This electrically powered machine is part of a Remington Rand punched card data processing system. The sorter could arrange Remington Rand punch cards into any sequence, usually a numerical, alphabetic, or alphanumeric sequence. It has a gray metal exterior and several bins, arranged horizontally, into which the cards are sorted.
A mark on a tag attached to the machine reads: Model 20 Type 321. A mark on another tag reads: A.F.L.-C.I.O (/) HEADQUARTERS (/) 38. Another mark reads: Remington Rand.
This machine is part of a system owned by the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, an important American labor union formed by the merger of the A.F.L. and the C.I.O. in 1955. According to Diebold, in 1956 a 321 automatic sorter that sorted 420 cards per minute sold for $3,452 and rented for $50 per month.
Reference:
John Diebold & Associates, "Remington Rand Type 320 and 321 Automatic Sorters," Automatic Data Processing Equipment, Chicago: Cudahy Publishing Company, 1957. The report, dated 1956, is in section 4A 660.4, pp. 1–4.
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.