Burroughs Adding Machine. In 1875, the young William Seward Burroughs (biography of William Seward Burroughs), son of a mechanic from Rochester, New York, according to the father's desire to choose a gentleman's vocation, entered the Cayuga County National Bank of Auburn as a clerk.

The Burroughs Adding Machine Company
The evolution of the Burroughs Calculator
My Shoebox Burroughs Calculator
Video
My Class 5 Calculator
My Baby Burroughs Calculator
Comparison Video
My 'Princess Anne' Baby Burroughs Calculator
Manuals, Books, and Tables
Advertisements, brochures, and sales leaflets
Newspaper and Magazine Articles
Paraphernalia
Patents
Links

Burroughs Adding Machine Manual El 1750p

The Burroughs Adding Machine Company

William Seward Burroughs invented an adding listing machine in 1884, and in 1888the American Arithmometer Company was formed to market it. When the company movedfrom St. Louis to Detroit in 1904, it was renamed the Burroughs Adding Machine Company,in honour of its founder who had died six years earlier.

The early Burroughs adding machines, the Class 1, were quite large and heavy, and wereoften placed on their own metal table stand. They were listing machines, i.e. theyhad the ability to print the results, though the printing mechanism seems to havebeen an optional extra. There were glass panels on all sides of the casing so thatthe mechanism was visible to the user, because apparently many people were scepticaland mistrustful of the salesmen for these newfangled machines. Various models of theseClass 1 machines were made until the 1930s. Class 2 machines were very similar, buthad two registers. Burroughs were early adopters of electricity, supplying electricallydriven adding machines as early as 1906.

In the trailer for the film The Greatest Showman you can see a scene inwhich Hugh Jackman is playing P.T. Barnum before he was famous. He isin a large office sitting behind a desk, and working on a class 1 Burroughsadding machine. The office has about 30 desks, half of which have a Burroughsmachine, all without printing mechanisms. This is highly anachronistic sincethe scene is supposedly set in the early 1830s, seventy years before thesemachines were used in such quantity.

The Pike Adding Machine Company had developed a much smaller adding listing machine.This relatively compact machine could sit on a desk, and the printed paper came outof the top, like a typewriter or cash register, making it easy to see the result.The Burroughs Adding Machine Company took over the Pike Adding Machine Company in 1909,and these small adders then became Class 3 Burroughs machines. They were marketed asthe Visible Burroughs. Burroughs would often buy out smaller rival companies beforethey grew large enough to compete, and then further develop or discontinue theacquired machine designs.

The Burroughs listing adding machines had easily outcompeted Felt & Tarrant'sComptograph, but Felt & Tarrant was too large a company to take over due to thesuccess of the Comptometer. In 1911 Burroughs decided to go head to head withthem by releasing their own non-listing key-driven calculator that was verysimilar to the Comptometer. The Burroughs Calculator was called the Class 5 seriesof machines.

In 1912 Burroughs advertised that they had 86 different models, with 492 combinations.This shows that they were masters at customising their machines to the exact specialapplications that their customers needed.

Burroughs remained very successful with their many listing machines, cashregisters, typewriters, bookkeeping machines, as well as various other officemachines, and developed a large range of machines for various more specificbusiness operations such as bank processes. They also successfully made thetransition into the electronic age, by buying electronics companies to produceearly tube computers, tape storage machines, and later electronic calculators.

The evolution of the Burroughs Calculator

1911-1914: Shoebox model
In 1911 Burroughs decided to compete directly with Felt & Tarrant,creating a a non-listing key-driven calculator. Burroughs deliberatelystyled the case of their new calculator to look very similar to theComptometer. It also had one column/digit more, so that their salesmencould claim that the Burroughs machine was better. Through litigationBurroughs were forced to change the design in 1915, making Burroughscalculators with the shoebox casing somewhat rare.See below for pictures ofmy Shoebox Burroughs Calculator

1915-1936? Leggy model
In 1915 the Burroughs Calculator was redesigned. The new version had a differentkey mechanism that did away with the long lever that the Comptometer has, and thisallowed the machine to be shorter and the keys to be the same height. It had a blackcase, with rounded corners and little legs, and with a green keyboard plate. The rearlegs could have extensions attached in order to tilt the keyboard towards the user.This was quite a popular machine, because it was cheaper than the Comptometer, andone of the cheapest machines that Burroughs made. That made up for the lack of errorcorrection mechanism, which made it somewhat unsafe to use. See below for picturesof my Burroughs Calculator.

1928-1960?? Baby Burroughs
The 6-digit 'Baby' Burroughs Calculator was released in 1928. It no longerhad metal legs but had a flat base that rested on rubber feet. These changes made iteven cheaper. The case was originally painted black with a green keyboard plate, butlater other colours were produced too. See below for pictures of my BabyBurroughs Calculators.

1928-1936 Electric model
An electrically driven version was produced at the same time, and this was the first versionthat made errors from incomplete keystrokes impossible.

1934-1936 Duplex model
The Duplex model is electrically driven and has an extra register at the top of thekeyboard for grand totals. The design of the Baby Burroughs was not yet carried overto this model, as it still has the legs of the 1915 calculator. Note that it finallyhas a row of carry suppression button at the front to simplify subtraction.

1937-19?? Standard Manual model
The full-sized manual model finally gets a redesigned case, though its mechanismseems unchanged. It does not have carry suppression buttons. This model appearsin adverts from 1937, but it may have been introduced a year or two earlier.

1937-19?? Electric model
The electric model finally gets a redesigned case, matching the manual version.This model appears in adverts from 1937, but it may have been introduced ayear or two earlier.

1937-1946 Duplex model
The duplex model also gets a redesigned case, matching the style of the manual version.

1947-19?? Duplex model
The case was restyled again. The standard manual and electric modelswere also changed, but I have not found any advertisements featuring them.It seems that the Baby Burroughs continued to be produced with at mosta change in colour.

My Shoebox Burroughs Calculator

This is the first Burroughs Calculator (as opposed to adding listing machine). It wasfirst made in 1911 and deliberately styled to resemble the Comptometer. The patentinfringement court case filed by Felt & Tarrant forced them to change this deceptivepractice, so from 1915 the Burroughs Calculator had a very different design. Notethat Burroughs appealed the case, and in 1917 was found not to have infringed anypatents, but the case had mostly served its purpose by then.

Here are some notable comparisons with the Comptometer:

• The case has almost the same size and shape as the Comptometer, except that it is painted black. The cover over the register even has a similar S-curve, and is attached in the same way except that at the front it is held by a small lock instead of screwed down.
• The keys tops are virtually the same as those of the Comptometer - black and white, octagonal, and the odd numbered keys have a more concave surface to help touch typing.
• The Burroughs Calculator has 9 full columns of keys, 10 digits, which is one more than the standard Comptometer. Larger versions became available, with 11 or 13 columns of keys, again one more column than the larger Comptometers.
• The stems of the keys are flat like the Comptometer, but oriented parallel to the columns rather than the rows. Note that after the 1915 redesign of the Burroughs Calculator they are row-oriented like the Comptometer.
• The mechanism of the keyboard is almost identical to the Comptometer. There is a long lever under each key column, and the higher digit keys are closer to the pivot and also travel a longer distance when pushed.
• The Burroughs Calculator has no carry suppression tabs. Subtracting a number is the same as in the Comptometer, you have to enter the tens complement, but this complement must include all the leading nines. For this reason, there is an unmarked 9 button in the otherwise empty keyboard column above the leftmost digit. Only much later did the electric calculator model have these buttons.
• The Burroughs Calculator does not have a Controlled-Key or similar error detection mechanism. To be fair, the contemporary model C Comptometer did not have this either, as it was first seen a few years later in the 1913 model E. Therefore partially depressing and releasing a key will add a smaller digit than was intended.
• The numeral wheels are driven by a clever planetary gear arrangement, which allows each wheel to react to the input from a key and from a carry simultaneously. Therefore the carry from one wheel to another can be carried out at any time, whereas in the Comptometer the carry is temporarily delayed until the receiving wheel has stopped moving.
• The zeroing lever is pulled forward and released to clear the register, whereas in the Comptometer at the time it was moved in the other direction. The clearing mechanism also seems to be more robust than that of the Comptometer. It wasn't until the 1920 Model H that the Comptometer got a better clearing mechanism with a lever that also moved forward.

According to the instruction handbook, on the earliest versions of the shoebox BurroughsCalculator the small co-digits on the keys were printed in red, and the clearing handlewas attached with a screw, but on mine the co-digits are black, and the clearing handlecan be pulled free and simply clicks back into place.

My Burroughs Calculator has serial number 206979. I do not have a key for unlocking theregister cover, but the part of the cover that the lock latches onto is missing so thecover can easily be removed without a key. There are several scratches on the top plateof the case, but otherwise the case is in good condition including the logo on the front.Mechanically it still works perfectly.

Video

Here is a video where I demonstrate my shoebox Burroughs Calculator.

My Class 5 Calculator

This is the version of the calculator that replaced the shoebox model in 1915. Itbecame known as the Class 5. It still has 9 full columns of keys, 10 digits in theregister, though versions with more columns were made too. This particular machinehas fractions (eighths) in the rightmost column. It has a cast iron casing, withsmall legs on the corners. The rear legs have extensions so that the keyboard istilted up towards the operator, but those are optional - they can be unscrewed, andthe rubber feet screwed in their place.

The keyboard mechanism has changed so that it no longer requires long levers. Thecase is therefore not as long as before, and only barely extends past the top mostrow of keys. The mechanism also blocks you from pressing two or more keys in thesame column.

The zeroing mechanism is different to that of the shoebox model. It was changedto be quieter and require less effort. Whereas pulling the lever used to increaseall digits to 9, and then let them carry over when the lever was released,pulling the lever now merely uncouples the digit wheels so that the springsused in the carry mechanism can pull them down to zero.

I think it probably used to have a Burroughs logo decal on the front,but there is no trace of it now. It has serial number 5-572171.

My Baby Burroughs Calculator

The standard Burroughs Calculator has 9 or more full columns of keys. Startingin 1928 they also made a version of about half the size, so 5 keyboard columns,with a 6-digit register. This was of course even cheaper than the full-sizedversion, and this helped it become quite popular. It is sometimes known as the'Baby Burroughs'.

The casing has been simplified - it no longer has a cast iron base with legs, butnow has a simple flat base with rubber feet screwed on. The zeroing mechanism hassome extra safety compared to the older models, in that the keyboard remains lockedif you do not complete the movement of the lever, and this prevents only partiallyclearing the register.

The colour of this calculator and the fact that its logo is not a decal suggestthat it was probably made in the 1940s. From 1947 Burroughs startedusing a round red logo with the letter B, but this machine still has Burroughs infull so it probably dates from before then. It has serial number A720100.

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Comparison Video

Here is a video where I compare three types of Burroughs Calculator.

My 'Princess Anne' Baby Burroughs Calculator

This is a very special 1953 edition of a Baby Burroughs Calculator. Instead of ablack or brown case, its case is painted pink, and in place of the round red Burroughslogo on the front it has a cursive letter A. Also, the keyboard plates are transparent,making the mechanism somewhat visible. It comes in a carrying case with a tartan lining.

The machine is set up for British currency calculations. The first two columns are normaldecimal for the number of pounds. The middle two columns count shillings. There are 20shillings in a pound, so the keys in the third column are all marked 1, the numberwheel only displays 0 and 1, and it carries over every second step. The next columnis for pennies, so the number wheel can display 0 to 11. The keys for 10 and 11pennies are shifted to the right to the top of the last column of keys. That lastcolumn is for farthings, so has keys marked ¼, ½, and ¾. Thenumber wheel also has markings for eighths, but these are skipped over.

This Burroughs Calculator was made in Scotland. The Strathleven Industrial Estateopened in December 1946, and Burroughs was first major company to move in. QueenElizabeth II visited the plant on April 16 1953. This was about a year into herreign, and six weeks before her coronation. During that visit, two special BurroughsCalculators were presented to the Queen and Prince Philip: A blue calculator with aC on the front and a pink one with an A. They were gifts for their children PrincessAnne and Prince Charles, who were 2 and 4 years old at the time. The calculators hadleather carrying cases lined with tartan, and special leather bound instructionbooklets based around nursery rhyme themes.

I do not know how many of these special editions were made, but there were at leasttwo of each - one pair presented to the royal couple, and a duplicate pair thatBurroughs used for exhibition purposes. I do not know if the one I have is one ofthose. It still has the leather carrying case lined with tartan, but there is noinstruction book.

My 'Princess Anne' Burroughs Calculator does not have a serial number.A few screws are missing from the casing, but other than that it looks in perfectcondition, as if it were made yesterday. Unfortunately the register has becomemisaligned, and I have not yet been able to get it to work properly.

The Charles Babbage Institute, part of the University of Minnesota Libraries, owns thearchives of theBurroughs Corporation. In this archive there are black and white photographs of the Queen'svisit to the Strathleven factory, and of the presentation of the two Baby Burroughsmachines.

Manuals, Books, and Tables

There is now a separate web page for Burroughs Manuals, Books, and Tables.

Advertisements, brochures, and sales leaflets

Cheer Up and 52 Reasons Why
Burroughs Adding Machine Company; Detroit, Michigan, U.S.A.
1907 (Second edition)
59 page book
80mm × 114mm × 6mm

This tiny promotional book contains 52 reasons to acquire a Burroughs adding machine.The back cover has a reply postcard attached. The edges of the pages are not cut, sothey are very uneven.

A Better Day's Work at a Less Cost of Time, Work, and Worry to the Man at the Desk
Burroughs Adding Machine Company; Detroit, Michigan, U.S.A.
1910 (Fourth edition)
192 page book
130mm × 190mm × 13mm

This promotional book contains a short history of adding devices ending with the developmentof the Burroughs adding machine, 25 chapters each showing an example of how aBurroughs machine can handle some administrative business task, and descriptionsof many variants of Burroughs adding listing machines that were available.

Shown here is the Fourth edition from 1910. It does not yet mention the BurroughsCalculator, but no doubt the sixth edition from 1912 does. It has a list of the datesand amounts of all editions of this book up to that point:

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Burroughs
1915 (First edition)
36 page book
107mm × 152mm × 8mm

This is a small hard-cover book with a dust cover. It explains what Burroughsmachines have improved the working of banks. There is a fold-out copy of abank statement that is generated by a Burroughs machine. A back page has areply postcard attached. The edges of the pages are not all cut, so they arevery uneven.
There is no copyright year in the book, but the text contains financial datafrom May 1915, so it is likely from that year.

Burroughs Brochure(PDF, 31.9 MB)
1929?
116 page ring bound book
216mm × 130mm (binder), 200mm × 126mm (pages excluding tabs)

This is a brochure advertising the many kinds of Burroughs machines that wereavailable. It is a leather ring-binder with 116 thick yellow pages that havetabs to separate it into the sections Counter Uses, Misc. Uses, Multiplying,Special Lines, Other Styles, Calculator, and Accessories. Its binding systemis unusual. It has fixed rings, and the paper leaves have slots to go overthe rings and a straight metal wire rod is then inserted through the ringsin the centrefold of each set of leaves to lock them in place. The rear coveris marked 'Michigan Book-Binding Co., Detroit, 25224'.

It has no copyright year. It includes the Burroughs Portable, so it dates toafter 1926. As one of the illustrations of a form uses the year 1929, I assumeit is from that year.

La Burroughs Portable
1929?
1 perforated page
212mm × 274mm

This is a fact-sheet in French for the Burroughs Portable listing adding machine.It was included in the French instruction manual so is presumably from around 1929. The Portablemodel was released in 1926.

The Story of Figures(PDF, 11.5 MB)
Burroughs Adding Machine Co.
June 1952
36 page stapled booklet
Booklet 137mm × 191mm × 2mm, Envelope 203mm × 153mm

This booklet is a short history of the development of numbers, arithmetic,and mechanical calculators, ending with William Burroughs' adding machine.The last few pages show a range Burroughs machines and other equipment.
There is no copyright year in the book, but the code inside the rearcover indicates this edition is from June 1952. There was an editionfrom 1933 which differed only slightly in the last few pages - instead ofmachine supplies and microfilm equipment it showed more about typewriters,cash registers, and office chairs.

It came in its own envelope, with the same form number as the booket itself, G 1029.

Newspaper Articles

I don't own any physical copies of Burroughs newspaper articles. I have however found a few interestingarticles in online newspaper and magazine archives. I have put them on a separateBurroughs Articles page.

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Paraphernalia

Burroughs Keychain

This keychain is shaped like a medallion with the Burroughs logo in the centre, and around thatit is decorated with symbols of the four arithmetic operations. The reverse is plain. It isprobably from the late 1950s or early 1960s.

Burroughs Lighter

This lighter has the Burroughs logo on one side and a 10-key adding listingmachine on the other side. It is probably from the late 1950s or early 1960s.

Burroughs School Certificate

Burroughs set up schools to train operators, much in the same way as Felt & Tarranthad done with their Comptometer Schools. This is a certificate from such a school inPittsburgh, dated November 2, 1950, and made out to Mary Jane Race Gault. It is a fairlysmall card, contained in a wallet that looks like leather but which is also made ofcardboard.

Patents

The Burroughs Adding Machine Company filed a large number of patents aboutall aspects of their many machines. The shoebox Calculator has two patent datesprinted on its case, which are the first two listed below. The other two describechanges made in the 1915 redesign.

© Copyright 2016-2018 Jaap Scherphuis, mechcalc a t jaapsch d o t net.

Portable Adders

Whileall adders could be transported, this group consists of a much lighter adderreleased in the 1920's. this group of adding machines of the portable design type of full keyboard (9 numberkeys in each column, number of columns varied by style). Can be electric ormanual powered by a hand crank.

The Class 8, 9, 10, andSeries P were the mainstay of the adding machine business for many years.Burroughs built a tremendous number of configurations over the years, alldesigned around the same basis invention of the first “Portable” machine.A significant change in the Burroughs line from the Class 1, 2, and 3machines with their heavy construction, the Burroughs Portable was the answer tocompetition from Victor, American, Barrett, Standard, Universal, Wales, and manyother portable machines of the time.

The Class 10 machines werespecifically built for receipting applications such as bank teller use.These machines had special keyboard capabilities and unique carriageconstruction.While very common inbanks for years, these models are difficult to locate today.

Class8 -Full keyboard machines with adding capability only

DateRange -- 1925-196x

OriginalPrice -- $100

Burroughs Calculator Value

Today’sValue -- $50-$150

Style 80801 (Class 8 adder, 8 columns, standard carriage)

Early machine (note singlescrew below logo)

Class9 -Full keyboard machines with adding and subtracting capability. Can be electricor manual.

DateRange -- 1926-196x

OriginalPrice -- $200

Today’sValue -- $50-$150

Has small lever to setsubtract operation (right lower keyboard)

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This later model has a redsubtract key

Burroughs Adding Machine No 9

Electric model with blackadd and subtract keys - look close, right side of keyboard (91053)

Very popular wide carriage model (91053W)

Class10 -Full keyboard style machines with features for bank teller and receiptingfunctions

DateRange -- 1947-197x

OriginalPrice -- $500

Today’sValue -- $75-$200

Model 1010383 Teller's Machine (banks)

SeriesP – Later model full keyboard machines in many styles with many features

DateRange -- 1948-197x

OriginalPrice -- $200-$400

Today’sValue -- $50-$125

Wide carriage - note olderround keys

Narrow carriage - newerwith square keys

Actually a P200 modelmachine - much newer

Much later machine with plastic case (P1323W)

Same machine without the wide carriage (P1323)

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