[SIGCIS-Members] Seeking Information on Adding Machines, Mechanical Calculators, etc. Designed and Used in the U.S. Prior to 1877

Sat Dec 24 05:37:08 PST 2022

Thanks a lot, Jim. 
Happy Holidays and best wishes from Paris! 
Pierre 

De: "James Cortada" <jcortada at umn.edu> 
À: "Pierre Mounier-Kuhn" <mounier at msh-paris.fr> 
Cc: "Bernard Dionysius Geoghegan" <bernardgeoghegan2010 at u.northwestern.edu>, "David Foster" <davidfos at ttu.edu>, "Foster, David via Members" <members at lists.sigcis.org> 
Envoyé: Samedi 24 Décembre 2022 13:51:55 
Objet: Re: [SIGCIS-Members] Seeking Information on Adding Machines, Mechanical Calculators, etc. Designed and Used in the U.S. Prior to 1877 

Pierre, Happy Holidays friend! Her article is a chapter in a book published in 2016. Description: [ https://brill.com/display/book/9789004324930/B9789004324930_006.xml | https://brill.com/display/book/9789004324930/B9789004324930_006.xml ] 
I suggest you go to Google Scholar, too, because she has written several related articles that might be of interest to you, some of which you can download and were published by the IEEE Annals of the History of Computing. 

Jim 

On Sat, Dec 24, 2022 at 6:27 AM Pierre Mounier-Kuhn via Members < [ mailto:members at lists.sigcis.org | members at lists.sigcis.org ] > wrote: 

Thanks, Bernard, for thus duly blowing Peggy's trumpet! 

I would love to read her essay “ Mathematical Instruments Changing Hands at World’s Fairs, 1851–1904 ”, whose title promises stimulating dialogues with my own paper. 

Is it accessible online? 

Best wishes and merry Christmas to all. 

Pierre Mounier-Kuhn 

De: "Bernard Dionysius Geoghegan" < [ mailto:bernardgeoghegan2010 at u.northwestern.edu | bernardgeoghegan2010 at u.northwestern.edu ] > 
À: "Peggy Kidwell" < [ mailto:kidwellp at si.edu | kidwellp at si.edu ] >, "Foster, David via Members" < [ mailto:members at lists.sigcis.org | members at lists.sigcis.org ] >, "Pierre Mounier-Kuhn" < [ mailto:mounier at msh-paris.fr | mounier at msh-paris.fr ] >, "David Foster" < [ mailto:davidfos at ttu.edu | davidfos at ttu.edu ] > 
Envoyé: Samedi 24 Décembre 2022 09:03:01 
Objet: Re: [SIGCIS-Members] Seeking Information on Adding Machines, Mechanical Calculators, etc. Designed and Used in the U.S. Prior to 1877 

Hi All, 

Since Peggy didn’t mention it, I will: Her essay “ Mathematical Instruments Changing Hands at World’s Fairs, 1851–1904 ” is a great and highly relevant, too! 

Best, Bernard 

From: Members < [ mailto:members-bounces at lists.sigcis.org | members-bounces at lists.sigcis.org ] > on behalf of Kidwell, Peggy via Members < [ mailto:members at lists.sigcis.org | members at lists.sigcis.org ] > 
Date: Friday, 23 December 2022 at 23:26 
To: Foster, David via Members < [ mailto:members at lists.sigcis.org | members at lists.sigcis.org ] >, Pierre Mounier-Kuhn < [ mailto:mounier at msh-paris.fr | mounier at msh-paris.fr ] >, Foster, David < [ mailto:davidfos at ttu.edu | davidfos at ttu.edu ] > 
Subject: Re: [SIGCIS-Members] Seeking Information on Adding Machines, Mechanical Calculators, etc. Designed and Used in the U.S. Prior to 1877 

You might also wish to check out the “web object groups” on adding machines, calculating machines, and adders on the web page of the Smithsonian’sNational Museum of American History. In addition to a general introduction and a list of resources, there are descriptions of individual types of machine. Within each section, the machines are arranged chronologically. Be sure to click on the title of an object to bring up more information. 

Good luck! 

Peggy Kidwell 

NMAH 

From: Members < [ mailto:members-bounces at lists.sigcis.org | members-bounces at lists.sigcis.org ] > on behalf of Foster, David via Members < [ mailto:members at lists.sigcis.org | members at lists.sigcis.org ] > 
Sent: Friday, December 23, 2022 2:09 PM 
To: Pierre Mounier-Kuhn < [ mailto:mounier at msh-paris.fr | mounier at msh-paris.fr ] > 
Cc: members < [ mailto:members at lists.sigcis.org | members at lists.sigcis.org ] > 
Subject: Re: [SIGCIS-Members] Seeking Information on Adding Machines, Mechanical Calculators, etc. Designed and Used in the U.S. Prior to 1877 

External Email - Exercise Caution 

Thank you, sir! I just downloaded your paper. 

I will follow up! Greatly appreciated. 

Best/Dave 

From: Pierre Mounier-Kuhn < [ mailto:mounier at msh-paris.fr | mounier at msh-paris.fr ] > 
Date: Friday, December 23, 2022 at 12:36 
To: Foster, David < [ mailto:davidfos at ttu.edu | davidfos at ttu.edu ] > 
Cc: members < [ mailto:members at lists.sigcis.org | members at lists.sigcis.org ] > 
Subject: Re: [SIGCIS-Members] Seeking Information on Adding Machines, Mechanical Calculators, etc. Designed and Used in the U.S. Prior to 1877 

This email originated outside TTU. Please [ https://nam02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Faskit.ttu.edu%2Fphishing&data=05%7C01%7Ckidwellp%40si.edu%7Ca1ed774fc32f4e36a8fb08dae5238934%7C989b5e2a14e44efe93b78cdd5fc5d11c%7C0%7C0%7C638074238055546676%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=%2BkjLmqqzkYVcuBaCWthWQpvUh7v5Ezaglj39WkQmWhk%3D&reserved=0 | 
exercise caution ] ! 

Hello Dave. 

I am very interested in this topic. Recently I attempted to sketch an economic history of this nascent industrial sector, with this exploratory paper written from a European point of view: 

[ https://nam02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.academia.edu%2F41536923%2FLindustrie_des_calculatrices_un_leadership_fran%25C3%25A7ais_suivi_dune_domination_germanique_et_am%25C3%25A9ricaine_The_Calculator_Industry_in_the_XIXth_century_An_Early_French_Leadership_Swept_Away_by_New_Entrants&data=05%7C01%7Ckidwellp%40si.edu%7Ca1ed774fc32f4e36a8fb08dae5238934%7C989b5e2a14e44efe93b78cdd5fc5d11c%7C0%7C0%7C638074238055546676%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=Cu0i34FW2l2n0tdAlndIIYL4rJWPStp1%2BIEcBGIw5w8%3D&reserved=0 | https://www.academia.edu/41536923/Lindustrie_des_calculatrices_un_leadership_fran%C3%A7ais_suivi_dune_domination_germanique_et_am%C3%A9ricaine_The_Calculator_Industry_in_the_XIXth_century_An_Early_French_Leadership_Swept_Away_by_New_Entrants ] 

I would be glad to discuss the matter with you and other connoisseurs within SIGCIS. Certainly de Colmar’s Arithmometre made its way across the Atlantic, both as direct exports from the Paris workshop or as later clones (Burckhardt, Saxonia through Carl Reuter, etc.). That it "inspired some emulation or other ideas" is obvious, if only with the very name of Felt's "Comptometer". Toward 1900, some 15 companies in Europe were making and marketing Arithmometre clones, so it would be surprising not to find similar ventures in America, along with makers of more modern designs. 

Happy Holidays & New Year to all! 

Regards, 

Pierre 

Pierre Mounier-Kuhn 
CNRS, Sorbonne Université & CentraleSupélec 

[ https://cnrs.academia.edu/PierreMounierKuhn | https://cnrs.academia.edu/PierreMounierKuhn ] 
[ https://laboutique.edpsciences.fr/produit/1255/9782759827053/histoire-illustree-de-l-informatique | https://laboutique.edpsciences.fr/produit/1255/9782759827053/histoire-illustree-de-l-informatique ] 
[ http://www.rdv-histoire.com/mounier-kuhn-pierre-eric | http://www.rdv-histoire.com/mounier-kuhn-pierre-eric ] 

De: "Foster, David via Members" < [ mailto:members at lists.sigcis.org | members at lists.sigcis.org ] > 
À: "members" < [ mailto:members at lists.sigcis.org | members at lists.sigcis.org ] > 
Envoyé: Vendredi 23 Décembre 2022 18:48:52 
Objet: [SIGCIS-Members] Seeking Information on Adding Machines, Mechanical Calculators, etc. Designed and Used in the U.S. Prior to 1877 

Hello SIGCIS! 

I have the opportunity to do a research paper for a Spring term historiography course and I’d like to depart from the themes of the assigned readings and return to research in the realm of computing history. Given the chronological constraint of 1877 as the upper year, I can get just a bit into the beginning timeframe of James Cortada’s Before the Computer and had been thinking that devices like de Colmar’s Arithmometre (1820) must have made their way across the Atlantic and inspired some emulation or other ideas. The good people at the reference section of the LOC have given me some useful background and I’ve rec’d some valuable tips on patent search and organization methodologies. I have just started to search the patent history (calculators, adding machines, etc.), but any advice or insights on 19 th century American “computing” from the group are greatly appreciated. 

Happy Holidays & New Year! 

Regards, Dave 

Dave Foster 

PhD Student 

Department of History 

Texas Tech University 

[ mailto:davidfos at ttu.edu | davidfos at ttu.edu ] 

[ http://linkedin.com/in/david-w-foster | linkedin.com/in/david-w-foster ] 

806-282-4856 

Learner | Intellection | Context | Ideation | Input 

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-- 
James W. Cortada 
Senior Research Fellow 
Charles Babbage Institute 
University of Minnesota 
[ mailto:jcortada at umn.edu | jcortada at umn.edu ] 
608-274-6382 

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