| National Museum of American History

Although the United States government had made use of computing devices at least from the 1850s, World War II brought unprecedented demands for calculations. These were met, in part, by large groups of people called computers, who used desk calculators like this one.

Description: Although the United States government had made use of computing devices at least from the 1850s, World War II brought unprecedented demands for calculations. These were met, in part, by large groups of people called computers, who used desk calculators like this one. This particular machine was used at the Applied Physics Laboratory operated by Johns Hopkins University. When human computers were overwhelmed by the quantity of work that needed doing, new kinds of machines were invented .; This stepped drum machine has a metal frame painted gray, and eight columns of light green and blue-green plastic number keys, with a blank key of green plastic at the bottom of each column. These keys allow one to enter numbers of up to eight digits. Metal rods between the columns of keys turn to indicate decimal places.; On the right are two columns of function keys. The machine has no separate keys for multiplication. It has a key for cross tabulation.; Behind the number keys is a movable carriage with an nine-digit revolution register and a 17-digit result register. An arrow above the first column of keys assists in setting the carriage. Plastic buttons above the result register can be used to set up numbers. The carriage has sliding decimal markers for the two registers, as well as zeroing knobs on the right.; Marks on the sides and back of the machine read: FRIDEN. A mark visible through windows at the bottom front reads: D8-215775. A paper tag glued to the bottom reads: MODEL-D (/) FRIDEN CALCULATING MACHINE CO. INC. (/) MADE IN SAN LEANDRO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A. (/) MANUFACTURED UNDER ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING U.S. PAT’S (/) DES. 103,425 2,229,889 2,229,890 2,229,895 2,229,901. A mark painted on the back reads: APL (/) 9601 (/) USN; References:; Ernie Jorgenson, Friden Age List, Office Machine Americana, Lewiston, Idaho p. 2.; "Carl Maurice Frederick Friden," National Cyclopaedia of American Biography, Clifton, N.J.: James T. White & Co., 54, 1973, pp. 7–8.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1945

maker: Friden Calculating Machine Company

ID Number: MA.335427
catalog number: 335427
accession number: 319049
maker number: D8 215775

In the early twentieth century, the U.S. Geological Survey began to use panoramic cameras for topographic surveys. Photogrammetry, or measurement using photographs, proved highly successful. From 1921, the Topographic Branch of the Survey had s Section of Photographic Mapping.

Description: In the early twentieth century, the U.S. Geological Survey began to use panoramic cameras for topographic surveys. Photogrammetry, or measurement using photographs, proved highly successful. From 1921, the Topographic Branch of the Survey had s Section of Photographic Mapping. A variety of special instruments helped to transform photographs into maps. In 1931, James L. Buckmaster of the Survey designed the first version of this instrument, the vertical sketchmaster.; The device allowed the transfer of detail from a photograph taken vertically from the air to the ground onto a plotting sheet. The image to be copied was placed in the bed of the instrument. By means of an arrangement of mirrors, the image also could be viewed on a plotting sheet below and sketched.; At the time of World War II, the U.S. Marine Corps arranged for Abrams Instrument Company of Lansing, Michigan, to make this version of the sketchmaster. It has an iron and stainless steel frame, three large supports stored at the back (two of these rotate out to the sides), and glass mirrors and lenses. Placing a photograph on the bed and looking through a hole at the front, one can see the photograph projected onto a surface below.; A metal tag on the frame reads: VERTICAL (/) SKETCHMASTER (/) SERIAL NO. 468 MODEL VE-1 (/) MFD. FOR U.S. MARINE CORPS (/) by ABRAMS INSTRUMENT CO. (/) LANSING, MICHIGAN, U.S.A.; The device fits into a wooden box painted gray. Another metal tag on the front of the box has the same information as the one just cited. A warning painted on the top of the box reads: CAUTION (/) THIS SIDE UP. The inside of the box has a section with six steel box-shaped weights. It also has a paper tag that reads in part: Important (/) This instrument bears Serial No. 468 (/) O.K.ed for shipment by (/) Inspector No. OK (/) 9 Date SEP 3 1943.; Reference:; Morris M. Thompson, Development of Photogrammetry in the U.S. Geological Survey. Geological Survey Circular 218 Washington, D.C.: U.S. Geological Survey, rev 1953, esp. p. 7.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1943; ca 1943

maker: Abrams Instrument Co.

ID Number: MA.333633
accession number: 300659
catalog number: 333633

This tan cut and folded paper model of a regular tetrahedron is open on the bottom. For the base, see MA.304723.679.Currently not on view

Description: This tan cut and folded paper model of a regular tetrahedron is open on the bottom. For the base, see MA.304723.679.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1949 11 11
associated dates: 1949 11 11 / 1949 11 11

maker: Wheeler, Albert Harry

ID Number: MA.304723.642
accession number: 304723
catalog number: 304723.642

This suspended pantograph consists of four hollow steel bars, which form a rectangle with two extended parallel sides. The bars are about twenty-eight inches long.

Description: This suspended pantograph consists of four hollow steel bars, which form a rectangle with two extended parallel sides. The bars are about twenty-eight inches long. One vertex of the rectangle contains a peg with a rounded tip, which attaches to a heavy iron standard which anchors the pantograph. This standard, painted black, has three paper protective pads underneath it. Two wires stored in the lid of the case connect to the standard at perpendicular corners. These wires hold the arms of the pantograph off the paper, reducing friction in the tracing.; Three of the bars are marked from zero to sixty centimeters by tenths and in ratios from 1:20 to 4:5. Joints with adjustable feet are at the corners. The tracer and pencil points are placed at the far end of one bar and on the crossbar. These points are interchangeable so they can be used in both enlarging and reducing.; When the three arms with divisions are set to the desired ratio, the standard, pencil point, and tracer point lie in the same line. Thus, the pantograph works on the principle of similar right triangles. The tracer is moved over the drawing with an oblong wooden handle. A clip next to the far point holds a string (wrapped around a card in the case) which runs through the corner joint, the other point, and ends at the other corner joint.; The pantograph is stored in a wooden case with a metal handle. Braces inside the case are lined with felt. The case also contains a cleaning rag, two metal disk weights for the pencil, a pencil holder, and two tracer points. The pantograph must be set to the 1:2 ratio to be placed into the case.; A mark inside the lid of the case reads: PANTAGRAPH (/) 8-6-42 (/) From Eng. & Val. Div. Another mark there, inside a box, reads: Prepared in (/) SERVICE DIVISION (/) Income Tax Unit. A printed label filled in with crayon on the bottom of the case reads: TO: NATIONAL PRESS BUILDING (/) Floor 7-[?] (/) Room No. 757 (/) Section Eng (/) Unit No. Draftingroom (/) Employee M E Spear (/) Consolidated Returns, (/) Audit Division. A mark on a metal tag on one bar reads: Eugene Dietzgen Co. A mark engraved on another bar, near the handle for directing the pencil point reads: G. Coradi, Zurich (/) Switzerland (/) No 3777.; Eugene Dietzgen Company of Chicago offered suspended pantographs in its catalogs from at least 1902. This appears to be Dietzgen’s Model No. 1889 which was listed in the Dietzgen Catalogue from 1910 until at least 1949.; The tag on the bottom of the case for the object indicates that it was moved to an office of the Internal Revenue Service at the National Press Building. According to Cosgrove, the IRS moved into that building in 1928 and left in 1930. Hence the object was made by 1928.; The pantograph was sent to M.E. Spear. The 1920 U.S. Census indicates that Mary E. Hunt, then twenty-two years old, was a draftsman living in Washington, D.C., and working for the Internal Revenue Service. By 1924, Hunt had married A. Spear and was living Takoma Park, Md., and still working for the Internal Revenue Service. The 1930 U.S. Census lists a Mary E. Spear, thirty-three years old and living in Takoma Park, Maryland, with her husband Albert A. Spear. From information there, her birthdate appears to be about 1897. By 1935, she is listed in the city directory as a draftsman at the U.S. Department of Labor. In the 1940 U.S. Census, her occupation is given as “analyst.” By 1952, Mary Eleanor Spear, a Visual Information Specialist at the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor, published Charting Statistics (McGraw-Hill, 1952). She would go on to write Practical Charting Techniques (McGraw-Hill, 1969). The Social Security Death Index lists Mary Spear (1897-1986) who was living in Gaithersburg, Md., at the time of her death.; References:; John Cosgrove, ed. Reliable Sources: The National Press Club in the American Century, Paducah, Ky.: Turner Publishing Company, 1997, p. 141.; Eugene Dietzgen Company, Catalogue, Chicago, 1902 (pp. 149-152), 1904 (pp. 180-182), 1910 (pp. 230-232), 1919 (pp. 93-95), 1921 (pp. 212-214), 1926 (pp. 192-194), 1928 (pp. 197-199), 1938 (pp.252-253), 1949 (pp. 252-253). In these catalogues, the model 1889 is listed from 1910-1949.; Eugene Dietzgen Company, Price List, 1943 (p. 16).; U.S. Census Records, Washington, D.C. city directories, Social Security Death Index, as listed on the website ancestry.com.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1910-1930; 1910-1928; ca 1942

maker: Coradi, Gottlieb

ID Number: MA.333875
accession number: 304213
catalog number: 333875

This instrument supplies a grid of lines for measuring photographs.

Description: This instrument supplies a grid of lines for measuring photographs. The fitted compartments of the wooden case hold a socket wrench, an open end wrench, brass pin guides in two sizes, brass nuts, brass bolts, pins, and arms with slots down the middle and a hole at each end that may be joined together by nuts and bolts. These arms are made in three different lengths.; A paper tag reads in part: Serial No. 227. It also reads in part: Date SEP 28 1943. It also reads: ABRAMS INSTRUMENT CO. (/) LANSING, MICHIGAN, U.S.A.; For a related object, see MA.336631.; Reference:; Talbert Abrams, Essentials of Aerial Surveying and Photo Interpretation, New York: McGraw-Hill, 1944, pp. 218-244.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: ca 1943; 1943

maker: Abrams Instrument Corporation

ID Number: MA.333632
catalog number: 333632
accession number: 300659

Massachusetts high school teacher and model maker A. Harry Wheeler built several geometric models that represented the union of intersecting cubes.

Description: Massachusetts high school teacher and model maker A. Harry Wheeler built several geometric models that represented the union of intersecting cubes. He described this model as “four cubes wrapped about a regular octahedron.” The paper pieces of the model are cut and folded to represent sections of blue, green, yellow, and white cubes. A sticker on the model reads: 94. This corresponds to an entry in Wheeler’s handwritten catalog of his models. He also numbered the model H18, as it was based on a six-sided figure or hexahedron.; Compare model MA.304723.120, which is the same surface, made out of plastic.; Wheeler lived from 1873 to 1950. Models made by him are marked with dates ranging from 1910 to 1949, hence the rough date assigned.; Reference:; A. H. Wheeler, Catalog of Models, A. H. Wheeler Papers, Mathematics Collections, National Museum of American History.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1910-1949

maker: Wheeler, Albert Harry

ID Number: MA.304723.117
accession number: 304723
catalog number: 304723.117

Before the introduction of calculating machines that could compute cube roots of numbers directly, calculating machine manufacturers distributed tables to assist in these calculations.

Description: Before the introduction of calculating machines that could compute cube roots of numbers directly, calculating machine manufacturers distributed tables to assist in these calculations. This table was developed by employees of Marchant Calculating Machine Company in Oakland, California, for use with its machines.; The table is of heavy paper, printed in black., and includes instructions on how it is to be used to find cube roots to the fifth and to the tenth significant figure. A drawing of a Marchant calculating machine is at the top, toward the left. A mark at the bottom left reads: TABLE 56. Another mark along the bottom reads: PRINTED IN U. S. A. A third mark along the bottom reads: COPYRIGHT 1941 MARCHANT CALCULATING MACHINE COMPANY, OAKLAND, CALIF., U. S. A.; Compare 313984.04, which gives a table for finding cube roots. The table came with Marchant calculating machine MA.334384. The donor, Richard H. Hronik (1911–2003), held a number of patents in transportation engineering and did design work relating to railroad systems built for the Indian government. He went on to work for the firm Melpar as a materials science engineer.; References: D. H. Lehmer, “Review of Square Root Divisors. . .,” Mathematical Tables and other Aids to Computation, 1, 1945, pp. 356–357.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1944; 1941

maker: Marchant Calculators

ID Number: MA.313984.03
accession number: 313984
catalog number: 313984.03

Object N-08216 is the assembly of the first Kerst Betatron as it appeared in the Atom Smashers exhibition at the NMAH.

Description: Object N-08216 is the assembly of the first Kerst Betatron as it appeared in the Atom Smashers exhibition at the NMAH. mounted horizontally, a toroidal vacuum chamber made of white ceramic with two cylindrical ports, each joined to fused-on glass extensions; circular magnet coils mounted above and below plane of vacuum chamber; rectangular laminated iron yoke surrounding the coils on top, bottom and two sides; enclosing the yoke, a rectangular metal frame of four horizontal angle strips joined by four welded vertical straps, two on each side, and by four bolts, two on each end. Between the yoke laminations and each coil is a thin sheet of slightly flexible, warped, black material, like plastic or impregnated cardboard; each is in two pieces to fit around the central axis. Two circular gray plates are positioned at the top and bottom of the vacuum chamber, separating it from the upper and lower coils, respectively.; It is presumed that the left-hand cylindrical port contains the electron source, and the right-hand port contains the beam of x-rays from the internal target. Wires protrude from both cylindrical ports.; History and basic principles; Among the many investigators who attempted to accelerate electrons by magnetic induction, none were successful until Donald Kerst produced 2.3-MeV electrons in a betatron at the University of Illinois in 1940. He later constructed a number of betatrons of successively higher energies, culminating in the 300-MeV betatron at the University of Illinois. Kerst’s success was due to a very careful theoretical analysis of the orbit dynamics in accelerators (including a study of the requirements for injection); to a preliminary analysis of all conceivable effects relevant to the operation of a betatron; and to a careful and detailed design of the magnet structure, vacuum system, and power supply. This was the first new accelerator to be constructed on the basis of a careful scientific analysis and a completely engineered design. Its success represented a turning point in the technology of particle accelerators from cut and try methods to scientifically engineered designs. All later accelerators, including the newest high energy synchrotrons, have been influenced by this early work of Kerst. It is only in the light of these later developments that we see the importance of the betatron not merely as a valuable instrument in itself but as a milestone in the development of particle accelerators generally. For example, the radial and vertical oscillations of the beam in all particle accelerators are now universally called betatron oscillations after the pioneering work of Kerst and Robert Serber, who together in 1941 published the first theoretical analysis of such oscillations as they occur in the betatron.; The betatron was quickly put to use in industry, medicine, and nuclear physics research. It was the first accelerator to provide gamma rays for photo-nuclear studies. In the late 1940s and early 1950s the betatron was used for much of the experimental research on photo disintegration of the deuteron, on photo-nuclear reactions (including the discovery of the giant dipole resonances), and important early work on nuclear structure from electron scattering. Of great importance was the pioneering use of megavolt electron beams for the production of energetic X rays for the therapeutic treatment of cancer. His fascinating depiction of this treatment included a description of the first use of phantoms and the intense activity precipitated by a student afflicted with brain tumor, heroic efforts that achieved much, but were unable to save the student. Kerst took a one-year leave of absence from the University of Illinois (1940-41), designed a 20-MeV betatron and a 100-MeV betatron working with the engineering staff at General Electric. He oversaw the construction and operation of the 20-MeV betatron, which he brought back to Urbana. During World War II days, Kerst built a 4-MeV portable betatron for inspecting bomb duds in situ and, most importantly, built a 20-MeV betatron at Los Alamos for study of bomb assembly implosions. His work was described in the official history of Los Alamos as: “The technical achievements are amongst the most impressive at Los Alamos.” After World War II Kerst built a 300-MeV betatron at the University of Illinois that was brought into operation in 1950 and provided a facility for studying high energy physics until it was superseded by synchrotrons and then by electron linacs.; (Above text excerpted from Donald William Kerst, 1911—1993, a Biographical Memoir by Andrew M. Sessler and Keith R. Symon, Copyright 1997, National Academies Press, Washington DC.); It is no accident that the magnetic induction accelerator was so late to be realized. The concept had been advanced repeatedly in the preceding twenty years, but the problems of establishing and maintaining a particle beam were far greater than those encountered with several other accelerator types that were reduced to practice in the 1930’s.; Electrons, due to their relatively small mass, are much more “skittish” than the much more massive protons, and in the betatron must make a thousand times more circuits to reach the same energy as protons accelerated in a cyclotron. Where the cyclotron runs continuously, allowing the protons to find their own orbit, the betatron is pulsed: electrons must be injected at the right velocity to be captured into stable orbits, and held in them by a balance between the magnetic fields responsible for their acceleration and their orbit guidance, respectively. Kerst’s success depended decisively upon close mathematical analysis of these orbits, especially those immediately after injection into the vacuum chamber. This analysis was performed in collaboration with theoretical physicist, Robert Serber.; The principle of operation of the betatron is similar to that of a high voltage transformer. Alternating currents in the upper coils produce an increasing magnetic field, thus inducing an electromotive force around the electron’s circular orbit. This force, which Kerst calculated to be only 17 volts maximum acts on the electrons during each of their 200,000 circuits of the vacuum chamber, imparting a total energy of over two million electron volts (MeV).; The electrons are introduced into the vacuum chamber by an injector; they are not brought out of the vacuum chamber, but strike an internal target, converting their energy into x-rays which emerge through a second port.; Kerst, like E.O. Lawrence at the University of California, Berkeley, saw no intrinsic limits to his device. From the moment Kerst’s first device operated successfully in July 1940, he and his University looked forward to one more powerful (300 MeV) even than the cyclotrons being developed at Berkeley. Begun in 1945, immediately after World War II, with a special appropriation from the Illinois State Legislature, it was soon to be outmoded by newer methods of particle acceleration (e.g., the synchrotron).
Location: Currently not on view

date made: early 1940's

maker: Kerst, Donald

ID Number: EM.N-08216
accession number: 233629

Friden Calculating Machine Company produced its “Supermatic Tabulating” model from about 1940 through 1949.

Description: Friden Calculating Machine Company produced its “Supermatic Tabulating” model from about 1940 through 1949. This full-keyboard, non-printing electric stepped drum calculating machine has a metal frame painted gray and ten columns of light green and blue-green plastic number keys. A blank green plastic zeroing key is at the bottom of each column. Metal rods between the columns of keys turn to indicate decimal places. On the right are two columns of function keys.; On the left is a ten-digit register that indicates numbers entered for multiplication. Below it is a block of nine light green digit keys, with a 0 bar below. These are surrounded by four function keys.; Behind the number keys is a movable carriage with an 11-digit revolution register and a 21-digit result register. The result register has dark green plastic buttons above it that rotate to set up numbers. Ten numbered buttons are under the revolution register, spaced between the digits. Zeroing knobs for these registers are on the top right of the carriage. Decimal markers slide on bars between the two registers on the carriage.; A mark on the sides and back of the machine reads: FRIDEN. A paper tag on the bottom of the machine, which also includes address and patent numbers, reads: MODEL-ST. A window at the front of the bottom shows the serial number: ST10-157950.; The machine has a rubber-covered cord; The date was given by the donor, who said that the initial price was $550.; Compare 1984.3079.01, 1984.3079.02, 1984.3079.03, and MA.335427.; References:; Accession File.; Date also given in Ernie Jorgenson, Friden Age List, Office Machine Americana, p. 2.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1945

maker: Friden Calculating Machine Company

ID Number: MA.335421
catalog number: 335421
accession number: 319049
maker number: ST 10 157950

Before the introduction of calculating machines that could compute cube roots of numbers directly, calculating machine manufacturers distributed tables to assist in these calculations.

Description: Before the introduction of calculating machines that could compute cube roots of numbers directly, calculating machine manufacturers distributed tables to assist in these calculations. This table was developed by employees of Marchant Calculating Machine Company in Oakland, California, for use with its machines.; The table is of heavy paper, printed in black. and includes instructions on how it is to be used to find cube roots to the fifth and to the tenth significant figure. A drawing of a Marchant calculating machine is at the top toward the left. A mark at the bottom left reads: TABLE 68. Another mark along the bottom reads: PRINTED IN U. S. A. A third mark along the bottom reads: COPYRIGHT 1944 MARCHANT CALCULATING MACHINE COMPANY, OAKLAND, CALIF., U. S. A.; The table is based on the observation that if three numbers are almost the same size, then their arithmetic mean (the average value of the three numbers) is nearly equal to their geometric mean (the cube root of the product of the numbers). Suppose three such numbers are A, A, and N (the first two numbers are the same). Then the the cube root of the expression N times A squared equals (N+2A)/3, or the cube root of N equals (N+ 2A) / (3 (A)^2/3). The table gives values of A and three times A to the 2/3, for A running from 100 to 999. A user can compute the cube root of a number N by finding the A nearest N, adding N and twice A, and dividing the sum (using a calculating machine) by three times A to the two thirds power, as given in the table. The instructions suggest how the procedure should be modified according to the decimal value of the number.; Compare MA.313984.03, which gives a table for finding square roots. The table came with Marchant calculating machine MA.334384. The donor, Richard H. Hronik (1911–2003), held a number of patents in transportation engineering and did design work relating to railroad systems built for the Indian government. He went on to work for the firm of Melpar as a materials science engineer.; References: D. H. Lehmer, “Review of Square Root Divisors. . .,” Mathematical Tables and other Aids to Computation, 1, 1945, pp. 356–357.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1944

maker: Marchant Calculators

ID Number: MA.313984.04
accession number: 313984
catalog number: 313984.04

This object is a gray metal model of the carriage and paper holder for an adding machine. There is a black ribbon, but no printing mechanism. There are two loose pieces.The model is marked on a red paper tag attached to the machine: PATENT DEPT. (/) #172.

Description: This object is a gray metal model of the carriage and paper holder for an adding machine. There is a black ribbon, but no printing mechanism. There are two loose pieces.; The model is marked on a red paper tag attached to the machine: PATENT DEPT. (/) #172. It is marked on a metal tag screwed to the plate: B.A.M.CO. (/) MODEL (/) NO 1017. A metal tag attached to the object reads: DONATED TO (/) The Smithsonian Institution (/) by (/) Burroughs Corporation. It was model #172 in the collection of the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation.; Between 1927 and 1942, Burroughs Adding Machine Company inventor Ernst Racz filed several patent applications for improvements in the printing and arrangement of paper tapes and receipts on adding machines. This is one of them.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: ca 1927-1942

maker: Burroughs Adding Machine Company

ID Number: 1982.0794.29
catalog number: 1982.0794.29
accession number: 1982.0794

This black ten-key printing adding machine is manually operated by depressing keys and moving forward a crank on the right. In addition to a block of white number keys, the machine has a MULTIPLY key on the right and R, SUB(/)TOTAL and TOTAL keys on the left.

Description: This black ten-key printing adding machine is manually operated by depressing keys and moving forward a crank on the right. In addition to a block of white number keys, the machine has a MULTIPLY key on the right and R, SUB(/)TOTAL and TOTAL keys on the left. A key at the front marked “C” moves the decimal place of the digit entered. The machine accepts entries of up to seven digits and prints seven-digit totals. There is a set of seven windows above the keys that indicate the place of the digit being entered. There is a printing mechanism at the back, but no paper tape.; The machine is marked on the left side: ADDING* BOOKKEEPING*CALCULATING MACHINES (/) MADE IN U.S.A. It has serial number: 71-654292.; Compare objects 335204 and 1985.3010.01. There is a plastic cover which is marked as part of the object, although it reads “General."
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1949

maker: Remington Rand

ID Number: 1982.0474.01
maker number: 71-654292
accession number: 1982.0474
catalog number: 1982.0474.01

This model consists of a metal and plastic carriage, with a wide carriage at the front and a container for a narrow roll of paper at the back. There is no mechanism or paper tape. The outside metal is painted tan.A red paper tag attached to the machine reads: PATENT DEPT.

Description: This model consists of a metal and plastic carriage, with a wide carriage at the front and a container for a narrow roll of paper at the back. There is no mechanism or paper tape. The outside metal is painted tan.; A red paper tag attached to the machine reads: PATENT DEPT. (/) #173. It was model #173 in the collection of the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation. A metal tag attached to the object reads: B.A.M.CO. (/) MODEL (/) NO 1018. A metal tag attached to the object reads: DONATED TO (/) The Smithsonian Institution (/) by (/) Burroughs Corporation.; Between 1927 and 1942, Burroughs Adding Machine Company inventor Ernst Racz filed several patent applications for improvements in the printing and arrangement of paper tapes and receipts on adding machines. This is one of them.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: ca 1927-1942

maker: Burroughs Adding Machine Company

ID Number: 1982.0794.30
catalog number: 1982.0794.30
accession number: 1982.0794

This full-keyboard, printing electric bookkeeping machine has a grayish tan metal case with streamlining. It has 11 columns of square color-coded gray and off-white plastic digit keys, with nine keys in each column.

Description: This full-keyboard, printing electric bookkeeping machine has a grayish tan metal case with streamlining. It has 11 columns of square color-coded gray and off-white plastic digit keys, with nine keys in each column. Three columns of smaller rectangular keys indicate dates and types of transactions. The nine possible transaction types are denoted by the 2-digit letter combinations “CD”, “DS”, “RT”, “EX”, “FT”, “CS”, “CM”, “JE”, and “AL”. The year keys are for 50 (1950), 51 (1951), and 52 (1952). To the right of the keyboard are function bars and levers.The printing mechanism and wide carriage are at the back. A roll of paper stored with the machine has five columns of numbers and symbols printed on it. No stand is present.; A red tag attached to the object reads: PATENT DEPT. (/) #181.The machine is marked on the front: Burroughs.This was model #181 in the collection of the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation.; According to the accession file, this model had serial number A-971043. According to records of Burroughs, Series F machines of that serial number were made in 1949.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1949

maker: Burroughs

ID Number: 1982.0794.33
catalog number: 1982.0794.33
accession number: 1982.0794

This adding machine has a black metal frame with a metal mechanism and small glass window. The keyboard is also metal, painted green. There are eight columns of color-coded black and white plastic keys for entering numbers.

Description: This adding machine has a black metal frame with a metal mechanism and small glass window. The keyboard is also metal, painted green. There are eight columns of color-coded black and white plastic keys for entering numbers. To the right are the subtotal/total key mechanism, and the addition, subtraction, correction, and repeat keys. On the left are the non-print and non-add keys. The printing mechanism, fixed carriage, and narrow paper tape (4 inches wide) are at the back. It can accommodate totals up to nine digits long. There is a serrated metal edge for tearing off the tape. When the tape guide is moved away, single sheets of paper 6 inches wide can be fed through the platen. A knob on the right of the roller advances the paper manually. A lever on the right of the platen releases the paper and locks the paper guide in place. The motor and electric cord are at the back.; The machine is marked on the front and on the top: R.C. Allen (/) FIGURING MACHINES. It is marked on a metal tag attached to the bottom: MODEL 3089. It is marked on another metal tag attached to the bottom with serial number: 997586. It is stamped on the bottom: 1306. It is marked on the back: Allen CALCULATORS, INC. (/) NEW YORK, U.S.A. (/) PATENTED. It is marked on the cover: R.C.Allen (/) Business (/) Machine.; R. C. Allen adding machines were made from 1934, but the Model 3089 was not manufactured in that year. It was available by 1939.; Reference:; American Office Machines Research Service, December, 1939, Section 3.29.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: ca 1940

maker: Allen Calculators, Inc.

ID Number: 1988.0534.01
catalog number: 334298
accession number: 1988.0534

The paper leaflet is gives instructions for the adder with catalog number 1986.0663.01.Currently not on view

Description: The paper leaflet is gives instructions for the adder with catalog number 1986.0663.01.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: ca 1945

distributor: Tavella Sales Company
maker: Tavella Sales Company

ID Number: 1986.0663.02
catalog number: 1986.0663.02
accession number: 1986.0663

This full-keyboard, non-printing electric proportional gear calculating machine has a metal case painted gray and eight columns of green and white color-coded oval plastic keys. A red clearance key is at the bottom of each column. The underlying keyboard is light gray.

Description: This full-keyboard, non-printing electric proportional gear calculating machine has a metal case painted gray and eight columns of green and white color-coded oval plastic keys. A red clearance key is at the bottom of each column. The underlying keyboard is light gray. Between banks of keys are metal rods for decimal markers.; Right of the number keys are auto divide and stop keys, subtraction and addition bars, shift keys for use in multiplication, and a reverse key. In front of these are clearance keys for the keyboard, the tab setting, and the dials. Right of these is a column of ten keys for automatic multiplication and two carriage shift keys. Above the number keys is a row of eight windows to show a number set up (the decimal markers extend from between the number keys to between these windows).; Behind this register is a movable carriage with an 16-window result register and a nine-window revolution register. Decimal markers slide above the registers on the carriage. To the left of the revolution register is a row of six buttons used in setting tabs. The motor is at the back of the machine, inside the case. Numbers are represented by the rotation of sets of gears on three shafts under the carriage.; A mark on the sides and back of the machine reads: MARCHANT. A metal tag attached to the bottom reads: ACR8M-190554; The machine has a green rubber cord and a gray plastic cover. A label on the front is from an office supply store in Baltimore, Md.; Compare to Harold T. Avery’s 1940 U.S. patents 2,216,659, 2,211,736, and 2,217,195. See 1979.3084.106 for related trade literature. The model ACR8M was manufactured from at least 1942 until 1948.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: ca 1943

maker: Marchant Calculating Machine Company, Inc.

ID Number: 1984.0682.03
catalog number: 1984.0682.03
accession number: 1984.0682
maker number: ACR8M-190554

This full-keyboard printing electric adding machine has a metal frame painted black, seven columns of black and white color-coded number keys, two columns of blue number keys, and a column of red month keys. The keyboard is painted green.

Description: This full-keyboard printing electric adding machine has a metal frame painted black, seven columns of black and white color-coded number keys, two columns of blue number keys, and a column of red month keys. The keyboard is painted green. Above the keyboard is a row of nine windows showing numeral dials. Behind this is the printing mechanism and a 31 cm. (12”) movable carriage. Covers for the ribbon are screwed in place. A roll of 6 cm. wide tape is in the carriage.; The machine is marked on the front: ALLEN WALES. It is marked at the bottom of the front: 16E169377 It is marked on the back: ALLEN WALES ADDING MACHINE CORPORATION (/) ITHACA, NEW YORK (/) UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. It is marked on a red paper tag attached to the machine: PATENT DEPT. (/) #255. It is marked on a white paper tag attached ALLEN WALES No 16E-169377 (/) Brown Crystal Case (/) 10 Columns with Month Keys (/) S A C T Carriage 12” (/) Add and Subtract Motor Bars.; The documentation on NCR machines suggests that this machine may date from 1947. This example was model #255 in the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: ca 1947

maker: Allen Wales Adding Machine Corporation

ID Number: 1982.0794.59
catalog number: 1982.0794.59
accession number: 1982.0794

This black full-keyboard printing adding machine has 13 columns of black and white round plastic keys above an unpainted steel keyboard. On the right of the number keys are a variety of function keys. One column of these refers to register 1, the other to register 2.

Description: This black full-keyboard printing adding machine has 13 columns of black and white round plastic keys above an unpainted steel keyboard. On the right of the number keys are a variety of function keys. One column of these refers to register 1, the other to register 2. In back of the keyboard is a wide carriage, with a place for a paper tape. On the top are two sliding steel markers, one missing a piece. No cord or handle.; A red paper tag attached to the machine reads: PATENT DEPT. (/) #176. A metal tag with the object reads: B.A.M.CO. (/) MODEL (/) NO 1020. The machine is marked on the front: Burroughs. The mark has a hook over the “g” in Burroughs. A paper sheet received with the machine reads: Do not depress Register #1 motor (/) bars while operating machine as Register (/) wheels do not shift properly and machine (/) will lock on half cycle. A metal tag attached to the object reads: DONATED TO (/) The Smithsonian Institution (/) by (/) Burroughs Corporation.; The machine is associated with Burroughs inventor Ernst Racz. It was model #176 in the collection of the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: ca 1940

maker: Burroughs Adding Machine Company

ID Number: 1982.0794.31
catalog number: 1982.0794.31
accession number: 1982.0794

This slide chart, distributed by the Qunicy Compressor company of Quincy, Illinois, is designed to allow customers to select the appropriate model of Quincy air compressor to purchase, knowing the pressure at which the air is to be delivered and the number of cubic feet per minut

Description: This slide chart, distributed by the Qunicy Compressor company of Quincy, Illinois, is designed to allow customers to select the appropriate model of Quincy air compressor to purchase, knowing the pressure at which the air is to be delivered and the number of cubic feet per minute of air delivery desired. On one side, pressures range from 30 to 100 pounds On the other, they range from 110 to 250 pounds. For each model, the chart indicates the horsepower, speed, and piston displacement.; The chart consists of a paper envelope held together with metal rivets and a paper slide that moves crosswise. A mark near the bottom reads: Copyright 1941 Perry Graf Corp. Maywood, Ill. Slide charts made by Perry Graf that are in the Museum collections include 1979.3074.03, 1983.3009.04, 1983.3009.05,1983.3009.06, 1987.0108.03, and 1988.0325.01, and 1988.3076.01.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: ca 1941

maker: Quincy Compressor Co.

ID Number: 1988.3076.01
catalog number: 1988.3076.01
nonaccession number: 1988.3076

By the mid-20th century, rules distributed by manufacturers to ease calculations relating to their products had become quite common.

Description: By the mid-20th century, rules distributed by manufacturers to ease calculations relating to their products had become quite common. The three logarithmic scales on this rectangular white, yellow, and blue cardboard instrument determine the load (in pounds), size (in inches), and pounds per inch deflection for metal springs, given the PSI, mean diameter of the wire, and number of coils. Six metal rivets hold the rule together. The front top left corner is marked: BARNES • GIBSON • RAYMOND (/) DIVISION OF ASSOCIATED (/) SPRING CORPORATION (/) DETROIT AND ANN ARBOR (/) MICHIGAN. The front top right corner is marked: SPRING (/) DATA (/) COMPUTER. The back left end is marked: Copyright 1943 (/) Associated Spring Corp. (/) Bristol, Conn. The back right end is marked: Mfd. Perry Graf Corp. (/) Maywood, Ill. U.S.A. The instrument fits in a tan paper envelope.; Wallace Barnes (1827–1893) began manufacturing springs for clocks and hoop skirts in Bristol in 1857. His firm expanded into springs for bicycles and automobiles after his death and became Barnes-Gibson-Raymond in Detroit in 1922 as a result of acquisitions. It was renamed Associated Spring Corporation in 1923 and became a public company in 1946. The name Barnes Group was adopted in 1976, and by 2012 the headquarters were again located in Bristol. For more on Perrygraf, see 1979.3074.03.; References: Tom Wyman, "Slide Chart Calculators—A Modest Proposal," Journal of the Oughtred Society 13, no. 1 (2004): 6–10; "History," Barnes Group, Inc., http://www.bginc.com/about_history.php; Carlyle F. Barnes, Associated Spring Corporation (New York: Newcomen Society in North America, 1963).
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1943

maker: Perry Graf Corporation

ID Number: 1987.0108.03
accession number: 1987.0108
catalog number: 1987.0108.03

Since 1934 Perrygraf (or Perry Graf) Corporation of Maywood, Ill., has prepared a variety of sliding charts and rules for advertising purposes. See 1979.3074.03 for company history.

Description: Since 1934 Perrygraf (or Perry Graf) Corporation of Maywood, Ill., has prepared a variety of sliding charts and rules for advertising purposes. See 1979.3074.03 for company history. Perrygraf designed this white, green, and red rectangular cardboard instrument, held together with six metal rivets, in 1946 for The Texas Company (Texaco) of New York, N.Y. On one side is a "Cutting Fluid Guide," which indicates the type of Texaco cutting oil that should be used for various methods of cutting different groups of metals. The first four groups, of ferrous metals, are listed in a table on the other side of the instrument. A table for the last five groups, of nonferrous metals, appears on one side of the slide. Below the table of ferrous metals is a "Cutting Speed Calculator" with a logarithmic scale for computing the cutting speed in revolutions per minute, given the surface speed in feet per minute and the work diameter in inches.; The Texaco logo in the front lower right corner is the form used between 1936 and 1963. The back lower left corner is marked Printed in U.S.A. 2–46. Perry Graf Corp. Maywood, Ill.; References: Tom Wyman, "Slide Chart Calculators – A Modest Proposal," Journal of the Oughtred Society 13, no. 1 (2004): 6–10; "Texaco," Logopedia, http://logos.wikia.com/wiki/Texaco.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1946

maker: Perry Graf Corporation

ID Number: 1988.0323.01
accession number: 1988.0323
catalog number: 1988.0323.01

This portable, full-keyboard, electric, and non-printing modified stepped drum calculating machine has a gray steel case and gold and white color-coded plastic keys. The ten columns of keys have nine digit keys and one zeroing key in each column.

Description: This portable, full-keyboard, electric, and non-printing modified stepped drum calculating machine has a gray steel case and gold and white color-coded plastic keys. The ten columns of keys have nine digit keys and one zeroing key in each column. The zeroing key is the opposite color from the rest of the keys in the column. Between the columns of keys, and under the plate, are metal rods visible through windows in the plate. These rods, painted green on one side and red on the other, serve as decimal markers.; To the right of the number keys are two red buttons, one of which is marked R (for use in repeated addition or subtraction), and a red clearance key. A crank on the right side rotates clockwise for addition and counterclockwise for subtraction. Above these are black subtraction and addition bars.; In back of the keyboard is the carriage, with 20 result dials and ten revolution register dials. Each revolution register dial is numbered from 0 to 9 in black and from 1 to 9 in red. Between the two registers on the carriage are two thin metal rods that carry green plastic decimal markers. A crank for clearing the carriage is on its right side. A carriage shift crank is at the front.; The machine may be operated automatically by plugging in the gray rubber two-pronged cord that extends from the back. The instrument has four metal feet, a gray plastic cover, and a brown leather-covered carrying case with key.; The machine is marked on the front: Monroe. No serial number found.; For related documentation, see 1986.0131.02. Date assigned is copyright date of the instructions.; This Monroe model L calculating machine is not only electrically operated (hence the A in the model number) but has a 20-digit capacity. Although it has a carrying case (hence the X in the model number), there are no extensible feet in the back, as on the L160-X.; Reference:; Monroe Calculating Machine Company, Instruction Book Monroe Adding Calculator LA- Models, Orange, N.J., 1947 (1986.0131.02).
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1947

maker: Monroe Calculating Machine Company

ID Number: 1986.0131.01
catalog number: 1986.0131.01
accession number: 1986.0131

This full keyboard printing electric adding machine has a black steel frame with black, white, and two red plastic keys. Numbers printed are visible.

Description: This full keyboard printing electric adding machine has a black steel frame with black, white, and two red plastic keys. Numbers printed are visible. The ten columns of square numeral keys, with the keys in each column numbered from 1 to 9, are to the left of the column of function keys. Right of the function keys are bars marked for addition and subtraction. The narrow printing mechanism at the back can print numbers of up to 11 digits.; A mark on the front of the machine reads: Burroughs. One on a plate under the keys reads: A550544. IA metal tag screwed to this plate reads: A305. A red paper tag attached to the object reads: PATENT DEPT. (/) #97. A tag to the right of the number keys reads: 139-286. A metal tag attached to the object reads: DONATED TO (/) The Smithsonian Institution (/) by (/) Burroughs Corporation. An electric cord extends from the back of the machine. There is a black cover. A dark brown metal plate found in the box with the machine has no apparent connection to it.; The object was model #97 in the collection of the Patent Division of Burroughs Corporation.
Location: Currently not on view

date made: 1944

maker: Burroughs Adding Machine Company

ID Number: 1982.0794.18
accession number: 1982.0794
catalog number: 1982.0794.18

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