina Ltd Mauren (/) System Curt Herstark. The machine is marked on the lid: OPEN.
The Curta calculating machine was invented the Austrian Curt Hertzstark (1902–1988). He worked on the design during World War II as a prisoner at the Nazi concentration camp of Buchenwald, and produced the machine after the war in Liechtenstein. The Curta Type II was sold from at least 1954 until early 1972, when handheld electronic calculators replaced it.
For related documentation, see 1983.0471.06 and 1983.0471.07
References:
Curt Hertstark, Interview with Erwin Tomash, September 10 and 11, 1987, Oral History 140, Charles Babbage Institute, Minneapolis, Minnesota. Hertstark dates the beginning of production of the Curta to 1949.
Cliff Stoll, “The Curious History of the First Pocket Calculator,” Scientific American, (January 2004), pp. 82–89.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1958
maker
Contina AG Mauren
ID Number
1983.0471.05
accession number
1983.0471
catalog number
1983.0471.05

Psychological Test Score Sheet, TAT Summary Record Blank

After their widespread use during World War One, experts increasingly used psychological tests as a tool to rank and sort people in contexts including (but not limited to) education and employment.
Description
After their widespread use during World War One, experts increasingly used psychological tests as a tool to rank and sort people in contexts including (but not limited to) education and employment. The TAT Summary Record Blank: An Aid in the Analysis and Evaluation of Thematic Apperception Tests Stories was written by Pauline G. Vorhaus. The front of this double-sided single-sheet provides blanks to record information on the test-taker (subject, sex, date, occupation, age, examiner, education, and marital status). The back lists eighteen different categories and blanks that correspond to different card numbers. For further context, see TAT Summary Record Blank Manual of Directions (1983.0168.25).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1952
ID Number
1983.0168.26
catalog number
1983.0168.26
accession number
1983.0168

Epperson TV Coverage Calculator

According to the instructions received with the object, as long as one knows a TV station's published power and antenna height, this slide rule "quickly shows the approximate 'Grade A,' 'Grade B' and 'Principal City' Coverage for all VHF and UHF Television Stations.
Description
According to the instructions received with the object, as long as one knows a TV station's published power and antenna height, this slide rule "quickly shows the approximate 'Grade A,' 'Grade B' and 'Principal City' Coverage for all VHF and UHF Television Stations. In addition, it readily gives the approximate field strength in microvolts-per-meter for distances up to 100 miles from the television transmitter."
This one-sided wooden instrument is painted white on the front. A plastic indicator is in a metal frame. The top of the base is marked: EPPERSON TV COVERAGE CALCULATOR. It is also marked: COPYRIGHT 1952 (/) J. B. EPPERSON. The bottom right corner of the base is marked: ADLER COMMUNICATIONS LABORATORIES (/) NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. The back of the rule has charts for converting decibels above one microvolt-per-meter to microvolts-per-meter and for identifying FCC required field intensities. Values from these charts are used in making calculations on the front of the rule.
Adler built numerous television and radio stations, including the first commercial UHF station, located in Portland, Ore. Founded by Benjamin Adler in 1947, the company changed names to Adler Electronics, Inc., in 1955 and remained in business at least through 1964. It probably distributed this rule as a promotional item. The rule was manufactured by Engineering Instruments of Peru, Ind., the successor firm to Lawrence Engineering Service. Compare to 1983.0042.01 and 1980.0097.02.
Joseph Bolen Epperson (1910–1995), the designer of this rule, studied at the University of Tennessee from 1927 to 1929 and with the Capitol Radio Engineering Institute (now Capitol College in Washington, D.C.) in 1932. After gaining experience as a chief engineer and supervisor of building and transmitter installation at radio stations in Knoxville, Tenn., and Huntsville, Ala., he joined Scripps-Howard Radio, Inc., of Cleveland, in 1937. He remained with the company until his retirement in the 1970s, leading the construction of several television stations and rising to vice-president for engineering in 1956. Pioneer and Headley-Reed also distributed his rule, sometimes called a "signal range calculator."
References: Rene Brugnoni and Ben Adler, "Television—What and How," Broadcast News 72 (January-February 1953): 12–25; Adler Communications Laboratories, "Wherever Superior Engineering and Performance Are Demanded," Broadcasting, 1952 Yearbook, 425, http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC-YB-IDX/50s-OCR-YB/1952-YB/1952-BC-YB-for-OCR-Page-0423.pdf; Joan Cook, "Benjamin Adler, 86, An Early Advocate of UHF Television," New York Times, April 18, 1990; David G. Rance, "The Unique Lawrence," Proceedings of the 17th International Meeting of Slide Rule Collectors (September 2011), 97, http://www.sliderules.nl/index.php?p=papers; "Joseph Bolen Epperson," Who's Who in Engineering (New York and West Palm Beach: Lewis Historical Publishing Company, Inc., 1964), 537–538; The Billboard (December 27, 1947), 15.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1952-1955
distributor
Adler Communications Laboratories
maker
Lawrence Engineering Service
ID Number
1982.0244.01
catalog number
1982.0244.01
accession number
1982.0244

Psychological Test Score Sheet, Sims Sci Occupational Rating Scale

After their widespread use during World War One, experts increasingly used psychological tests as a tool to rank and sort people in contexts including (but not limited to) education and employment.
Description
After their widespread use during World War One, experts increasingly used psychological tests as a tool to rank and sort people in contexts including (but not limited to) education and employment. The Sims SCI [Social Class Identifier] occupational rating scale was a single-sheet published by the World Book Company and copyrighted in 1952. This is the Scale of Form A. It lists forty-two different occupations and asks the test-taker to describe whether the people in the occupation “generally belong” in the same, a higher, or a lower social class as the test-taker and the test-taker’s family. For further context, see Sims SCI Occupational Rating Scale: Manual of Directions (1983.0168.28).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1952
ID Number
1983.0168.28
catalog number
1983.0168.28
accession number
1983.0168

Dietzgen Instruction Manual for Maniphase Slide Rule

The citation information for this sixteen-page booklet is: Self-teaching Instruction Manual: Maniphase Slide Rule (Chicago: Eugene Dietzgen Co., n.d.). The slide rule depicted inside the manual is Dietzgen's "National," model 1767, and the manual was received with 1988.0367.01.
Description
The citation information for this sixteen-page booklet is: Self-teaching Instruction Manual: Maniphase Slide Rule (Chicago: Eugene Dietzgen Co., n.d.). The slide rule depicted inside the manual is Dietzgen's "National," model 1767, and the manual was received with 1988.0367.01. Detailed instructions are provided for reading the scales, multiplication, placing the decimal point, division, proportion, squares and square roots, cube and cube roots, trigonometry, and logarithms. "Maniphase" on the cover refers to an arrangement of scales in which the company added K and CI scales to Mannheim rules; the word is printed on several slide rules sold by the Eugene Dietzgen Company. Indeed, the manual indicates portions of it could be used with other Dietzgen slide rules, such as model 1772A.
Reference: Walter Shawlee, "The Dietzgen Company Archive," http://www.sphere.bc.ca/test/dietzgen.html.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1950s
maker
Eugene Dietzgen Company
ID Number
1988.0367.02
accession number
1988.0367
catalog number
1988.0367.02

Summit Adding Machine

By the mid-20th century, printing adding machines with a block of ten keys sold much more cheaply than full-keyboard machines. Mindful that it was losing sales, Burroughs Adding Machine Company of Detroit set out to manufacture its own ten-key machine.
Description
By the mid-20th century, printing adding machines with a block of ten keys sold much more cheaply than full-keyboard machines. Mindful that it was losing sales, Burroughs Adding Machine Company of Detroit set out to manufacture its own ten-key machine. The Burroughs Patent Division acquired examples and blueprints of a recently introduced British adding machine, the Summit.
This manually operated machine has 11 white plastic keys numbered 1 to 11 (for Sterling currency), as well as a 0 bar. Four black keys are on the right and a correction key is on the left. A place indicator is above the keyboard and a printing mechanism behind it. This includes a paper tape 6 cm. (2 3/8”) wide, a black ribbon, and a serrated edge for tearing the paper tape. The rightmost type bar prints symbols. A metal cover fits over the ribbon and mechanism. Left and right wheels turn the tape and advance the paper. A place for a crank exists, but no crank is present. The machine allows one to enter numbers up to nine digits long and prints nine-digit totals.
The machine is marked on the front: Summit. It is also marked there: MADE IN GREAT BRITAIN. It has serial number: #1895. A red Burroughs Patent Department tag attached to the machine reads: #300. Compare to 1982.0794.76.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1950
ID Number
1982.0794.77
maker number
1895
accession number
1982.0794
catalog number
1982.0794.77

Psychological Test, Stanford Achievement Test Advanced Battery J

After their widespread use during World War One, experts increasingly used psychological tests as a tool to rank and sort people in contexts including (but not limited to) education and employment. The Stanford Achievement Test was written by Truman L.
Description
After their widespread use during World War One, experts increasingly used psychological tests as a tool to rank and sort people in contexts including (but not limited to) education and employment. The Stanford Achievement Test was written by Truman L. Kelley, Richard Madden, Eric F. Gardner, Lewis M. Terman, and Giles M. Ruch. The test was published by the World Book Company and was copyrighted in 1952. This is the Advanced Battery Form J. The booklet is twenty-four pages long and tests nine different subject areas: paragraph meaning, word meaning, spelling, language, arithmetic reasoning, arithmetic computation, social studies (history, geography, and civics), science, and study skills. The front page of the booklet provides the option to record “Intelligence Test Information” if “an intelligence test was administered as part of the Stanford program.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1952
ID Number
1983.0168.23
catalog number
1983.0168.23
accession number
1983.0168

Allen Wales Model 10E Adding Machine

This full keyboard printing electric adding machine has a case painted gray-brown. There are has ten columns of green and white color-coded plastic keys, with an addition bar, a clearance button, and a repeat lever to the right of the number keys.
Description
This full keyboard printing electric adding machine has a case painted gray-brown. There are has ten columns of green and white color-coded plastic keys, with an addition bar, a clearance button, and a repeat lever to the right of the number keys. The keyboard is painted light green. Behind the number keys is a row of ten number dials. Behind these on the left is a non-print lever and on the right are non-add and total/subtotal levers. Behind this is the printing mechanism, with 11 type-bars (one is for symbols). Below the printing mechanism is the motor, with a rubber-covered cord extending from the back. At the back there also are a movable carriage 31 cm. wide which can be set in 5 places, and a paper tape 5.6 cm. (2-1/4 inches) wide. Knobs at both ends of the platen may be used to advance the paper tape manually. A serrated metal edge helps tear off the tape. A lever on the right side of the carriage releases it to slide to another position.
The machine is marked on the front: ALLEN WALES. It is marked on a metal tag attached to the front at the bottom: 10E-291362. It is marked on the back: MANUFACTURED AT (/) ITHACA, NEW YORK, U.S.A. (/) ALLEN-WALES ADDING MACHINE DIVISION OF (/) THE NATIONAL CASH REGISTER COMPANY (/) DAYTON, OHIO. U.S.A. (/) ALLEN-WALES. It is marked on a metal tag attached to the right side: ALLEN WALES MODEL E (/) C E S A APP NO 4730 (/) AC-DC VOLTS 110 AMPS.
The Allen Wales adding machine, a descendent of the Wales adding machine, was sold by NCR from 1944.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1950
maker
Allen-Wales Adding Machine Division of the National Cash Register Company
ID Number
1986.0894.02
catalog number
1986.0894.02
accession number
1986.0894

Pamphlet, Trigonometry Tables and Involute functions

In the mid-twentieth century, American tool manufacturers sometimes distributed trigonometry tables that included advertisements for their products.
Description
In the mid-twentieth century, American tool manufacturers sometimes distributed trigonometry tables that included advertisements for their products. This small paper pamphlet includes definitions of the sine, cosine, tangent, cotangent, secant and cosecant as well as formulas for finding the length of sides for right-angled and oblique triangles when different angles and sides are known. It then gives tables to five places of values of the six trigonometric functions mentioned, as well as a table of decimal equivalents. In addition to this material, the pamphlet has a section on involute function that includes tables and formulas for spur and helical gears.
Also shown are precision metal cutting tools manufactured by Illinois Tool Works, which billed itself as “Headquarters for Engineered Cutting Tools.”
The pamphlet was owned by machinist and museum specialist George A. Norton. The copyright date is 1954.
Compare 1986.3078.01.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1954
maker
Illinois Tool Works Inc.
ID Number
1986.3078.02
nonaccession number
1986.3078
catalog number
1986.3078.02

Addiator Universal, Standard Model

This metal notched band adder has a metal stylus. The front of the instrument is painted green, the back, black. One can enter numbers up to six digits long. The clearing bar is at the top. The case is clear plastic.
Description
This metal notched band adder has a metal stylus. The front of the instrument is painted green, the back, black. One can enter numbers up to six digits long. The clearing bar is at the top. The case is clear plastic. For instructions, see 1988.0807.07.
The firm of Carl Keubler produced adders under the name Addiator in Berlin (later West Berlin) from 1920 until the 1980s. This is one of three versions of the Addiator in the Smithsonian collections. It was given to the Museum by the machinist and museum specialist George A. Norton, Jr. Norton used the device to do routine addition, subtraction, and multiplication until he acquired an electronic calculator.
Reference: Martin Reese, Historische Buerowelt, 43 (September 1995).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1955
distributor
Harrison Home Products Corporation
maker
Addiator G.m.b.H.
ID Number
1988.0807.04
accession number
1988.0807
catalog number
1988.0807.04

Underwood Sundstrand 11240SP Adding Machine

This hefty ten-key listing electric adding machine has a gray metal case with a 13” carriage. The block of nine white number keys has a zero bar below. Numbers of up to ten digits may be entered. To the left are correction, back space, and repeated addition keys.
Description
This hefty ten-key listing electric adding machine has a gray metal case with a 13” carriage. The block of nine white number keys has a zero bar below. Numbers of up to ten digits may be entered. To the left are correction, back space, and repeated addition keys. To the right are subtraction, addition, and no total keys. Left of these keys is a lever that can be set at “SHUTTLE” or “NORMAL.” Another lever can be set at “REG.B,” “A*B,” or “REG.A.” Another lever is unlabeled. Above the keyboard is a place indicator. Behind this are the printing mechanism, carriage, and cross-footer. Numbers of up to 11 digits can be printed. The machine has a two-colored ribbon. Tabs can be set to print columns at different locations along the platen, different sizes of paper can be used, and there are knobs for advancing the platen on both sides. The motor also is at the back.
This is model #303 from the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation. It is marked on the back: Underwood (/) Sundstrand (/) Product of (/) Underwood Corporation (/) Protected by United States (/) and Foreign Patents (/) Made in U.S.A.. It is also marked there: 775180 (/) 11240SP
Compare to the Underwood Sundstrand Adding Tabulator (model 11240SP-13), described in 1990.188.07.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1952
maker
Underwood Corporation
ID Number
1982.0794.78
maker number
775180 [/] 11240SP
accession number
1982.0794
catalog number
1982.0794.78

Manual for Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal

After their widespread use during World War One, experts increasingly used psychological tests as a tool to rank and sort people in contexts including (but not limited to) education and employment.
Description
After their widespread use during World War One, experts increasingly used psychological tests as a tool to rank and sort people in contexts including (but not limited to) education and employment. The Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal Manual was published by the World Book Company and copyrighted 1952. This twelve page booklet covered topics including: description of the test, uses for educational purposes, uses for personnel purposes, general directions to the examiner, directions for administering, directions for scoring, instructions for conversion to percentiles, interpreting the test results, reliability, validity, construction and technical characteristics of the test and norms, and references. In addition, the booklet contains fourteen different tables. For further context, see the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal (1983.0168.20) and the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal Answer Sheet (1983.0168.22).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1952
ID Number
1983.0168.21
catalog number
1983.0168.21
accession number
1983.0168

Remington Sperry Rand Adding Machine

This ten-key printing electric adding machine has a tan plastic cover and white plastic keys. In addition to the block of number keys, there are “S”, “N”, and “-” bars on the left and “T”, “+”, and “x” bars on the right. There is a place indicator above the keyboard.
Description
This ten-key printing electric adding machine has a tan plastic cover and white plastic keys. In addition to the block of number keys, there are “S”, “N”, and “-” bars on the left and “T”, “+”, and “x” bars on the right. There is a place indicator above the keyboard. One may enter numbers of up to ten digits and print 11-digit results. Toward the back are the printing mechanism and the motor. The machine holds only paper tape 5.5 cm. wide. Printing is in either red or black.
The machine is marked on the front: REMINGTON (/) SPERRY RAND. The block of digit keys is arranged: 7 8 9 (/) 4 5 6 (/) 1 2 3 (/) 0. A sticker attached to the back reads: MODEL 41013-10. It also reads: REMINGTON RAND (/) OFFICE MACHINES DIVISION (/) MADE IN SEARCY, ARK. U.S.A. It is marked on the machine, inside the plastic case, on the right side: 151A585805.
The machine came to the Smithsonian from the Hyattsville, Maryland, branch of the Vermont Federal Savings and Loan bank.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1955
maker
Remington Rand
ID Number
1987.0285.03
maker number
151A585805
accession number
1987.0285
catalog number
1987.0285.03

Burroughs Style 10 10 36 Adding Machine

This full-keyboard electric bank teller’s machine has eight columns of square color-coded keys. A printing mechanism, a narrow carriage, and a paper tape are at the back of the machine. Two compartments hold spools of the ribbon.
Description
This full-keyboard electric bank teller’s machine has eight columns of square color-coded keys. A printing mechanism, a narrow carriage, and a paper tape are at the back of the machine. Two compartments hold spools of the ribbon. It is unclear whether the handle fits this machine. A small key is on the right front of the keyboard. The machine lacks a top cover, but has an electric cord. No serial number was found.
A red tag attached to the object reads: PATENT DEPT. (/) #259. A sticker attached to the fron reads: BURR 10 10 36 (/) 4 REG BANK TELLER. A metal tag attached to the object reads: DONATED TO (/) The Smithsonian Institution (/) by (/) Burroughs Corporation. It once was in the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation.
This model dates from after 1937.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1950
maker
Burroughs Adding Machine Company
ID Number
1982.0794.61
catalog number
1982.0794.61
accession number
1982.0794

Sumlock Adding Machine

This full-keyboard,non-printing electric adding machine has a green metal frame and plastic keys in two shades of green.
Description
This full-keyboard,non-printing electric adding machine has a green metal frame and plastic keys in two shades of green. It was manufactured by the Bell Punch Company of London, England, for use with British currency.
The rightmost column has nine light green keys, with complementary digits indicated so that the digits on any key add up to 11. The next column from the right has nine dark green keys, with complementary digits indicated so that the digits on one key add up to nine. The next column has a single dark green key, with a one and complementary 0. There are then nine columns of keys, with nine keys in each column, and the usual complementary digits indicated. The leftmost column has six keys, numbered from 1 to 6.
Presumably the rightmost columns reads pence, the next two from the left shillings, and the next up to nine pounds. The leftmost column may be function keys. There are levers on either side of the keyboard. A row of 13 number dials is above the keyboard, and another row of 13 dials is below. The leftmost of these dials indicates a function, not a digit. The windows in the case over these dials are covered with glass. Below both registers is a row of knobs. The knobs are rotated to set decimal markers. A cord at the back of the machine has a wooden two-pronged plug. Taped to the plug are wires from a rubber-covered wire that has a two-pronged plug at the end.
The machine is marked on the front and the back: SUMLOCK. It is stamped on the bottom: GUARANTEED MADE IN GREAT BRITAIN. A metal tag on the bottom reads: DESIGNED AND MANUFACTURED (/) UNDER THEIR PATENTS BY (/) BELL PUNCH COMPANY LIMITED. (/) LONDON - ENGLAND. It also reads: U.S.A. (/) 2,142,286. . . 2,569,508. These are first and last U.S. patent numbers in a list of U.K., Australian, Swiss, Swedish, Belgian, Canadian, U.S., French, and Danish patents. A small piece of tape once attached to the side of the instrument reads: #11 SUMLOCK FRAC. (/) CAL. (/) #500078. Last number of this mark may be serial number of instrument. A red Burroughs Patent Department tag reads: PATENT DEPT. (/) #312.
Reference:
Fédération Nationale des Chambres Syndicales de la Mécanographie, Fédération de Reprise officielle des Machines à Ecrire, Machines à Calculer . . ., Lyon, 1970, p. 83.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1953
distributor
Sumlock Limited
maker
Bell Punch Company, Ltd.
ID Number
1982.0794.81
catalog number
1982.0794.81
accession number
1982.0794

Burroughs Series P Belt Drive Parts

This adding machine model from the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation consists of ten gray metal pieces. The largest piece is a frame for a machine which has the dimensions given.
Description
This adding machine model from the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation consists of ten gray metal pieces. The largest piece is a frame for a machine which has the dimensions given. In addition, there are two long springs, two shafts, one toothed wheel, one shaft with cams, two pieces that pivot, and one long shaped piece. These nine pieces were held together by a string which was replaced. The parts are said to relate to the belt drive for the Burroughs Series P.
A red tag attached to the model reads: PATENT DEPT. (/) #219 . With 1982.0794.42, this is model #219 from the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation.
The Burroughs Series P was introduced in 1949, and this machine presumably dates from about that time.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1950
maker
Burroughs Adding Machine Company
ID Number
1982.0794.43
catalog number
1982.0794.43
accession number
1982.0794

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.