ETCetera Journal of the Early Collectors’ Association No. 116 • Spring 2017

Editor’s Notes 2 Restoring the Oldest Hammond 3 Eugene Cass with Hammond 6 The Bennington Typewriter 8 Restoring Caring for Coronas 10 Show and Tell 11 the Oldest Typewriter Letter Openers 12 Alpinas 16 Hammond New on the Shelf 18 Around the World 20

In IssueThis Letters 20

ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 • 1 ETCetera Journal of the Early Typewriter Collectors’ Association No. 116 • Spring 2017 Editor’s Editor Richard Polt Notes 4745 Winton Rd. Cincinnati, OH 45232 USA 513.591.1226 welcome to another year of etcetera! to survive today—so that if a model’s [email protected] We continue to publish on good old-fash- serial numbers appear to have started at ioned paper, as befits our beloved devices 1000 and gone up to around 4000, there Secretary-Treasurer for affixing ink to said material. I’d like may be 30 in existence. But how reliable Herman Price to take this moment to thank the team is this rule? And with such a wide range that makes it possible: our indefatigable of rarity—from Holy Grail typewrit- Board of Directors columnists and historians, Robert Mes- ers like the Blick 1 that have never been Bert Kerschbaumer senger and Peter Weil; our financial and found to over three million manufac- Robert Messenger postal czar, Herman Price; our meticu- tured examples of the Underwood No. Richard Polt lous designer, Nick Tauriainen; our hard- 5—should we be using a logarithmic Peter Weil working translators, Lars Borrmann and scale, like the Richter scale for earth- Reinmar Wochinz Fransu Marín; our proofreader, Whitney quakes or decibels? In this scheme, a Carnahan — and of course, the many col- typewriter rated 1 would be ten times as Design lectors who contribute articles, photos, common as a 2. Nick Tauriainen letters, and news. Have you ever heard of a Bailey’s Har- I must correct a statement I made in mony Writer? I have, and I feel very un- Translation my last Editor’s Notes. There weren’t two harmonious feelings whenever I think of German: Lars Borrmann different Burnetts that appeared for sale it. This typewriter is an Olympia portable Spanish: Fransu Marín recently; it was the same one, popping of the ’60s, modified to type music; very up first on Goodwill and then on eBay. few were produced. I bought one on eBay Proofreading The Burnett remains a hard typewriter a few months ago. FedEx dropped off the Whitney Carnahan to find. There are many other makes, too, package at 5 University Avenue, instead that are instantly recognizable to col- of 5 University Drive — and despite my etconline.org lectors but turn up only rarely. Off the best efforts, I was never able to find it. Do top of my head, I’d mention the Munson, you have your own sad tales? You’ll find ETCetera welcomes submissions that Moya, Garbell, and Gourland. sympathy here. shed new light on typewriter history, Speaking of which, this magazine Congratulations to our member B. based on original sources and firsthand published rarity and desirability surveys Alexandra Szerlip on her new book, The experience. Material not previously in issues No. 14 (March 1991) and No. 60 Man Who Designed the Future: Norman Bel published elsewhere will have priority. (December 2002). I’ve heard from some Geddes and the Invention of Twentieth-Cen- readers that it’s high time for a new tury America. Alex observes that Bel Ged- ©2017 ETCA. Published quarterly. survey. I invite everyone’s opinions on des and Eliot Noyes worked together to Calendar year subscription: $35, North whether this would be useful, and if so, patent a body design that was used on the America; $40 elsewhere. Payment: how it should be organized to be most IBM Model A and B. Noyes later patented check or PayPal. helpful and most objective. One question a landmark design for the first Selectric. Herman J Price is whether we should publish monetary Our member Mark Frankena recently 195 Greenbag Rd values as well as more subjective “desir- passed away after a short battle with Morgantown, WV 26501, USA ability” numbers. pancreatic cancer. Mark was a curious [email protected] Rarity can also be a difficult thing collector, knowledgeable about all sorts to quantify. Sometimes we have exact of office machines and implements. His ISSN 1062-9645 production numbers and serial number presentations at Herman’s yearly meet- records, but for many early and rare ings were always fascinating, and he will —as well as for many built certainly be missed. Mark created the On the Cover in the last 40 years!—we do not. A mel- website officemuseum.com, where you ancholy rule of thumb is that only about can find valuable information about the Richard Boydstun's Hammond Model 1. 1% of 19th-century machines are likely devices he researched. ■

2 • ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 Restoring the Oldest Hammond by richard boydstun in february of 2015 i happened to see a Hammond Model 1 typewriter for sale on eBay. As a Hammond collector and enthusiast, my attention was drawn to it immediately. To say it was in pretty “rough” shape would be an understate- ment. The starting price was only $69 and I thought it might be a good parts machine, which was exactly what the seller was saying in his description. The seller stated that he found it in a local home, he had no idea what was missing, and it was being sold “as is.” I could see from the photos he had posted that it had a broken carriage. Also, the early, three- piece paper rack was broken. There was a lot of rust on anything metal, and most of the original nickel plating was pretty dull as well. It was also missing the rib- bon spools, and the curved, celluloid piece that covers the front of the vertical springs of the turret was cracked and broken in several places. Overall, it was pretty much what could be termed a real basket case. 1 As will be seen, only after much restoration work did I discover its serial number, 109 — which shows that it is probably the earliest surviving Ham- mond. In addition, it likely spent most of its life only a few miles from the original Hammond factory in . I did notice a couple of things that I thought to be unusual for a model 1. First, the type shuttle was held in place by a 1 2 round thumbscrew. 2 The only split- shuttle machines that I own, or have ever seen, have a spring-loaded little ball that is pulled forward to install or remove the split typing shuttle. I also noticed that the spring motor was different from the other two Hammond 1 machines in my collection. 3 Instead of the entire outer housing of the spring motor being cut with grooves – making the entire hous- ing a gear to drive the carriage rail – the motor housing was smooth, except for

ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 • 3 3 4 5

a toothed gear attached to one end of housing and moved it far enough to put a I now had replaced most of what was the motor housing. That gear is what couple of turns of tension on the spring. missing or broken on the machine, but drives the carriage rail on this particular I was then able to press each key on the still had a couple of more obstacles in machine. These two unusual features keyboard and actually see the carriage front of me. The broken celluloid cover intrigued me enough to keep an eye on move with only the small amount of pow- around the turret needed to be replaced. the machine during the next few days er left in the broken spring. By now, I was I had recently contracted the services that it was on eBay. As it turned out, the certain that I could restore this machine of a company in the Dallas area to make bidding went up considerably in the last and have it functioning once again. a quality reproduction of that particu- few hours, as can sometimes be expected. Over the next few weeks, I spent a lar piece for my other two Hammond I was lucky enough to win the final bid of good deal of time taking the machine Model 1 machines. That celluloid piece $676, which was more than I was expect- apart in order to remove as much of the is usually broken or missing on these ing it to sell for. rust as possible. This meant removing it early typewriters. As Hammond col- The machine arrived a few days later. from the wooden cabinet and taking all lectors know, there were two versions I must admit that it looked a lot worse in of the key levers out so they could each of the celluloid piece around the turret person than it did in the photos on eBay. be cleaned with fine steel wool. 6 The assembly of a Hammond 1 machine. 4 Every key on the keyboard was frozen turret assembly was removed from the Some were blank, and not engraved, in place. About half of the keys were fro- main body of the machine in order to while others had the Hammond name zen in the up position, and the remainder remove as much of the rust as possible and patent dates. The earliest Ham- in the down position. All of the vertical from it, as well as from all of the other mond 1 machines had a metal patent tag rods and springs in the turret assembly exposed areas of the machine and frame. attached to the top of the wooden deck were heavily rusted in place, and that Once all of the metal parts had been that covers the key levers, and therefore was why the keys were also locked in cleaned as thoroughly as possible, I could had a blank celluloid piece covering place. 5 I immediately removed the bro- then concentrate on what parts were the round central turret. Later ma- ken carriage and got it out of the way so missing or broken. chines lacked the metal patent tag, and I could test the spring motor. The motor I was able to supply a couple of early the celluloid piece covering the turret would actually wind a couple of turns Hammond ribbon spools for the machine displayed the Hammond name along and then slip, indicating a broken spring that I had acquired when I purchased my with three rows of patent dates near inside, which was not really a surprise. first Hammond 1 machine a few years the bottom. This particular Hammond I then grabbed a can of WD-40 to see if ago. That machine came with several of 1 had the remains of a blank celluloid I could free any of the frozen rods in the the early, narrow ribbon spools, as well as cover around the center turret and also turret assembly. I had to use a small brass several extra split typing shuttles; I also had the outline where a metal patent tag hammer to gently tap each of the rods needed such a shuttle for this Hammond. had once been attached to the wooden that were stuck in the up position and The biggest item that would be neces- deck. I contacted the laser engraving coming out of the top of the turret. Those sary to complete the restoration would company and had them make a blank were the rods being pushed upwards be finding a replacement carriage. As it celluloid cover for this Hammond, and by the keys that were stuck in the down turned out, I happened to have a very cut it to the exact shape and size of the position on the keyboard. As I lubricated early Hammond Model 2 with the early previous ones they had made for me, but and tapped each one, they gradually Model 1 narrow frame and Model 1 car- without the Hammond name and patent began to move freely once again. I could riage and paper rack on it. I had restored dates. I also had been looking for the press the keys as each one dropped back it to working condition, but it was miss- metal patent tag since I restored the ma- into place, and the key would move free- ing a wooden base. I decided to “borrow” chine, and was fortunate enough to find ly, up and down as it should. I continued the carriage assembly, which would also one recently on eBay. This is a rare item to lubricate and work with each verti- solve the problem that the small roller itself, so I was glad to finally add it to the cal rod and spring until I had the entire needed to be replaced or re-covered. The deck in its proper place. Now this Model keyboard working again. Model 2 carriage had a small roller in 1 is historically correct in appearance I then placed the broken carriage good condition as well as a good, early and should look exactly as it did when it back on the gear on the rear of the motor paper rack. left the Hammond factory.

4 • ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 6

Upper left: Hammond frame with keys, central turret, and spring motor removed. The frame still retains the original gold paint after being cleaned. Upper right: Central turret removed and cleaned. Bottom: Replacement carriage mounted on frame, along with central turret and spring motor in place.

One item that was still intact on this motors for me in the past. I took the mo- gear. The gear attached to the rear of machine was the margin scale, which tor from this machine to the repairman the spring motor housing had five teeth mounts on the front of the carriage. and told him this one was completely knocked out of it. Whatever fell on the Those are usually missing or broken on different from other Hammond motors machine and broke the carriage also Hammond 1 machines. The original was I had brought to him. He surprised me broke the teeth in the motor gear. I didn’t in good condition, with no cracks or chips by saying this particular motor was very see how that could be repaired, since it in it, and the numbers were still readable. similar to those in clocks around a hun- appeared to be part of the motor housing. There were two last remaining ob- dred years ago. That would also fit the The repairman then told me of another stacles – the broken spring in the motor stories I had read that James Hammond clock repairman who has the equipment and the broken teeth on the related gear. modeled the power mechanism for his and expertise to replace the broken teeth Both looked as though they might be im- typewriters on a clock motor and escape- of a clock motor like that. He gave me his possible to overcome. I have mentioned ment mechanism. name and phone number and told me I that the spring in the motor was broken, The repairman said he would have would be surprised at the quality of work and I knew it would need to be replaced. I a new spring installed in a few days, this person can do. I called him that eve- had the good fortune to locate an an- but there was still a major problem to ning and he told me to send it to him and tique clock repair shop in Dallas that has overcome. The second obstacle that I he would call me with a quote. I shipped replaced springs in several Hammond felt could not be solved concerned the the motor housing to him; he called a few 7 8 days later to tell me that he could do the repair, and the price was very reasonable. It took about a month to get the repair job back, but it was an incredible example of workmanship, and was absolutely neces- sary in order to make this Hammond function once again. 7 8 Now I had the machine completely cleaned and lubri- cated, and all of the missing and broken parts to put it together. One more thing was still necessary to complete the restoration. I had set the

ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 • 5 9 Eugene Cass with wooden cabinet on a shelf to be cleaned and polished later, and now it was time his Hammond 1 to see if I could save the original finish on it. Since the finish on the cabinet was so dirty, I used a combination of two by peter weil cleaners with which I have had success in cleaning some Hammond bases that at first looked as though they needed to original photographs of typewrit- be stripped, re-stained, and refinished. ers in the time period when they were After I stumbled onto this unusual regularly used encode much about the combination, and I had success with it in character of the machine and about the the past, I decided to try it on the Model kinds of people who purchased and, of- 1 cabinet. I first rub it down with WD40, clock repair shop. The mechanism now ten, typed on the machine. The challenge which will remove old grime and grease moves under its own power from the new is for us to decode the images based upon from the surface. I then follow that with spring in the motor. The replacement the best evidence available. Simichrome metal polish, which will not carriage functions, but does seem to have This small albumen cabinet card di- harm the surface of the finest jewelry. a few sluggish spots as it travels while rectly informs us in handwritten script in It actually brought out the original typing on it. The split shuttle functions. ink that this photograph shows “Eugene color and shine of the laminated layer I put a new ribbon on the narrow Ham- Cass with his type writer.” The “type of wood on the cabinet. The laminate mond spools, and the machine is actually writer” is a Hammond no. 1 with a curved, on the wooden deck cover is somewhat able to type a few words. Some of the two-row Ideal keyboard; its horizontal wrinkled from age, but still all there, and alignment is off a bit, but that could be key levers are hidden from view by a came out looking quite good. expected from a machine that is more wooden cover and the keys are enclosed Now there were a couple of more sur- than 130 years old. in the front by a wooden arc. This form prises waiting to be discovered about this There is one more exciting story to of the no. 1 was introduced in 1884 and machine. As I began to clean the dirt and tell about this machine. I wanted to know marketed as a new machine into 1891. grime from the cabinet, I discovered the how and where the seller found it. I con- In that latter year, the second version serial number stamped into the wood on tacted him back to let him know I had the of the Hammond Ideal with the curved the rear, near the center of the cabinet. machine restored and working again. He keyboard was introduced, often called 9 The number was 109. I contacted Guy was amazed that it was even restorable, by collectors the “1A.” It is easily distin- Pérard in Belgium, who keeps a list of considering the condition it was in when guished by the fact that the key levers are all known Hammond machines, and he he purchased it. He said he was actu- fully exposed and the keys are no longer told me that I have the oldest Hammond ally a collector of stock ticker machines. surrounded by a wooden arc. While used known to exist at this time. He asked me He had seen an ad for a stock ticker for and rebuilt versions of the original no. 1 if it was also stamped on the frame of the sale in Queens, New York. He went there (now called “The Exchange”) continued machine, but I had already checked the and had to go in the attic with the owner to be sold by Hammond, the company entire frame and found no serial number to get it. While in the attic, he saw the no longer made them — so virtually all on it. Apparently the very first machines Hammond, but was not sure what it was. new, original Ideal Hammonds had to were not stamped with serial numbers It turns out that the stock ticker and have been purchased during the 1884-1891 on the frame, but only on the cabinet. were both used by period. The other surprise regarding the cabinet a relative of the owner. His relative was This is the only known original print of this Hammond is the fact that it does a stockbroker on Wall Street in the 1890s of a Hammond 1 Ideal with its owner.¹ not have a keyhole or escutcheon where and when he retired, he brought the Beyond the identification of the type- a key would be used to wind the spring Hammond home with him, along with writer itself, the next step in decoding the motor. This would indicate that the Ham- the stock ticker, which had been replaced cabinet card is to start with the subject mond company thought the customer by a newer type of machine. They had of the photograph, Eugene Cass, and would never have reason to wind or ten- been in the same house ever since. What the location of the studio where it was sion the motor once it left the factory. But is also interesting is that the location made. Eugene M. Cass was born in 1869 in it would also be difficult for a repairman where the Hammond was found is only a Sumner, Bremer County, Iowa, the same to tension the motor if it were returned few miles from the East River, where the location as the portrait.² His father, Ste- to a repair shop. It would be necessary Hammond factory was located. It is quite phen S. Cass, a founder of a town named to remove the entire machine from the possible that this machine never left the Cassville, had moved his town to Sumner cabinet in order to wind the motor. This city limits of New York City, after it was to join in incorporating Sumner in 1870 as was just another unusual feature that built and sold. part of Sumner’s becoming a stop on the I found to be different from any other I greatly enjoyed the opportunity to new railroad. Stephen became a banker Hammond 1 that I own or have seen. restore this extremely early, historically and, later, an investor in real estate in After the machine was reassembled, I important Hammond typewriter. Bring- the town. When Eugene was born, the tensioned the spring motor with a regu- ing it back to life was challenging, but municipality was a village with a popula- lar clock key that I purchased from the very rewarding as well. ■ tion of only 285. Even in this tiny com-

6 • ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 munity, it appears likely that Stephen was an important and successful banker and community member. With this information as a launching point, we can now turn to more informa- tion about Eugene Cass and the problem of dating the photograph. Eugene con- tinued to live in his natal village with his birth family at least until 1885, when, at age sixteen, he is listed with no occupa- tion. In 1890, Eugene, now twenty-one years old, is reported in the town paper to have moved into a room over a bank, presumably that of his father, but there is no information about employment. There is no U.S. Census material for 1890 (it was destroyed in a fire), but Cook County, Illi- nois, records show that he married Maud Stein, the same age as himself, in July of that year. Ten years later, according to the U.S. Census of 1900, Eugene at age 31 is shown as being married and having moved to Cleveland, Ohio, to work in the lumber business and to raise his son with his wife, Maud. By fifteen years later, at 46, he had returned to Sumner to become its postmaster. After that date, the records are thin and unclear. In sum, Eugene is documented as liv- ing in Sumner in 1885 at age 16, and again in 1890 at age 21. Given the visage of the young subject in the photograph, it is reasonable to conclude that Eugene was sixteen to twenty-one years of age when this portrait was made. It was as a mem- ber of his relatively successful natal fam- ily that the young man acquired, through gift or purchase, a new or relatively new original model Hammond Ideal no. 1. The handwritten caption and the Hammond’s inclusion in the photo suggest that the portrait was purposely made at or near the time the machine was acquired. Fur- thermore, at this point in American social history, the age of eighteen was consid- ered to be the beginning of adulthood and an appropriate age to invest in a career, such as by purchasing a typewriter that Cook County, Illinois, Marriage Index, 1871-1920, and the sold for $100 with case, lid, and two type Endnotes Sumner Gazette, October and March, 1890. shuttles (the equivalent price today is 3. The photographer of the cabinet card was S. E. Dunham. With great appreciation to Paul Robert for his processing of the No evidence was found that Dunham actually lived in around $2,500). Eugene would have been digital scan of the original photograph and reading an early Sumner. Instead, he appears to have been based in Hop- eighteen in 1887, so that is argued here to draft of this article. ington, Delaware County, Iowa, a town about fifty miles be an approximate date for the cabinet southeast of Sumner. In the late 19th century, photogra- 1. The only other documented period photograph show- phers commonly visited small towns like Eugene’s to set card. Any relationship between Eugene’s ing a Hammond no. 1 Ideal in use is not an original up temporary studios to make portraits. While the lower use of the Hammond in the 1880s and print, and the anonymous subject is a model and not portion gives Sumner as Dunham’s business address, the his role in the lumber business and later the owner of the machine. Instead, the image is printed location was that of the temporary studio and that of the in halftone on the cover of an 1891 Hammond trade subject — not necessarily the home of the photogra- occupations is not documented. But, as catalog. It is a famous image by Napoleon Sarony that I pher. My only sources for Dunham are another undated a typewriter collector, I would like to discussed in an earlier “Ephemera” column in ETCetera portrait made in Sumner, the 1909 Fort Scott, Kansas, No. 93, March 2011, p. 11. believe that Eugene’s experience with his City Directory that shows him as a photographer and real 2. Cass’s birth data and life are to some degree documented estate agent, and Langdon’s list of 19th and 20th century Hammond set him on the path to success in U.S. Census results for 1870, 1880, and 1900. Other photographers in the U.S. at http://www.langdonroad. in business and public service.³ ■ sources include the 1885 and 1915 Iowa State Census, the com/photographers-d.

ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 • 7 A TWDB Update Report W. H. Bennington By: T. Munk [email protected] The Many Lives and Inevitable Deaths of:

Wesley Henry Bennington AKA: William H. Bennington ...and the documented machine sightings! May 15, 1861 - Oct. 30, 1928 Bennington No. 1 • 1902-1905

the Bennington Typewriter Co. for the “This machine has been the subject of first time at Pierre, South Dakota. several announcements, but for reasons ¹ Nine months after this, a letter is writ- which have, apparently, been sufficient to ten from the Bennington office in Mis- its sponsors, it has not yet found its way to mysteries and intrigue are lurking souri, from the same Lyceum Building the market.” everywhere in typewriter history, and address that the New Era office occupied, Mares includes an image of the few are as intriguing as the story of the so presumably the name of the building machine, which is markedly different last-ditch attempt to save Fox from bank- has changed. This letter,⁴ dated May 15, from the first prototype.⁹ This model I ruptcy in 1922 by one W. H. Bennington 1903, contains the first documented men- have named the “Bennington No. 2.” By of the Bennington Typewriter Company. tion of a machine that is actually built. May 1907, Bennington Typewriter Co. It’s a footnote in the Fox timeline because It’s the machine pictured in the letter- of Arizona is looking for investors and a it failed, but in attempting to figure out head, which bears a striking resemblance location to build a factory in both Colum- why it failed, I uncovered a sordid tale to the patent drawings. In June of 1904, bus and Middletown, Ohio.¹⁰ In June, they of serial broken promises and possible Bennington’s patent is granted “without are raising investment and looking to fraud by an ex-politician-turned-type- model,”⁵ despite the 1903 letter’s men- build a factory in Cleveland.¹¹ By August, writer inventor who spent a quarter-cen- tion of the machine’s being at the patent it appears they’ve settled on Cleveland, tury raising money to fund typewriter lawyer’s office. and papers are drawn up for the deal, but factories that were never built. It is cur- Three months later, in August of 1904, then Bennington drops off the radar.¹² rently unknown if any examples of the Bennington’s operation in Dayton, Ohio The following April, W. H. Bennington Bennington Syllabic typewriter survive, (yet another incorporation?) is in trouble has been arrested for selling $5,000 but I will present evidence that perhaps and about to enter receivership.⁶ I believe worth of stock by “misrepresentation” as many as three different working dem- that the machine I now call the “Benning- in Ohio.¹³ In 1909, Bennington loses this onstration models were made, and that at ton No. 1,” if it existed at all, was seized suit, but later the charges are dismissed least one survived into the late 1950s. by creditors and sold at auction in the by a friendly judge.¹⁴ By 1911, Business The Bennington Typewriter Com- Dayton bankruptcy in October of 1905. Equipment Topics is declaring that “there pany was incorporated as many as November 1905 sees the Bennington is not much to say about the future” of five times in several different states Typewriter Co. incorporated in Phoenix, the Bennington Syllabic Typewriter.¹⁵ between 1903 and 1905. Before that, in Arizona.⁷ Barely a month later, Benning- I believe at this point, the Benning- April of 1902, W. H. Bennington had ton is in Indiana with a new prototype, ton operation dissolves again and W. H. incorporated the New Era Typewriter soliciting subscriptions and promising Bennington semi-retires. News accounts Co.² in his hometown of Kansas City, to build a factory if investors can raise from 1909-1920 contain nothing about Missouri, and that is most likely when at least $50,000 in ten days. It is in this Bennington other than a notice of the Bennington’s then-pending patent for notice that we find an account of the ma- passing of his sister-in-law and a New a syllabic typewriter was first turned chine’s being exhibited in the courthouse York notice of unclaimed assets. into a working machine. It is not known with “many persons” calling to see it.⁸ In It is only in December of 1920 that if there actually was a machine labeled February 1906 he is shopping in Colum- we see W. H. Bennington appear again “New Era,” but just four months after bus, Ohio, for a factory site and investors. in Arizona, where he incorporates the incorporating the New Era company in George Mares, writing in 1907, appears Bennington Typewriter Co. and begins Missouri, W. H. Bennington is next seen to be familiar with Bennington’s second raising capital to build a new prototype. in Minnesota,³ where he incorporates prototype. Mares writes: By March 1922, Bennington is in Cleve-

8 • ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 Bennington No. 2 • 1905-1908

Bennington No. 3/Xcel • 1920-1922

Bennington's patent #762272, left, mostly illustrates the unique slot machine style pull- forward carriage return system.

Now here’s an ad that should thrill the land negotiating a contract to purchase investors until December, the deal to pur- collector’s soul! the bankrupted Fox Typewriter Co. for chase the Fox factory has ended unsuc- $300,000.¹⁶ His stated plan is to continue cessfully on July 1, 1922. producing the Fox product line while uti- W. H. Bennington is no longer men- lizing the Fox factory to finally produce tioned in papers after 1922, but that could his own machine. This same month sees be because archived news coverage in the Bennington incorporating the Xcel Type- Library of Congress ends after 1922. The writer Corporation in New York with a trail goes cold then, but we do know that capital stock offering of $3,300,000. Bennington passed away on Oct. 30, 1928. In April, Bennington’s new prototype The very last mention found so far of is being displayed at the Xcel offices in Bennington or his machines comes in New York,¹⁷ our third documented sight- 1956, in the form of a classified ad from The Bennington Syllabic Keyboard with pull- ing. This machine, a modern-looking the Clearfield, Pennsylvania Progress,¹⁸ forward carriage return. A syllabic typewriter frontstroke, I designate the “Bennington where a private party is advertising an is one that has keys which print syllables or No. 3/Xcel.” “old style Bennington typewriter, types whole words instead of just letters. The Ben- For the remainder of 1922, the intro- well” for $20. ■ nington design is one which incorporates an duction of the Xcel is touted as imminent in trade publications and newspapers, outer set of 22 word and syllable keys supple- but while the Xcel Co. continues to solicit (endnotes on page 10) menting the standard QWERTY keyboard.

ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 • 9 the repair bench : by mitchell vassiliou Caring for Coronas

Howdy, this is Mitch of Abbotts Business Machines in San Diego, California. I have been working on typewriters for over 40 years. I started out in the Navy in 1971, with the Royal 440, Remington Standard, and IBM Selectric I. The rating (occupa- tion) in the Navy was called Instrument Man, and consisted of servicing clocks, watches, mimeographs, thermometers, gauges, flow meters, and typewriters. I currently have a commercial drop-off spot for typewriters, although I have my main workshop behind my house. manual typewriters have made a enough. Renew the foot, or if not renew- huge comeback for 8- to 12-year-olds for ing all of them, use a razor knife to cut Christmas and birthday presents, 25- to a slice off the foot that is restricting the 35-year-old upcoming writers, and really shift from being pushed all the way down. all ages between. There are elderly folks I did this quick fix on a folding Corona that still use their old beauties for com- bell ringer. The customer didn’t want to munication. Businesses and schools and pay a lot, even though I had the original government still have them too. part in stock. Actually, they said “forget The folding Corona is a unique ma- it,” but for me, a typewriter has to have a chine that works quite well. When I first bell. The knocker was broken off. I could worked on one, I could not figure out the have fabricated something, soldered it ribbon reverse and ribbon drive. I noticed on, and adjusted. But I came up with this that both the drives for the ribbon worked electrical connector as a cheap and easy at the same time. To operate the ribbon fix. Crimp it lightly, slide to the right drive properly, one of the knurled knobs position for it to work forward and back, on top of the center of the ribbon spool and crimp hard when done adjusting. ■ has to be tightened, and one knob has to be loose. To reverse the ribbon, loosen the Learn more about Mitch’s business at opposite knob and tighten the other. typewriterrepairsandiego.com. Another tip is that the rubber feet get A note for all interested in typewriter repair: Ted flat and hard, and the left front foot will Munk is producing a series of print-on-demand interfere with the caps when pushed volumes full of valuable technical literature. Search down, causing the platen not to move far for “typewriter repair bible” on lulu.com.

Bennington Endnotes 9. Geo. Carl Mares, The History of the Typewriter, 1909 1. The Advocate (Topeka, Kan.) Sept. 19, 1894 10. The American Stationer, February 3, 1906 @cetera 2. The Topeka State Journal, April 22, 1902 11. The Arizona Republican, November 6, 1905 3. The Minneapolis Journal, August 27, 1902 12. Typewriter Topics, August, 1907 Ted Munk’s compilation of all the 4. ETCetera No. 82, from the collection of 13. The Marion Daily Mirror, April 20, 1908 original sources consulted for his Martin Howard 14. Business Equipment Topics, vol. 12-13 (1909) 5. US Patent #762272 15. Business Equipment Topics, vol. 18-19 (1911) Bennington article can be found on: 6. Butler County Democrat, August 4, 1904 16. Typewriter Topics, March, 1922 7. The Arizona Republican, October 4, 1905 17. Typewriter Topics, April, 1922 etconline.org 8. The Indiana Gazette, November 15, 1905 18. The Progress, July 5, 1956

10 • ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 show & tell Underwood Trophy by mark & christina albrecht

The Underwood Cup Donated By F. G. Hobbon Representative Underwood Typewriter Co. Awarded to Pearl Fisher For Essay on Imperial Valley County Fair El Centro 1914

the underwood typewriter com- total height, and the trophy simply sits award, we were able to determine that pany presented this trophy in 1914 to a on the base. most of the essays about the county were woman named Pearl Fisher at a county Research took us to the local histori- related to historical facts. Essay top- fair in southern California. Despite our cal society to try to determine what the ics like water rights, farming and crop best research efforts, we have found essay was about and to find any informa- expansion, and the progression of local very little information about this gor- tion they might be able to share regard- government were covered. geous award beyond its engravings. ing the recipient. Marriage records of We have never seen such a trophy be- The trophy is made out of silver and the period helped us determine that fore, nor have any of the other collectors resembles a fine silver serving tray. It Pearl Fisher was the daughter of a previ- we consulted, but any other informa- is very substantial, weighing in at four ous essay winner from just a few years tion that could be found about it would pounds on a wood base covered in black prior, and that she was about 20 years be welcome. We are thrilled to have lacquer. It stands 16½ inches (42cm) of age at the time of the award. While acquired it as part of our ever-growing high and is 10 inches (25.4cm) wide. The we could not find information regard- typewriter ephemera collection! ■ base accounts for three inches of the ing this particular essay which won the

Royal Medal by peter weil in 1935, the royal typewriter company urged high schools to create an essay competition on the 300th anniversary of American high schools. Here is an un- awarded medal for the best local history essay in a state. The Underwood event is a pioneering form of this idea. There was fierce competition among typewriter companies to get their machines into high-school typing programs, and these contests communicated that the compa- nies cared about the broader goals of education. ■

ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 • 11 ephemera : by peter weil Lifesavers in a Typewriter advertising

letter openers paper sea 2

1 in the fifth decade of the last cen- foot long, often elaborately hand-made, tury, Royal made and sold one of the truly as in this 1825 example, of expensive ma- iconic portable typewriters, the Royal terials like ivory and sterling silver. The Quiet Deluxe. As can be seen in this 1958 paper knife was developed specifically advertisement, the design was influenced for cutting the creases of folded paper, by late-stage “Art-Moderne” concepts, especially of the books that were made on including the color options. 1 As part of book printing presses containing single its marketing campaign, the firm com- large plates for printing multiple pages missioned a letter opener with the handle in one pressing. These were folded and painted in the choices of the colors that hand-cut at the printer, but many pages the portable was offered in. The company often were missed, and, in some cases, then distributed the desk accessory to both were not cut by the printer at all. Thus dealers and customers as a premium, an the reader had to cut some or all of the advertising gift. While this letter opener pages. The paper knife was also used to is among the most stunning of any I have cut large sheets of then very expensive found, it is just a late version of a form of folded paper into various sizes for every- typewriter advertising that was first uti- thing from legal briefs to small missives.⁴ lized at the end of the 19th century. 2 It was from this not-so-humble beginning What is a letter opener and why did it that letter openers later in the century become an essential desk accessory that would evolve to gain access to messages was desirable as an advertising medium in envelopes with glued flaps. The other for typewriter companies? Email and desk tools, which performed other pri- digital messaging have extremely dimin- form of the envelope, were invented at mary duties, were still used early in the ished the amount and frequency of postal least a millennium ago in China, home of century to open the wax or glue-sealed communications using containers, i.e., en- the invention of paper, but did not come self-contained letters and envelopes. Ink velopes, that do not include access devices into significant use in Europe and North erasers were the most commonly used designed into the container. However, for America until the end of the 18th century device for opening wax seals, and the nearly a century and a half, simple glued and the beginning of the next. These con- penknife was occasionally used to open or (more frequently, early on) wax-sealed tainers were made by hand cutting and sealed paper, especially the self-contained envelopes were the primary means of gluing, but the flap was, like that of the letter that required great precision if the delivering messages with a reasonable self-contained letter, usually sealed with message were to remain intact. Most of expectation of both physical and infor- wax. Alternatively, it could be sealed with the evidence is that paper knives, consid- mation security.¹ And, before the 1870s, glue. While both of these kinds of enclo- ered at the time a valued accessory that even envelopes were far less ubiquitous in sures were important during the first part was only appropriately used to cut paper both business and private life in Europe of the 19th century, no specialized instru- folds, were generally not used in relation and North America. Instead, letters were ment was used to open them. to letter communications. more often self-contained in the form Until then, a wide variety of general- Manufactured glued paper enve- of a sheet of paper on which one side use knives or other objects could be used lopes were developed by the middle of contained the message; the sheet would to break the seals. But, with the onset of the 1840s, but earlier hand-made forms be folded to form a plain outside with two the 19th century, the usual office or home continued in use throughout most of corners coming together on the back and writing desk included, in addition to one the century. During the next twenty sealed with wax or a similar material.² or more writing quills, a small-bladed tool years, the paper knife developed into The intended recipient’s address would for sharpening the quills called a “pen- the letter opener to gain access to the then have been written on the front. knife,” a scalpel-like ink eraser or paper messages within these containers. The Separate sealed containers made of paper, scraper,³ 3 a page turner, and a paper new tool typically had a more pointed or covers, containing information in the knife. 4 The page turner was a about a blade than its progenitor, and the blade

12 • ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 3 7

4

5

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was rarely more than a quarter of the bers to meet the needs of larger firms, the this sword-like form is this curve-bladed width of a paper knife. Moreover, the industrial manufacturing of letter open- small one (5.75 inches or 14.5 cm long) letter opener was usually no longer than ers began by the early 1890s. made for Cutter-Tower Company of three-quarters of the length of the paper It is noteworthy that this also took Boston, the primary distributor of the knife. Until the late 1890s, letter openers place in the context of a period of politi- Franklin typewriter, in about 1901. 5 were handmade and ranged from highly cal and economic globalization. In this However, the earliest letter opener ad- decorative to simple and utilitarian. milieu, we find the most favored form of vertising a typewriter I have found is this Demand for letter openers increased the letter opener was that of the curved linear one (ca. 1898) made of nickel-plat- dramatically after the introduction of the scimitar sword. The latter was a reflec- ed metal and celluloid by Whitehead and Type Writer in 1874 and the widespread tion of the widespread Western cultural Hoag, the primary innovator of celluloid acceptance and use of it and the Calig- interest in Asia and North Africa and advertising, for Smith Premier to tout raph by businesses in the early to mid- their association with social and cultural its model no. 2. 7 The scimitar form was 1880s. At the same time that the number distance that increasingly typified ideas used in various forms of advertising for and size of business firms were expand- about travel and the long-distance com- much of the twentieth century by busi- ing rapidly, limited only by the periodic munication via letters and other means. nesses. Typewriter firms may have used market panics, their communication More specifically, the context included them regularly for advertising, but only needs grew in relation to that expansion. colonialism, other forms of political the Franklin one has been discovered. The typewriter was far more efficient in domination, and the challenges of long- Instead, consistent with the form of generating the sheets of paper involved, distance trade, including command and the Smith Premier one, all the other letter and more and more of those communi- control by industrial countries and their openers found promoting typewriters and cations were sent via post in envelopes private businesses. This bellicose form of related products and services are linear in that needed to be opened in ever larger the newly available manufactured letter form and made in a wide variety of sizes numbers by their recipients. openers wielded by Western private and and materials. The earliest of the 20th- In response to this need to gain access public recipients of letters is most likely century ones found is this 7-inch-long (18 to the letters, orders, and bills that the related to this larger cultural and histori- cm), ca. 1900 one from A. P. Little, manu- envelopes held and to do so in the num- cal setting. An example letter opener of facturer of carbon papers and typewriter

ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 • 13 8 ribbons. While the maker is not identi- fied, it is typical of such advertising letter openers in that the materials are cheap ones that are often intended to mimic expensive materials, such as the use of 9 celluloid here to look like ivory. 6 This one is by far the most commonly found typewriter-related letter opener. A far rarer early opener is this ca. 1904-05 one given away by the Underwood typewriter agent in Louisville, Kentucky. 8 It is about 9 inches (23 cm) long and probably was 10 intended to mimic the finish of many of the hand-made sterling ones. Its message concerns the visible writing qualities of the Underwood at a time when Remington and the other dominant brands still pri- 11 marily sold upstrike machines. Another early one, also ivory-like, is this half-foot (15 cm) long celluloid letter opener made by Whitehead and Hoag for Smith Pre- mier. 9 Its combined aspects of opener, ruler, and calendar (on the back) for the year 1911 made it especially valuable as advertising for the model no. 10. By the middle of the 20th century, ad- 12 vertising letter openers tended to change, especially in the form and styles of the handles and in the media used to make them. The handles are more often round and made of plastic and some metal, 13 and Art Deco styles become much more frequent, especially in the period before about 1960. A classic example is this likely 1949-50 one touting a Remington-Rand Typewriter distributor, Office Appliance 14 Co. of Twin Falls, Idaho. 10 The length is about 8.5 inches (22 cm) long, and the red and yellow handle bears strong simi- larities to many of the advertising bullet pencils of the time. While the Art Deco styles continued after WWII, new forms and styles other- 15 wise developed after that conflict during which plastic as a medium became more efficiently made, more durable, and even cheaper. The 1950s Royal letter opener with which I began this discussion is unusual for the period in its primary use of metal and its high quality. Similarly, 16 this one (6.25 inches or 16 cm) used by SAPEL, the Imperial typewriter distribu- tor in Lisbon, Portugal, in the mid-1950s, is nickel-plated metal. 11 However, other openers with typewriter advertising tended either to be similar in form and style to the Art Deco round-handled post- war ones or to be totally made of plastic. For example, compare the similarity of

14 • ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 17 this 1956 letter opener (7.5 inches or 19 British Columbia, Canada, during the early cm) used for advertising by another Rem- 1960s. 16 The movable floating cylinder ington-Rand distributor, Adams Type- simply stated the names of the firm and writer Agency of Elkhart, Indiana, with the Royal typewriter it was offering to sell the 1949-50 one for the other Remington- and service. When it floated up, it revealed Rand distributor. 12 Another similar a fixed flat black plastic shaft that an- mid-50s example is this one touting the nounced in white letters “Advertising” on Carlsbad Typewriter Co., the distributor one side and “Printing” on the other. of Royal typewriters in Carlsbad, Califor- The creation of the typewriter, its nia. Such openers are somewhat rare for widespread acceptance, and its use by the period after WWII. 13 businesses to manufacture unprecedented Far more frequently, the mid-century numbers of letters, orders, and bills and and later instruments are made exclu- the envelopes that contained them created sively of molded plastic in a wide variety a threatening, stormy sea for the recipi- of linear forms. By far the most fre- ents of the communications. The artist quently found form and style is this letter Leonetto Cappiello imagined in his 1913 opener (8.25 inches or 21 cm) used in the poster the creation of this flood of paper early to mid-1950s by still another Royal by the Remington no. 10. 17 Surviving and distributor, the Ritts Typewriter Agency even prospering in these roiling waters in Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania. 14 This created a voracious demand for a means, form is found in a wide variety of colors a tool, to withstand the crashing waves of and was used by typewriter and (far envelopes. This instrument had already more) other kinds of firms. The plastics been developing by the middle of the 19th that were used, however, made possible century, but the typewriter’s ever-expand- more complex molded forms than we see degree, dynamic, an effect created by the ing effluent created ever-larger waves. in the Ritts one. For example, Hastings existence of a window in the round handle In turn, typewriter makers and dealers Typewriter Company, the Remington that is filled with a liquid and at least two saw the potential life saver for saving agent for Adams, Nebraska, advertised parts. These include a non-moving central their present and future customers in the in about 1956 with this molded one-piece hidden message or object and a cylinder form of the relatively cheap industrially- neon-orange premium letter opener (7.25 that hides the central component until the produced advertising letter opener. As inches or 19 cm) that included a two- object is tilted, causing the cylinder to float ephemera, they were more durable than power magnifying glass just below the away from the fixed component to reveal paper and served a need long enough to handle and a serrated blade. 15 its content. The most sought-after floaties, do an essential job. This helped keep their Collectors of mid-century and some- especially on advertising writing instru- messages in front of the users and, hope- what later advertising letter openers, like ments, are salacious, often featuring a fully, contributed to customers’ keeping their cousins, the pencil and ballpoint pen nude woman. The only float opener found their heads above water. Typewriter firms, collectors seeking pieces from the same touting typewriters is extremely naive through their generous distribution of period, dream of finding “float” or “floaty” by comparison. It was given away by the these gifts, helped save the customers from advertising pieces. These are sought be- Kamloops Daily News, which also served drowning in the very ocean the companies cause the advertising on them is, to some as the town’s Royal typewriter agent in had so importantly helped to create! ■

press.com/2013/05/24/a-paper-knife-was-not-a- were virtually completely replaced by erasers Acknowledgements letter-opener/; http://www.floatart.com/content/ made of rubber and other soft materials. This I wish to thank Bert Kerschbaumer for searching for misc/history.html; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ paper scraper and all of the objects presented European letter openers and other information and Cor- Paper_knife; http://antiqueshoppefl.com/archives/ here are in my personal collection. nelia Weil for her editorial assistance. And a big thank rreed/letter%20openers.htm. 4. The paper knife was originally a tool separate you to Melissa Buscher of Business Techs in Twin Falls 2. This form of self-contained letter was later from a page turner. A page turner of the late Idaho, the successor firm to Office Appliance Co., for her called a “letter sheet” by postal authorities to 18th and early 19th centuries was similar in help on the firm’s history. describe their own paper that they sold to letter form to the paper knife but tended to be longer writers, but the term is now used retrospec- than it and often had a more rounded end. The tively to designate any letter hand folded by a turner also often was elaborately made. How- private individual that might have preceded ever, it is reported that many desks lacked them Endnotes those issued by the postal institutions. and the paper knife was used by the owner to 3. This typically scalpel-shaped example was turn pages. For reasons that are unclear, it is 1. Historical information on the development manufactured ca 1875 by Miller Brothers Cut reported that such use of a paper knife for page of letter openers primarily is drawn from the Company in Meriden, Connecticut. The handle turning involved a significant risk of damaging following sources: Letter Openers: Advertising is made of ebony, and it is about 6.5 inches (17 a book when used in this manner. Note that by and Figural (Gas City, IN: L-W Book Sales, 1996); cm) long. The form is similar to those at the the end of the 19th century, the terms “paper Kurt F. Büchel (ed.), Letter Openers: Works of beginning of the century, and ink scrapers knife” and “page turner” became used fairly Art on the Desk (Vaduz, Liechstenstein: Postal continued to be used by many typists into the interchangeably in the industrial world, espe- Museum, 2011); https://regencyredingote.word- first decade or so of the 20th century. Then they cially in the UK.

ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 • 15 portables, etcetera : by robert messenger ALPINAS THE APOGEE OF TYPING

in early january, just as etcetera tables, ETCetera” piece revealed nine on This comment is interesting, because editor Richard Polt in Cincinnati was the German eBay, ranging from a starting I was surprised to find that the first Alpi- writing to this contributor in Canberra price of 9.50 euros (about $10) to a “buy nas offered for sale in the , about his admiration for his Alpina it now” of 75 euros (about $80). Outside in mid-1957, were the wide-carriage mod- (#74921), Nick Fisher in Swindon, Eng- of Germany, however, they are relatively els that Swiss historian Georg Sommereg- land was writing to Mike Brown in Phila- rare, and often a potential buyer has to ger has highlighted on his typewriters.ch delphia about his “absolute bargain buy” convince a German seller to ship over- site. Advertising in the US was headed of an Alpina (#75184) from Germany. seas. My own first Alpina, a 1956 model “Office machine performance” and went Such is the evident harmony and align- (#63089), arrived in 2007 from the un- on to say, “Here is true office machine ment of the international typewriter likely source of Trade Me, an auction site efficiency on a large, heavy, portable collecting community, especially when in New Zealand; I was never able to fully typewriter that makes elegant duplicate it comes to the well-engineered Alpina. grasp how it had got to that mountainous copies — rugged for cutting stencils.” Consensus about its qualities seems to be country, where Imperials, Nakajimas and This “finger-touch tabulator” model was universal. Nick puts together a regular Olivettis had traditionally dominated the initially priced at $139.50, but did not sell “News from Overseas” column for The typewriter market. I had had to wait a few particularly well. It had been developed, Typewriter Exchange, edited by Mike, years to own an Alpina, but the keen an- as Georg Sommeregger points out, by where he described his Alpina as “a very ticipation proved well worthwhile. I was Hans Martin for Alpina Büromaschinen- stylish machine … mine works perfectly. determined to know the Alpina typing Werk in Kaufbeuren, Bavaria, in 1955. But I would thoroughly recommend it for experience, after being alerted to the ma- of course, the semi-portable with which daily use.” These words pretty much sum chine by the pages compiled by Will Davis most of us are more familiar predated up the experience of just about every- and Norbert Schwarz for Will’s “Portable that small office machine model by some one who owns an Alpina. When Richard Typewriter Reference Site,” the result of a three years. The Alpina with a more con- Amery came down from Sydney to open collaboration which had started in March ventional carriage width reached the US my two-month typewriter exhibition 2001. The Alpina was at the top of Will’s in 1959, at under $100, and was labelled at the Canberra Museum and Gallery index, with the bold claim, “The ultimate AMC (Associated Merchandising Corpo- in 2012, I gifted him one of my Alpinas portable typewriter in terms of engineer- ration). A year later they were also being (#107349) as a way of thanking him. I ing.” Naturally, upon reading that line, an sold as Avonas, in a department store was confident that Richard, an extremely Alpina instantly became a “must have” for stable which also included ABC Brillants, well-qualified judge of a good typewriter, me. On the Alpina pages, Will went on to Royalites and later Nakajimas. would concur with my high opinion of say, “One variety of portable typewriter In November 1961 the International the machine. Richard uses typewriters on has gained quite a following due simply to Telephone and Telegraph Corporation, a daily basis, and his subsequent praise the wonderful and individualistic styling through its German subsidiary Stan- for his Alpina’s performance was very applied to it. This is the Alpina … In addi- dard Elektrik Lorenz Aktiengesellschaft much what I had expected. tion to being distinctively shaped, these of Stuttgart, traded 56,995 shares of Nick Fisher’s delight at acquiring his machines are in fact magnificently con- capital stock worth $2.792 million to Alpina for a mere £5.63 (about $7 US) structed … Every possible point of design take over two West German firms. One reflects a situation many of us have been was made superlative in these machines, was Alpina Büromaschinen-Werk, in pleased to discover. Alpinas are fairly easy which were certainly expensive to manu- which IT&T gained a 97 percent inter- to find in German online auctions — and facture … they are, as the leading Alpina est. But IT&T was only interested in are therefore usually reasonably priced. A expert Norbert Schwarz says, ‘actually Alpina’s teleprinters and telephone quick glance as I was writing this “Por- small office machines.’” switching equipment. Typewriters

16 • ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 continued to be produced as a separate which, in 1892, had taken control of the enterprise, but stopped in 1963. extant precision machine manufacturer At that time remaining assets were Peter Wolters, established in Mettmann sold to household appliances conglomer- in 1804 by Johann Peter Wolters (1777- ate Vorwerk in Wuppertal. Eventually, in 1850). Rudolf’s great-grandfather Fried- 1969, the typewriter rights fell into the rich Bovensiepen, a master turner, mar- hands of engineer Oskar Mildner, who ried Wolters’ daughter Ida, and in 1881 in 1958 had hand-made the prototype of their son Gustav Bovensiepen (1867-1951) a miniature Alpina calculating machine. joined the company. Gustav took over the Mildner was only interested in the calcu- organization in 1892 and in 1927 estab- lator-related assets, and sold the type- lished the Eisengießerei Hardenberg iron writer rights and the Kaufbeuren factory foundry in Neviges, which Rudolf Boven- to Olympia Wilhelmshaven. Mildner siepen would manage in later life. In 1928 restored the calculator machinery Gustav’s sons Hans-Friedrich and Peter (which had sat idle for nine years) and Robert Bovensiepen joined the business produced a further 1600 machines after and in 1934 they became partners with the 4000 calculators previously made. Gustav in running it. When Gustav died The last Alpina calculator was made in in 1951, Hans-Friedrich and Peter Robert 1971 and the company was dissolved the took control. Meanwhile, Rudolf had next year. The factory was sold to the city graduated as a doctor in law and had of Kaufbeuren in 1981, and then sold on written books on Latin legal proverbs to former workers. and divorce law reform. But machine Today the tradename Alpina and its manufacturing was in his blood, and af- distinctive logo are associated with BMW ter working for typewriter manufacturer Alpina sedans, built by Burkard Boven- Wanderer-Werke in the mid-1920s, he siepen (1936-), the son of Alpina type- became a partner in the small arms and writer inventor Dr. Otto Rudolf Boven- ammunition manufacturing company siepen. History has been rather unkind Kupfer und Messingwerke KG Becker & to Dr. Bovensiepen, because he shared his Co in Langenberg. As the Peter Wolters- ments, for which he became even more first and last names with the SS colonel Bovensiepen organisation rebuilt itself renowned. In the early 1970s he was a who was head of the Gestapo in Denmark after World War II, Rudolf found his true partner with metal importers W. & O. during World War Two, a man twice put vocation. In 1949 he established Alpina Bergmann in Dusseldorf and a partner on trial (in 1948 and again 21 years later) Buromaschinenwerke-Vertrieb Boven- and manager of the Bovensiepen family for war crimes. Otto Richard Boven- siepen AG in Kaufbeuren, and started iron foundry Eisengießerei Hardenberg siepen was born in Duisberg 29 months making typewriters in 1951. His most in Neviges. Without a doubt, however, his before Otto Rudolf Bovensiepen was lasting achievement is the rounded semi- reputation for design and precision en- born in Mettmann, and died in 1979, but portables he produced from 1952 until he gineering grows each time a typewriter unfortunately that hasn’t stopped some sold out to IT&T. enthusiast is joyfully introduced to the people from getting the two confused. Rudolf Bovensiepen remained in fine touch of an Alpina keyboard. ■ Rudolf Bovensiepen (he usually Kaufbeuren but moved on to making dropped the Otto) was born into a family hydrometric precision measuring instru-

ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 • 17 New on the Shelf

Adam Golder: Chicago, Hammond 1 (hammer & anvil shuttle) #22446 David John: Molle #3923 Bert Kerschbaumer: Olivetti ET 101

Thomas Fürtig: Premier (remodeled & Mark & Christina Albrecht: Dollar, repainted Century 10) #HC90182, crinkle Erika 3 folding (Ottoman Turkish kbd.), grey; Ujlaki (Urania 2) #8244 (Hungarian Caligraph stand w/original top & drawer, kbd.); Voss 52 #31660, cream bakelite Remington 2 w/base & lid, Fox 3 w/base & lid Richard Amery: Olympia Progress #631851 (ca. 1949), Dutch kbd. Flavio Mantelli: pocket Darling #44 Lynda Beckler: Blick 9 Lars Borrmann: Edelmann, Franklin 7, Remington 10 w/ Wahl addder, Imperial D David Brechbiel: 1930 Royal P (Vogue), 1932 Remie Scout (Art Gothic), 1939 Un- derwood M, 1941 Smith-Corona Comet Deluxe, Remington Cicero Don Feldman: 1908 Noiseless 1 Guillermo Fernández Boan: Melotyp, Virotyp

Tyler Menard: Caligraph 2, Junior (Ben- nett predecessor), Hammond 12, Oliver 3

18 • ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 Rich Mohlman: Roberts Ninety, Odell Frans van de Rivière: Imperial Good 3, Reliance Visible, Early Royal 1 “R” side Companion 7 #7AB923 w/math signs, panel, Demountable 1, Blick 5 (pharma- Icelandic Olympia SM7 #1885402 ceutical) Peter Weil: 1930 Royal P #R189322 (ma- Frank Notten: Imperial A #8170 roon & black); 1932 Remington Porto-Rite (zinc frame) #SR14459 (Nyanza green & Cellini green)

Filippo Zazzaroni: Mead #106084 (1928)

Marc Pellacoeur: 1943 Olympia Robust Reinmar Wochinz: Edland, Mignon 2 w/ SS key #238 (earliest in private hands), Richard Polt: Remington Deluxe Noise- Niagara #207 less port. (Double Gothic), 1936 Royal KHM, 1957 Underwood Crest, 1953 Royal HH (italic big & small caps), 1952 Juwel Rapid, Adler J5 (Dvorak) Sirvent brothers: Adler bookkeeping machine #1227 (made 1925-35)

Martin Howard’s Alexis (announced in our last issue): serial #46, made in 1890 by Alexis Manufacturing Company, Illinois, USA. For more on the Alexis, see issue 76 and antiquetypewriters.com.

ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017 • 19 d the W un or ro ld A ancmeca.org No. 57, September 2016 • “Mécascriptophile” Marcel Brangeon [email protected] • Typewriter museum in Bourg-en-Bresse • May Breker auction results Vol. 29, No. 1, February 2017 • Replacing Underwood portable feet No. 58, January 2017 • Review of Robert & Weil’s Typewriter • Writing to Père Noël on a typewriter Historische Burowelt • Tom Russo first inductee to Business • Robert & Weil’s Typewriter ifhb.de Technology Association hall of fame • November Breker auction results • Send Blick serials to Rob Blickens- No. 106, December 2016 derfer, [email protected] • Remington 7 with a plexiglas frame • Typewriter collections in Dresden HBw-Aktuell

December 2016 [email protected] • Typewriter cross-section models typewriterdatabase.com No. 67, September 2016 January 2017 • Enoch Prouty’s typewriters and • Lambert research Updated: Barlock, Optima, Masspro, the Prouty-Hynes Royal, Olympia, Smith-Corona. • Mysterious wooden (?) typewriter February 2017 Added: Typewriter repair manuals section in WWI photo • 1904 Bivort stenograph • Italian collectors’ meetings

Letters For Sale/Wanted

Regarding “Tools of the Trade,” I have For sale: 1967 Triumph Matura, found the following company that special- QWERTZ, with aids for the blind, unused izes in small tools and tools for unusual in original packaging. Richard Polt, applications. The name is MicroMark, [email protected]. 340 Snyder Avenue, Berkeley Heights, NJ Wanted: Blick-Bar. Bert Kerschbaumer, 07922, and their web address is www.mi- [email protected]. cromark.com. Meanwhile, the content and Wanted: ink roller arm for Blick 7; graphics in ETCetera are first class! escapement for Royal Bar-Lock 14. Peter Lovick Thomas VI Muckermann, [email protected]. —Santa Fe Wanted: Olympia with Large Pica type- face. Ted Blumberg, My girlfriend and I met almost a year ago tblumberg@blumbergfirm.com. at a nutrition conference in Portland, Oregon. My father once told me that if I were to ever write a personal ad, I should begin with “I collect typewriters” in order to ward off all those who might not find my hobby so interesting. Well, I ran into a beautiful woman, and when I told her this story she replied, “Oh, I collect Here’s a transitional concept between Bernard them, I have three!” Turns out we also Granville’s capitals-only Rapid and his Gran- had the same model, only one year off. ville Automatic. We don’t know whether any On the left, Kelly’s 1966 Smith-Corona double-case Rapids were actually built, but a Sterling. On the right, my 1965. letter in the next ETCetera provides insight Jonathan Posey into Mr. Granville’s struggles. —Marietta, Georgia

20 • ETCetera No. 116 • Spring 2017