Replying to comments on his posting for the Monarch typewriter, Will Davis writes, “The myriad of Remington labeling schemes does provide a fertile ground for the collector, doesn’t it?” Indeed it does. I’ve outlined, as comprehensively as possible, the various labeling schemes for just the first three models here, and typospherian Michael Hoehne was kind enough to send two more images.
The first is a machine similar to one I own, but the labels are better preserved:
Monarch No. 1 typewriter, ser. no. 20,698.
The second machine is more intriguing:
Monarch No. 3, ser. no. 53,010.
What’s noteworthy about this machine is the absence of any Remington labeling on the paper table . Most No. 3s circulating among collectors display the words “Remington Typewriter Company,” marking a period of transition, from Monarch as a typewriter company to Monarch as a brand of Remington (and later, Smith Premier). Monarch was the child company of the American Typewriter Union, a trust which controlled several manufactures, including Remington and Smith Premier.
That a No. 3 should lack Remington markings is not surprising. Advertising for this typewriter almost universally omitted the Remington name, except occasionally in the print copy —
I’ve added Hoehne’s photos to my overview of the Monarch typewriter line here.
© 2013, Mark Adams. All rights reserved.
I also own a Monarch model 3 without any mention of the Remington brand whatsoever. I’ll go further: my machine does no thave the two buttons on the right side of the frontispiece, it only has the margin release button. The way the typebars are built is also very different from the Remington typewriters I own, and I assume it has to do with the Monarch being an older design.
You can see my machine here: http://modernidadyobsolescencia.blogspot.mx/2013/10/ejercitando-la-coleccion-monarch-3.html
Feel free to use the photos if they help in your project.
This photo (attached) of Toronto St. in Toronto, Canada shows a Monarch Visible business sign. The photo,is dated 1897 and your web site indicates that the Monarch Co. was founded in 1904.
I wonder if the old photo date is a mistake.
Any comment?
Toronto St. 1897.jpg
If the photo does not attach, I’ll send it by another means —please advise.
Interesting. Post the full link; even if it is not clickable, I can cut and paste. Very interesting.
Link to 1897? photo of Monarch Visible sign in Toronto:
http://collections.musee-mccord.qc.ca/scripts/large.php?accessnumber=VIEW-3049.A&zoomify=true&Lang=1&imageID=160474
No, the date is off. The Monarch Typewriter Company had only begun construction of its factory in 1903 (see https://www.newspapers.com/clip/13270298/), so that image is somewhere between 1904 and 1906 (?). The sign displays a Number 1, so it is an early picture of an MTC dealer.
I picked up a number 3 that is not very clean at a auction. If I am reading the serial number site correctly, the 13828 serial number is from 1906.
The paper table is missing, since the platen is 14 1/2 inches long I would assume that it would be almost impossible to find the correct table with the correct labeling on it?
Yes, finding a paper table would be very difficult, at least for a specific machine.