Austin Adding Machine

Austin Adding Machine

<< >>
Usage conditions apply
Downloads
Description
This adding machine has an iron frame with glass sides, back, and top. Across the front are ten plastic-covered keys. The operating crank is on the right side. The number entered appears in one window under the glass, and the total in another window. Decimal points and commas are represented by painted arrows. There is a zeroing lever on the left side. The machine does not print. The machine is marked: AUSTIN. It is also marked: Austin Adding Machine (/) Baltimore. U.S.A. A tag attached to the base on the inside of the machine toward the back is stamped with the serial number: A-1224.
The donor acquired this machine in the early 1960s from a veterinarian’s office, where it had remained after the doctor passed away in the early 1930s.
References:
Sydney B. Austin, “Adding, Subtracting and Multiplying Machine,” US Patent 1,034565, August 6, 1912.
E. Martin, The Calculating Machines (Die Rechenmaschinen), trans. P. A. Kidwell and M. R. Williams, Cambridge: MIT Press, 1992, p. 267.
Accession File.
Location
Currently not on view
Object Name
adding machine
date made
1912
maker
Austin Adding Machine Company
place made
United States: Maryland, Baltimore
Physical Description
iron (overall material)
glass (overall material)
plastic (overall material)
Measurements
overall: 20.5 cm x 27.5 cm x 35.5 cm; 8 1/16 in x 10 13/16 in x 13 31/32 in
ID Number
MA.333895
accession number
304348
catalog number
333895
Credit Line
Gift of Richard Peshek
subject
Mathematics
See more items in
Medicine and Science: Mathematics
Adding Machines
Science & Mathematics
Data Source
National Museum of American History
Nominate this object for photography.   

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.

Note: Comment submission is temporarily unavailable while we make improvements to the site. We apologize for the interruption. If you have a question relating to the museum's collections, please first check our Collections FAQ. If you require a personal response, please use our Contact page.