Hollerith Pantograph Card Punch
date: label: date made
content: ca 1900
name: label: maker
content: Tabulating Machine Company
notes: label: Description
content: This cast-iron object has a metal base that holds, at the top front, a sheet of plastic with holes in it, marked with the categories of the 1890 U.S. Census of population. In back of this is a holder for a punched card. A long arm, pivoted at the back, extends over the card and the plastic sheet. It has two projections on it. One fits into holes in the plastic sheet and the other punches holes in the card.The action is similar to that of a pantograph - hence the device is called a pantograph punch.
label: Description
content: A mark on the plastic template reads: THE TABULATING MACHINE COMPANY, WASHINGTON, D.C. (/) System Patented January 8, 1889.
label: Description
content: For related objects see MA.312895 and MA.312897. Compare 2011.3121.01 and MA.317982.03.
label: Description
content: The Tabulating Machine Company was formed by Herman Hollerith in 1896 and merged to form the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company in 1911.
label: Description
content: Reference:
label: Description
content: Leon E. Truesdell, <I>The Development of Punch Card Tabulation in the Bureau of the Census 1890–1940</I>, Washington: U.S. Department of Commerce, 1965, pp. 43–44.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: District of Columbia, Washington
topic: label: web subject
content: Mathematics
label: web subject
content: Census
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Mathematics
label: See more items in
content: Tabulating Equipment
label: See more items in
content: Science & Mathematics
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of International Business Machines Corporation
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: MA.312896
label: accession number
content: 171118
label: catalog number
content: 312896
objectType: label: Object Name
content: card punch
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: plastic (card template material)
label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: wood (knob material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 5 in x 19 1/4 in x 12 1/4 in; 12.7 cm x 48.895 cm x 31.115 cm