Computers & Business Machines
Imagine the loss, 100 years from now, if museums hadn't begun preserving the artifacts of the computer age. The last few decades offer proof positive of why museums must collect continuously—to document technological and social transformations already underway.
The museum's collections contain mainframes, minicomputers, microcomputers, and handheld devices. Computers range from the pioneering ENIAC to microcomputers like the Altair and the Apple I. A Cray2 supercomputer is part of the collections, along with one of the towers of IBM's Deep Blue, the computer that defeated reigning champion Garry Kasparov in a chess match in 1997. Computer components and peripherals, games, software, manuals, and other documents are part of the collections. Some of the instruments of business include adding machines, calculators, typewriters, dictating machines, fax machines, cash registers, and photocopiers
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Remington Rand Univac Minimum Latency Calculator Slide Rule
- Description
- This circular device was an aid to programming the UNIVAC solid state computer. It consists of a paper disc, with equal divisions running from 1 to 200 near the edge, and a clear plastic rotating disc. These are pivoted together at the center. The upper disc is marked in red with two perpendicular diameters. The lower disc is marked: MINIMUM LATENCY CALCULATOR FOR THE UNIVAC SOLID-STATE COMPUTER. The UNIVAC had a magnetic storage drum on which locations were specified numerically. The latency calculator allowed programmers to write code for the machine to make the most efficient possible use of the drum memory.
- The back of the instrument gives a list of instruction codes and corresponding execution times for words. It is marked: Remington Rand Univac. It is also marked: U1767 Rev. 1 PRINTED (/) IN (/) U.S.A. The rule was received in a paper bag.
- Reference: Sperry Rand Corporation, Simple Transition to Electronic Processing, UNIVAC Solid-State 80, (1960), 18–26.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- after 1950
- maker
- Remington Rand Univac
- ID Number
- 2005.0271.01
- accession number
- 2005.0271
- catalog number
- 2005.0271.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Corona No. 3 Typewriter
- Description
- This is a Corona Three folding typewriter that was manufactured by Corona Typewriter Company of Groton, New York around 1920. The Corona Three was an extremely popular typewriter, produced from 1912 until 1941. This model has serial number 394384, dating it to 1920. This typewriter’s platen and carriage can fold down to rest on the keyboard, allowing it to become compact and portable.
- The success of the Standard Typewriter Company’s Corona Three model typewriter prompted the company to change its name to the Corona Typewriting Company in 1914. In 1926 the company joined with the L. C. Smith & Brothers Typewriting company in to become Smith-Corona. Smith-Corona manufactured typewriters and typewriter accessories throughout the 20th century, becoming Smith Corona Marchant in 1958. After two bankruptcies, Smith Corona returned to operation in 2010 as a thermal paper manufacturing company.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1920 - 1929
- maker
- L. C. Smith & Corona Typewriters Inc.
- ID Number
- ME.326636
- catalog number
- 326636
- accession number
- 261574
- serial number
- 394384
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Corona No. 3 Typewriter
- Description
- This Corona typewriter was manufactured by the Corona Typewriter Company, Inc. of Groton, New York sometime around 1923-1925. The typewriter is a front-striking model with a three row QWERTY keyboard, likely the Corona No. 3 although it lacks the “3” numbering on the frame below the spacebar. The Standard Typewriting Company began producing a folding model of typewriter in Groton around 1907.
- The success of the Standard Typewriter Company’s Corona model typewriter prompted the company to change its named to the Corona Typewriting Company in 1914. In 1926 the company joined with the L. C. Smith & Brothers Typewriting company to become Smith-Corona. Smith-Corona manufactured typewriters and typewriter accessories throughout the 20th century, becoming Smith Corona Marchant in 1958. After two bankruptcies, Smith-Corona returned to operation in 2010 as a thermal paper manufacturing company.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1923 - 1925
- maker
- Corona Typewriter Company
- ID Number
- ME.336759
- catalog number
- 336759
- accession number
- 1978.2479
- serial number
- 590430
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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IBM PCjr Personal Computer
- Description
- After the success of the IBM's business PC, IBM attempted to capture the home market with the IBM PCjr. The PCjr system was compact, low cost, and designed for applications related to learning, entertainment, and personal productivity.
- The computer had an Intel 8088 microprocessor that ran at 4.77 MHz–faster than most systems on the market at the time. It 64 KB of RAM, which could be expanded to 256 KB and later to 720 KB with third party add-ons. It featured an internal 5 1/4" floppy drive and a wireless keyboard. King's Quest, a popular Adventure game of the 1980s, debuted on the PCjr.
- Despite a flashy debut and a strong technology core, the PCjr flopped in the market. Consumers were not as attracted by the IBM name as business had been. Price was a major factor. The PCjr cost about the same as the Coleco Adam, but for the price, the Adam included two tape drives, a printer, and software. The PCJr was twice as expensive as the Commodore 64. With the exception of the Apple II, it was possible to purchase a complete system (computer, disk drive, and printer) from almost any of IBM's competitors for less money. However, criticism of the system focused on the "chiclet" keyboard. Similar to that of a pocket calculator, the small keys were cheap and difficult to use for touch typing. IBM later replaced this with a wireless conventional-sized keyboard. But it could only be used two or three feet away from the machine and drained batteries quickly.
- Announced in November 1983 and available in March 1984, IBM sold the PCJr for $669 with 64 KB RAM, and $1,269 for 128 KB RAM. The more expensive system also included a floppy-disk drive. IBM discontinued the PCjr in March of 1985 after selling only approximately 270,000 units.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1983
- maker
- IBM
- ID Number
- 2002.0090.01
- catalog number
- 2002.0090.01
- accession number
- 2002.0090
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Sheets, IBM System/360 Consolidated Index
- Description
- This undated document lists the documents in the IBM System/360 reference library alphabetically, each with its subject code and form number. This particular publication has IBM file number S360-00 and IBM form number A24-3469-0.
- The final page is a reader survey form.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- maker
- IBM
- ID Number
- 1994.3128.10
- catalog number
- 1994.3128.10
- nonaccession number
- 1994.3128
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Pamphlet, IBM Electronic Data Processing Machines Type 705
- Description
- This is the preliminary manual of operation for the IBM 705 electronic data processing system, as revised in February, 1956.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1956
- maker
- IBM
- ID Number
- 1995.3080.04.18
- nonaccession number
- 1995.3080
- catalog number
- 1995.3080.04.18
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Book, Methods of Operations Research
- Description
- This pioneering textbook on operations research was coauthored by Philip M. Morse (1903-1985), a professor of physics at M.I.T., and quantum chemist George E. Kimball (1906-1967), who also was on the faculty there. During World War II the two men worked for the U.S. Navy on a project relating to the mathematical analysis of Nazi U--boat operations. After the war, they envisioned a more general theory of mathematical analysis of industrial, governmental, and military operations, which is presented here.
- This copy of the book is from the personal library of William F. Eberth (1905-1976), who spent fifteen years of his career with the Atomic Energy Commission working in South Africa. The copy is not annotated.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1951
- maker
- Morse , Philip M.
- Kimball, George E.
- ID Number
- MA.319872.10
- accession number
- 1975319872
- catalog number
- 319872.10
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Parts Catalog, Underwood Sundstrand Portable Electric Adding Machines Fraction & L-S-D
- Description
- This well-worn catalog is stapled together and punched along the left side. A "Serviceman's Part Order" is stapled to one page.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1940-02-09
- maker
- Underwood Elliot Fisher Company
- ID Number
- 1990.3188.01
- nonaccession number
- 1990.3188
- catalog number
- 1990.3188.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Sholes & Gildden Type Writer
- Description
- Remington put its writing machines on the market in 1874 at a price of $125. The new Type Writer owed some of its identity to the sewing machines that Remington had recently added to its product line. The writing machine came mounted on a sewing machine stand, with a treadle to operate the carriage return and advance the paper on the platen. Even the Type Writer's shiny black case, elaborately decorated with floral designs and emblems, resembled the factory's sewing machines.
- This machine is Remington's first model. With it, a writer could type only capital letters. A second model, available in 1878, permitted writing in both upper and lower case. From the beginning, the keyboard was arranged in the enduring QWERTY pattern. The designers adopted the layout to prevent the mechanical type bars, arranged in a circle inside the machine, from clashing in operation.
- Although the Remington-made Type Writer was not the first mechanical writing machine, it was the earliest to have commercial success. At first Type Writers sold poorly, although author Mark Twain bought one immediately and described his "new fangled writing machine" in a letter to his brother. Gradually, Remington had success in creating a market for the machines and even spurred competitors to make their own versions. The modern typewriter industry was born.
- The introduction and spread of the typewriter accompanied a revolution in the business world. The last twenty-five years of the 19th century witnessed the growth of corporations and the reinvention of the business office. Mechanized work in the office replaced hand work, as specialized machines of all sorts speeded up paper transactions. New designs for furniture specific to the office appeared. The physical appearance of the office building, the composition of the work force, and the very organization of work itself changed. In opening acceptable— but low-level—white-collar work for women, the typewriter became an agent of social change.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1874 - 1878
- patentee
- Sholes, C. Latham
- Glidden, Carlos
- maker
- E. Remington & Sons
- ID Number
- ME.276068
- catalog number
- 276068
- accession number
- 54877
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Software, Nota Bene
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1998-1999
- ID Number
- 2014.3098.01
- catalog number
- 2014.3098.01
- nonaccession number
- 2014.3098
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Corona No. 3 Typewriter
- Description
- This is a Corona Three folding typewriter that was manufactured by the Corona Typewriter Company of Groton, New York around 1930. The Corona Three was an extremely popular typewriter, produced from 1912 until 1941. This model has serial number 650136, dating it to 1930. This typewriter’s platen and carriage can fold down to rest on the keyboard, allowing it to become compact and portable.
- The success of the Standard Typewriter Company’s Corona Three model typewriter prompted the company to change its name to the Corona Typewriting Company in 1914. In 1926 the company joined with the L. C. Smith & Brothers Typewriting company in to become Smith-Corona. Smith-Corona manufactured typewriters and typewriter accessories throughout the 20th century, becoming Smith Corona Marchant in 1958. After two bankruptcies, Smith Corona returned to operation in 2010 as a thermal paper manufacturing company.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1924 - 1926
- maker
- L. C. Smith & Corona Typewriters Inc.
- ID Number
- ME.330702
- catalog number
- 330702
- accession number
- 296465
- serial number
- x650136
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Hall Index Typewriter
- Description
- Thomas Hall was awarded patent number 238,387 on March 1, 1881 for his “Type-Writer” design represented in this typewriter. The Hall Typewriter was manufactured by the Hall Typewriter Company of New York, New York, beginning in 1881. The company moved from New York to Salem in 1887, then Boston in 1889, producing a similar model typewriter in all three locations. This Salem variant of the Hall index typewriter began to be produced in 1887. Index typewriters have no keyboard—the characters are selected by a pointer system. In the Hall index typewriter each hole on the grid corresponds to a character, pushing the key through the hole imprints the letter on the page and shifts the page over one space. This typewriter is contained in a wooden carrying case, with a metal handle and a metal plaque that bears the image of a feather with the inscription “HALL TYPE WRITER Co./TRADEMARK/SALEM, MASS.”
- Location
- Currently not on view
- maker
- Hall Typewriter Co.
- ID Number
- ME.314603
- catalog number
- 314603
- accession number
- 205421
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
New Franklin Typewriter
- Description
- This New Franklin typewriter was manufactured by the Franklin Typewriter Company of New York, New York around 1904. The design for the Franklin typewriter was patented by Wellington P. Kidder, receiving patent number 464,504 on December 8, 1891. The main feature of the Franklin typewriter is its series of radial type bars that carry multiple typefaces. The curved Franklin keyboard remains one of its most distinctive features.
- The Tilton Manufacturing Company of Boston, Massachusetts was originally assigned patents to both the Victor Index Typewriter (invented by Arthur Jacobs in 1889) and the Franklin typewriter (invented by Wellington Kidder in 1891). Eventually, both these typewriters were sold by their own companies, with the Victor Typewriter Company staying in Boston and the Franklin Typewriter Company moving to New York. The Franklin Typewriter Company began producing Franklin Typewriters in 1892, releasing numerous models before the company went bankrupt in 1904. The Victor Typewriter Company of Boston absorbed the interests of the Franklin Typewriter Company in 1907 and moved into its New York factory and offices at 812 and 814 Greenwich Street, producing its new visible frontstriking typewriter Victor No.1 that same year.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1904
- maker
- Franklin Typewriter Manufacturing Company
- ID Number
- 1981.0107.01
- accession number
- 1981.0107
- catalog number
- 1981.0107.01
- 81.0107.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Corona No. 4 Typewriter
- Description
- This Corona Four model typewriter was manufactured by the Corona Typewriter Company Incorporated of Groton, New York around 1924. The Corona Four had a smaller frame to allow portability. The Corona Four had 42 full size keys, a 10-inch carriage, a 2-color ribbon, and an accelerating type bar action.
- The success of the Standard Typewriter Company’s Corona model typewriter prompted the company to change its named to the Corona Typewriting Company in 1914. In 1926 the company joined with the L. C. Smith & Brothers Typewriting company to become Smith-Corona. Smith-Corona manufactured typewriters and typewriter accessories throughout the 20th century, becoming Smith Corona Marchant in 1958. After two bankruptcies, Smith-Corona returned to operation in 2010 as a thermal paper manufacturing company.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1925
- maker
- Corona Typewriter Company
- ID Number
- ME.308355
- catalog number
- 308355
- accession number
- 85488
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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George W. N. Yost Typewriter Patent Model
- Description
- This typewriter patent model was used by George W.N. Yost in his patent application that received patent number 408,061 on July 30th, 1889. The patent claimed several improvements to typewriter machines including a combination of the carriage and line-spacing apparatus with a lever used for line and letter spacing, the “combination of two extra key levers and connecting rods with the platen transverse reciprocating apparatus of a type-writing machine and a series of key-levers for operating the type-bars located between said extra key-levers.”
- Location
- Currently not on view
- patent date
- 1889-07-30
- inventor
- Yost, George W. N.
- ID Number
- ME.308638
- catalog number
- 308638
- patent number
- 408061
- accession number
- 89797
- patent number
- 408,061
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Pamphlet, 705 Autocoder System Macro-Instruction Manual
- Description
- Thisillustrated pamphlet describes new methods of "preparing programs" for the IBM 705 electronic data processing machine, compiling instructions written "in a simple notation" and automatically translating them into a language understood by the machine.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1957
- maker
- IBM
- ID Number
- 1995.3080.04.21
- nonaccession number
- 1995.3080
- catalog number
- 1995.3080.04.21
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Electromatic Typewriter
- Description
- The Electromatic brand typewriter was manufactured by the North East Electric Company of Rochester, New York, beginning in 1924. The North East Electric Company produced the motor and base for the Electromatic, and used a Remington model 12 as the typewriter. When Remington did not supply the North East Electric Co. with more typewriters, the company became Electromatic Typewriters Incorporated in 1929 to produce its own Electromatics, before being purchased by IBM in 1933. This typewriter was likely produced between 1929 and 1933.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1929 - 1933
- maker
- Electromatic Typewriters, Inc.
- ID Number
- ME.312857
- catalog number
- 312857
- accession number
- 169125
- serial number
- P-144
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Model Relating to Powers Tabulating Equipment
- Description
- The wooden base of this model holds a metal container with a paper punch card that fits in it. A metal piece swings from a crosspiece above the card. The base also holds supports for another metal crosspiece. Three metal pieces rotate with this crosspiece. The base also holds two larger, facing metal rectangles. One rectangle has a plastic piece screwed to the top.
- A mark on the right side of the punch card reads: POWERS ACCOUNTING MACHINE COMPANY (/) ACCOUNTS PAYABLE. A mark on the left side of the punch card reads: P1384. The punched holes are round.
- A piece of paper pasted to the top of the base reads: This model represents my new (/) invention of a tabulator in connec- (/) tion with perforated cards, elimina- (/) ting a pin box of 540 pins and sub- (/) stitution forty-five levers instead. (/) Also eliminating connection box, with (/) both of these improvements the speed (/) will be doubled and such machine will (/) be small in size, cheaper to build, (/) more flexible and easier to manipulate. (/) August 19, 1924 (/) James Powers. Also signing the document were Fred J. Dole, Charles E. Whiteman and Achilles Rovegno, all of whom had associations with Francis H. Richards of New York, Powers’s patent attorney.
- No patent corresponding to this invention has been found.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1924
- maker
- James Powers
- ID Number
- 1991.0871.03
- accession number
- 1991.0871
- catalog number
- 1991.0871.03
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Sheets, IBM 360 . . . Emulation of IBM 1401/1460
- Description
- This document describes use of the IBM1401/1460 emulator for use with the IBM System/360 Model 40, that is to say it discusses ways of useing the Model 40 to run programs written for the IBM 1401 or IBM 1406 with relatively little reprogramming. The stapled sheets have IBM file number S360-35 and IBM form number C28-6561-2.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1966
- maker
- IBM
- ID Number
- 1994.3128.11
- catalog number
- 1994.3128.11
- nonaccession number
- 1994.3128
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Sheets, IBM Operating System/360
- Description
- This illustrated document introduces the basic concepts of the operating system for the IBM/360. It has IBM file number S360-36 and IBM form number C28-6535-0.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1965
- maker
- IBM
- ID Number
- 1994.3128.13
- catalog number
- 1994.3128.13
- nonaccession number
- 1994.3128
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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