Adders -- Notched Band Adders
Notched Band Adders
Building on ideas of Perrault and de Caze, in an instrument patented in Russia in 1847 Kummer replaced the wooden rods on an adder with metal bands notched on each side. Kummer’s idea was adopted by the Frenchman Troncet, who published what he called an Arithmographe in the 1890s. Adders with notched bands became the most common form of the instrument sold in the United States in the 20th century.
These stylus-operated instruments generally had a crook at the top of each column, to allow one to move adjacent bands in carrying (or, in some cases, borrowing) a digit. They were manufactured around the world. Occasionally, notched band adders were combined with a slide rule, to ease multiplication and division. A special form of the instrument, designed for computer programmers, aided calculations in base 60 rather than usual decimal arithmetic.
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Troncet Arithmographe
- Description
- Louis-J. Troncet patented this instrument in his native France in 1889, and it was published by Larousse. The American scientist Daniel Draper purchased this example in 1895 for $2.50. It came in a small notebook with a set of multiplication tables.
- The Troncet arithmographe, like an instrument issued by the Russian E. Kummer in the 1840s, used flat metal bands with notched edges to represent digits. These bands were moved with the stylus to enter numbers. The instrument has seven crook-shaped columns that reveal the edges of eight notched bands. The crook at the top of each groove is designed to ease carrying or borrowing.
- Eight holes below the columns, labeled “ADDITION”, show the results of addition problems. Eight holes above the columns, labeled “SOUSTRACTION,” show the results of subtraction problems. There is no zeroing mechanism. Troncet’s design was widely adopted by later manufacturers.
- References: Mareschal, G., “Calculateur mecanique instante,” La Nature, 18 annee, 1890, pp. 307-308.
- P. Kidwell, “Scientists and Calculating Machines,” Annals of the History of Computing, 12 (1990): 31-40.
- P. Kidwell, "Adders Made and Used in the United States," Rittenhouse, 1994, 8:78-96.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1895
- maker
- Librairie Larousse
- ID Number
- MA.335348
- catalog number
- 335348
- accession number
- 304826
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Ve-Po-Ad Adder
- Description
- This black and gold notched band adder comes in a maroon cloth-covered cardboard notebook with a rusting stylus. It has eight columns of digits, and nine windows for displaying results. The narrow zeroing rod is at the top. With the object is a piece of the wrapping in which the adder was sent, showing the postage and date mailed.
- With MA.323626, this object is F&T 43 (1&2) from the collection of Felt & Tarrant Manufacturing Company.
- The VE-PO-AD (Vest Pocket Adder) was sold by Reliable Typewriter and Adding Machine Corporation of Chicago from at least 1924 through at least 1940.
- References: Typewriter Topics, 57 (July 1924) p. 80.
- Popular Science Monthly, 126 (January 1933) p. 107.
- Popular Mechanics, 73 (January 1940) p. 127A, (February 1940) p. 151A, (March, 1940) p. 123A.
- P. Kidwell, "Adders Made and Used in the United States," Rittenhouse, 1994, 8:78-96.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1937
- distributor
- Reliable Typewriter & Adding Machine Corporation
- maker
- Reliable Typewriter & Adding Machine Corporation
- ID Number
- MA.323627
- catalog number
- 323627
- accession number
- 250163
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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TASCO Adder
- Description
- This stylus-operated notched band adder has eight columns. A sliding plate atop the machine allows one to adjust the columns for subtraction. A blue-black plastic case holds a metal stylus. Accompanying the instrument are “Instructions for Operating the Pocket Arithmometer.”
- The TASCO pocket arithmometer closely resembles an adder sold by the Gray Arithmometer Company of Ithaca, New York, in the early 20th century. It was distributed by the Morse Chain Company of Ithaca in the 1920s. In 1929, the Morse Chain Company became part of Borg-Warner Corporation. Distribution of the adder soon shifted to the Tavella Sales Company of New York City.
- Compare to 1986.0663.01.
- References: P. Kidwell, “Adders Made and Used in the United States,” Rittenhouse, 8, (1994), pp. 78-96.
- Advertisements in Popular Mechanics 83 (March 1945), p. 178, (April 1945): 180, and (May, 1945), p. 178.
- Popular Science 153 (January 1948), p. 34.
- Utility Supply Company, Office Supply Catalog (Chicago, 1946), p. 285.
- New York Times, October 30, 1949, p. S12.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1945
- distributor
- Tavella Sales Company
- maker
- Borg-Warner Corporation
- ID Number
- MA.313629
- catalog number
- 313629
- accession number
- 189330
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Wizard Calculating Machine
- Description
- This notched band adder has a metal front and a black plastic back. There are eight bracket-shaped columns, nine display windows, a zeroing bar across the top, and a metal stylus that fits in the side (part of the plastic holder has broken off). Between each of the columns there are two rows of numbers, one for addition and the other for subtraction. The adder comes in a blue plastic case.
- According to documentation received with the device, it was distributed by Thoresen, Inc., of New York, N.Y. It is described as “the new 1959 WIZARD with the Magic Reckoner.” The Magic Reckoner was a multiplication table. The machine was made in West Germany.
- This example was given to the Museum by Joan Pearson Watkins, the wife of Smithsonian curator C. Malcolm Watkins. She held various honorary curatorial positions at the National Museum of American History from the 1960s through the 1980s. Compare this object to MA.336448 and 2013.0197.01.
- References: “Wizard Calculating machine,” 1987.0787.02.
- Popular Science, vol. 174, February, 1959, p. 18. Not identical to adder shown in that advertisement.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1960
- distributor
- Thoresen, Inc.
- ID Number
- 1980.0787.01
- accession number
- 1980.0787
- catalog number
- 1980.0787.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Magic-Brain Calculator
- Description
- This adder has a red plastic back and a gray steel front. There are six columns for entering numbers with a stylus, and a seventh notched band to record carries to a seventh digit. A set of seven openings above the bracket-shaped columns of the adder displays the result. A zeroing bar is across the top. The plastic is shaped to hold the steel stylus.
- The object is marked: MAGIC-BRAIN [/] CALCULATOR; ADD + [/] SUBTRACT - [/] MULTIPLY X; and: JAPAN. Instructions are stored separately. Compare to 1987.0375.01.
- References: Popular Science, February, 1962, vol. 180, p. 20. This ad indicates that the Magic-Brain Calculator cost $.98 and was distributed from the Sunset Building, Beverly Hills, California.
- P. Kidwell, “Adders Made and Used in the United States,” Rittenhouse, 8, (1994): pp. 78-96.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1960
- distributor
- Sunset House
- ID Number
- 1993.3058.01
- nonaccession number
- 1993.3058
- catalog number
- 1993.3058.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Magic-Brain Calculator
- Description
- From at least the 19th century, people have been intrigued by the ability of computing devices to assist in mental processes. The name of the “Magic-Brain Calculator” suggests this enthusiasm, although the capabilities of the instrument were quite modest.
- The Japanese-made notched band adder has a red plastic back, a silver-colored metal cover plate, and six fasteners around the edges that hold it together. Six bracket-shaped columns allow for borrowing and carrying. A row of seven holes above the columns shows the result. The bands fit rather loosely in the channels of the plastic back. A zeroing bar runs across the top and a stylus attahes to the side. The object is marked: MAGIC-BRAIN CALCULATOR. On the back It is marked: MADE IN JAPAN. For instructions, see 1987.0375.02.
- References: Popular Science, February, 1962, vol. 180, p. 20. This ad indicates that at that time the Magic-Brain Calculator cost $.98 and was distributed from the Sunset Building, Beverly Hills, California.
- P. Kidwell, “Adders Made and Used in the United States,” Rittenhouse, 8, (1994): pp. 78-96.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1962
- date distributed
- 1962
- distributor
- Sunset House
- ID Number
- 1987.0375.01
- catalog number
- 1987.0375.01
- accession number
- 1987.0375
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Machine A Calculer Rébo
- Description
- By the 1920s, companies in the United States, Germany, and France manufactured inexpensive notched band adders. A firm in Marseille, France, under the direction of engineer E. Reybaud, sold this device from 1922 until at least 1930. This example was from the collection of L. Leland Locke.
- The metal adder and stylus fit into a red paper container. The adder has nine columns of digits and a zeroing bar at the top. Instructions indicate that the device came in two models that sold for 25 and 40 francs. This was sufficiently inexpensive that every member of a commercial firm could have such an adder.
- Reference: “The Register,” Typewriter Topics, vol. 76 (September 1930), p.14.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1925
- maker
- Reybaud, E.
- ID Number
- MA.155183.25
- catalog number
- 155183.25
- accession number
- 155183
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Pro Calculo! Adder
- Description
- Adders like this one were designed to help consumers with addition, but did not actually add automatically. The surface of the metal instrument has seven slots that reveal part of seven flat notched metal bands below. To enter a digit, one pulls down a band with the metal stylus. The hooked shape of the slots exposed a notch in an adjacent band, making it possible to carry or to borrow digits. This adder also has a zeroing bar at the base. It fits into a dark brown paper case.
- Instruments of this type appeared as early as the 1600s, and sold commercially from the 1890s into the 1970s. They sold in Germany from the invention of the “Trick” in 1911. Otto Meuter patented a variation on this device that sold as the Arithma from 1920. Meuter received a fixed fee for each Arithma produced. With inflation, this sum soon was minute.
- Meuter decided to form another company with J. Bergmann and to market adders known as the Pro Calculo! and the Correntator. These sold widely in the 1920s. For example, the trade magazine Typewriter Topics reported that 15,000 ProCalculo! adders sold in 1926. In 1928, the product was renamed the Produx.
- References: Typewriter Topics, 59, February, 1925, p. 84. One model, offered by Pittsburgh Typewriter & Supply, sold for $3.00.
- Typewriter Topics, 67 (November, 1927), p. 50-51. New style adders introduced.
- Martin Reese, Historische Buerowelt, 43 (September 1995).
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1925
- maker
- Pittsburgh Typewriter and Supply Company
- ID Number
- MA.155183.26
- catalog number
- 155183.26
- accession number
- 155183
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Baby Calculator Adder
- Description
- The orange, black, and tan paper box contains a black and gold-colored metal instrument, instructions on pink paper, and a metal stylus. The device has seven columns for addition.
- The Baby Calculator was a handheld adder manufactured by the Calculator Machine Company of Chicago from at least 1925 into the 1940s. The Tavella Sales Company of New York City distributed this example. According to the box, it sold for $2.50 in the United States and $3.00 in Canada and other foreign countries. It has hooks at the top of each column for carrying in addition, but none at the bottom to assist in borrowing in subtraction.
- References:
- Typewriter Topics (March 1925), 59:76.
- Popular Mechanics (January, 1935), p. 128A; vol. 73 (March, 1940), p. 143A; vol. 83 (February, 1945), p. 192. A new design was introduced in 1945. See Popular Mechanics, April, 1945, p. 202.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1925
- distributor
- Tavella Sales Company
- maker
- Calculator Machine Company
- ID Number
- MA.155183.27
- catalog number
- 155183.27
- accession number
- 155183
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
The Little Adding Wonder
- Description
- This notched band adder has a wooden framework. Six paper bands move in six columns, showing the result in six windows. A paper sheet glued to the front has numerals and the name of the device, as well as cutouts to create the columns. A sheet glued to the back gives instructions. The columns widen at the top for carrying in addition and at the bottom for borrowing in subtraction. The object came to the Smithsonian from the collection of Felt and Tarrant Manufacturing Company. The date assigned is quite arbitrary.
- Reference: P. Kidwell, “Adders Made and Used in the United States,” Rittenhouse, 1994, 8:78-96.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1925
- distributor
- Adding Wonder Manufacturers
- maker
- Adding Wonder Manufacturers
- ID Number
- MA.323626
- catalog number
- 323626
- accession number
- 250163
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
TASCO Adder
- Description
- This stylus-operated steel notched band adder has seven crook-shaped columns and one straight one, with eight notched bands below. Eight windows show results, and a narrow clearing lever is at the top. A steel plate slides over seven columns in the shape of inverted crooks, as well as an eighth straight column. These are used in subtraction. Instructions accompany the instrument. Compare to MA.313629.
- The TASCO pocket arithmometer closely resembles an adder sold by the Gray Arithmometer Company of Ithaca, New York, in the early 20th century and distributed by the Morse Chain Company of Ithaca in the 1920s. In 1929, the Morse Chain Company became part of Borg-Warner Corporation. Distribution of the adder soon shifted to the Tavella Sales Company of New York City.
- References: P. Kidwell, “Adders Made and Used in the United States,” Rittenhouse, 8, (1994): pp. 78-96.
- Advertisements in Popular Mechanics 83 (March 1945), p. 178, (April 1945): 180, and (May, 1945), p. 178. Popular Science 152 (January 1948), p. 34.
- Utility Supply Company, Office Supply Catalog (Chicago, 1946), p. 285.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1945
- distributor
- Tavella Sales Company
- maker
- Tavella Sales Company
- ID Number
- 1986.0663.01
- accession number
- 1986.0663
- catalog number
- 1986.0663.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Exactus Mini-Add
- Description
- This black and silver-colored metal instrument is a notched band adder with nine bands, eight columns, and a nine-digit display. Its bracket-shaped columns are color-coded for dollars and cents. A plate attached to the top which covers the lower part, for use in addition, or pivots and covers the upper part, for use in subtraction. Across the top is a zeroing bar. The device includes a metal stylus and fits in a black plastic case which also holds several yellowing sheets of paper. Instructions are stored with the object.
- This British adder was received at the Smithsonian in about 1970. It seems likely that it was made in the mid-20th century.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1950
- maker
- Exactus
- ID Number
- 1987.0788.04
- accession number
- 1987.0788
- catalog number
- 1987.0788.04
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Wizard Calculating Machine
- Description
- This notched band adder has nine bands, eight bracket-shaped columns, and nine display windows. It has a black plastic back, a metal cover plate, and a metal stylus. A zeroing bar is across the top. The stylus fits on the side. There are two rows of numbers alongside the columns, one for addition and one for subtraction. There are no numbers along the extreme edges of the columns on either side. The machine was imported from West Germany.
- Compare to 1980.0787.01 and 2013.0197.01.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1955
- distributor
- Thoresen, Inc.
- ID Number
- MA.336448
- accession number
- 1977.1159
- catalog number
- 336448
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
W Calculator, an Adder
- Description
- After World War II, inexpensive adders were produced in both Europe and Asia. This example has 8 notched bands on the front, with space at the top of each band for carrying and at the bottom for borrowing. Totals of up to 9 digits appear in round openings above the bands.The front is ferrous metal painted gold, black, and white. The back is black plastic. A metal stylus for entering numbers is on the right and a zeroing bar extends across the top.
- A mark at the top of the adder reads: W CALCULATOR. A mark below the bands reads: ADD (/) SUBTRACT (/) MULTIPLY. A mark at the bottom of the back reads: MADE IN WEST GERMANY.
- The object was collected by the donor.
- Compare to adders MA.336448 and 1980.0787.01, which sold as Wizard calculating machines.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1955
- ID Number
- 2013.0197.01
- accession number
- 2013.0197
- catalog number
- 2013.0197.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Addiator Universal, Standard Model
- 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
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Addiator Duplex
- Description
- This notched band adder is made of steel painted black, gold, and white. It has a steel stylus and a brown leather case. The front of the instrument has eight columns of numbers with a band under each column. A hook at the top of each column allows carrying and a ninth band allows carrying from the eighth column. Sums as large as nine digits are displayed in round openings above the columns. On the back are eight columns of numbers for doing subtraction. A zeroing bar extends across the bottom of the back (the top of the front).
- 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.
- Reference: Martin Reese, Historische Buerowelt, 43 (September 1995).
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1955
- maker
- Addiator G.m.b.H.
- ID Number
- 1989.0325.01
- accession number
- 1989.0325
- catalog number
- 1989.0325.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Produx Adder
- Description
- This metal instrument is painted green and gold. It has eight metal bands that are painted red on the upper side. The plastic case is clear in front and green in back. It holds a metal stylus. Seven columns reveal the bands and eight holes show results. At the top, the columns are shaped for subtraction, at the bottom for addition. When numbers are entered, the bands extend beyond the base of the adder. They may be removed. There is no zeroing mechanism.
- This adder was among those invented by Otto Meuter, a German. Meuter was first associated with various versions of the Addiator and then, in the early 1920s, formed a company with J. Bergmann to produce the ProCalculo! and the Correntator. In 1928, he began to sell the Produx. After World War II, the Produx was still manufactured in West Germany, while the East Germans sold a similar machine called the Record.This machine dates from after World War II.
- References: Business Equipment Topics 83 (January, 1933), p. 67. This shows a version of the newly introduced Produx calculator. It features separate grooves for addition and subtraction.
- Martin Reese, Historische Buerowelt 43 (September 1995).
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1955
- ID Number
- 1989.0709.02
- accession number
- 1989.0709
- catalog number
- 1989.0709.02
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Kalkometer
- Description
- This notched band adder has a metal front and back, painted gray and black. There are eight columns, eight bands, and eight windows below the bands to show the result. The columns are hooked at the top for carrying and at the bottom for borrowing. Along each column, a row of digits along the right provides for addition and, along the left, for subtraction. Across the top is a zeroing bar. The stylus fits across the inside top of a green leather carrying case. The machine is marked: MADE IN U.S.A. It is also marked: Adds [/] Subtracts [/] Aids in Multiplication.
- This small device was given to the Smithsonian by economic consultant Frank M. Graves.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1960
- ID Number
- 1979.0601.01
- accession number
- 1979.0601
- catalog number
- 1979.0601.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Arithma by Addiator
- Description
- This black and gold-colored metal, comb-sized notched band adder has six columns above for addition and six below for subtraction. Ten notches of any one band appear only in addition, ten in both addition and subtraction, and ten in subtraction alone. The columns on top are crook-shaped to allow for carrying and those at the bottom in the shape of an inverted crook to allow for borrowing. Six holes in the middle show the result. Across the top is a zeroing bar. Leather case.
- 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. According to the donor, an employee of Volkswagen of America in Chicago brought it to the United States.
- Instructions stored with documentation.
- References: Popular Science, vol. 172, March, 1958, p. 66.
- Popular Science, vol. 178, January, 1961, p. 41.
- Thorp & Martin Corp., Office Supplies and Equipment Purchasing Guide, Boston, 1968, p. 372.
- P. Kidwell, Rittenhouse, 1994, 8:78-96.
- Martin Reese, Historische Buerowelt, 43 (September 1995).
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1960
- distributor
- Harrison Home Products Corporation
- maker
- Addiator G.m.b.H.
- ID Number
- 1986.0543.01
- accession number
- 1986.0543
- catalog number
- 1986.0543.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Valiant Personal Calculator
- Description
- This small notched band adder has six serrated metal strips arranged in columns that may be moved up and down with an aluminum stylus. The front is also aluminum, partly colored blue. The back is steel painted white, and the zeroing bar is brass. At the top front of the instrument, the six columns are used for addition and the openings are crook-shaped for carrying. As the bottom, the same strips are used for subtraction and the openings have an inverted crook for borrowing. The instrument is marked on the back: JAPAN. Compare Addiator Universal (1988.0807.04) and Addiator Arithma (1986.0543.01).
- According to the donor, Kathleen Dolores Barberini used this particular Valiant Personal Calculator to maintain her household budget. Barberini believed that she used it in the 1950s. The Valiant personal calculator was advertised as selling for 99 cents in the Los Angeles Times in 1960.
- Reference: Los Angeles Times, July 17, 1960, p. D4.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1960
- ID Number
- 1992.0548.01
- accession number
- 1992.0548
- catalog number
- 1992.0548.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
