Keuffel & Esser Linear Planimeter Invented by Frank R. Williams
date: label: date made
content: 1903
name: label: maker
content: Keuffel & Esser Co.
notes: label: Description
content: This German silver instrument consists of three pieces. The first is a seven-inch tracer arm with a tracer point at one end and a measuring wheel with vernier and a peg at the other end. The peg fits into a groove on the second piece, which is a rectangular plate with a removable sliding ruler that is divided on all four sides into 96, 120, 150, and 180 parts. A pivoting rectangular blade is at the right end of the second piece. This piece is marked: KEUFFEL & ESSER C<u>o</u> N.Y. Pat. Dec. 8. 1903 N<u>o</u> 7. The third piece is a folding L-shaped ruler. The long arm is graduated to 1/4-inch and numbered from 1 to 5. The short arm is divided to tenths of an inch and numbered from 5 to 20.
label: Description
content: A rectangular hardwood case has green velvet lining the supports for the instrument. A small ivory plate screwed inside the lid is marked: KEUFFEL & ESSER CO. (/) NEW YORK (/) ST. LOUIS CHICAGO (/) SAN FRANCISCO.
label: Description
content: Frederick (Frank) R. Williams of Syracuse, N.Y., patented this planimeter. He may have been a merchant who sold his grocery store in 1906. The instrument was never advertised in Keuffel & Esser catalogs. Since this example was donated by K&E in 1971 and since the serial number is so low (7), perhaps K&E manufactured it as a prototype or for use with its own steam engine indicators, but decided not to offer it for sale to the public. Compare to the linear planimeter invented by John Coffin, MA.323708, 1987.0107.03, MA.323705, and MA.323706.
label: Description
content: References: Frank R. Williams, "Planimeter" (U.S. Patent 746,427 issued December 8, 1903); "Skaneateles," <i>Syracuse Journal</i> (January 10, 1906), 6, http://fultonhistory.com/newspapers%20Disk3/Syracuse%20NY%20Daily%20Journal/Syracuse%20NY%20Daily%20Journal%201906.pdf/Syracuse%20NY%20Daily%20Journal%201906%20-%200104.PDF; Clark McCoy, ed., "Planimeters and Integrators in K&E Catalogs by Model Number," http://www.mccoys-kecatalogs.com/PlanimeterModels/PlanimeterModels.htm; Bob Otnes, "American Planimeters," <i>Journal of the Oughtred Society</i> 11, no. 2 (2002): 59–64; accession file.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: New Jersey, Hoboken
topic: label: Subject
content: Mathematics
label: Subject
content: Engineering
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Mathematics
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content: Planimeters
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content: Science & Mathematics
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Keuffel & Esser Company
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: MA.335262
label: catalog number
content: 335262
label: accession number
content: 306012
objectType: label: Object Name
content: planimeter
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: german silver (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: fabric (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: case: 4.3 cm x 19.7 cm x 8.5 cm; 1 11/16 in x 7 3/4 in x 3 11/32 in