Perhaps a bit of a deviation here from normal Ephemera stuff.. but I still think this fits into the general theme of this blog.
The museum is run by a fellow named Rick Bensene in Beavercreek, Oregon. On his site he talks about how he has been a fan of computing technology since the mid 60′s – and now works in the industry.
He says that he
started the Old Calculator Museum on the Internet in 1998 to bring to the light of the public Internet the fascinating and pivotal role in history that early electronic calculators had in the development of our world’s technological transformation from the industrial age to the information age.
I suppose what caught my eye was his review of the Friden Model STW-10 Electro-Mechanical Calculator which is the first calculator I remember from visiting my fathers office in New York City as a small boy. I was fascinated by how it clicked and clanged and moved up and down .. and eventually was able to add 2+2 (and of course far more complicated calculations).
But in addition to the Friden, the other part of his site that intrigued me was his section on Advertising and Documentation. He has literally hundreds of pages and images, nicely broken down by machine type, and then by ads, manuals, literature, marketing material, documents, photos, specs, and of course Ephemera.
So take a look at Rick’s site.. and in particular his advertising section. I believe you will find some interesting things.
I’m Tom Murphy and thanks for helping me give Ephemera the encore it deserves.
About Tom Murphy
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