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More on the Dollar and Yankee typewriters

In 1893 the Dollar sold for as little as 25 cents. In 1897 the Yankee for as little as 65 cents. In 2015 a Yankee garnered $2,500 on eBay! (See previous story here.) Invented by Robert Hawley Ingersoll, these index typewriters are exceedingly rare today. In The Typewriter Sketchbook, Paul Roberts was not sure which came first, but, now, thanks to increased access to digital archives, it appears the Dollar preceded the Yankee.

Robert Messenger tells the story of the machines’ inventor here, but advertisements also tell a story. It seems each was offered as a serious machine, but then later as a toy.

The advertisements:

The Iola Register (Iola, Kansas) Feb. 13, 1891

From The Iola Register (Iola, Kansas) Feb. 13, 1891.

The Weekly Wisconsin (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) April 11, 1891

From The Weekly Wisconsin (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) April 11, 1891.

Boston Post, April 29, 1891

From the Boston Post, April 29, 1891.

From The Standard Money Manual: Moneys of America, England, Ireland, Scotland, France, Germany, and Spain, 1892. Click image to visit Google books.

New-York Tribune, Dec. 17, 1893

Once competing against $100 Remingtons, now a 25 cent toy. From the New-York Tribune, Dec. 17, 1893.

The World (New York, New York) Dec. 11, 1897

Now the Yankee, once again competing with Remington — “most instructive and amusing for the young folks and practical for business work.” From The World (New York, New York) Dec. 11, 1897.

The World (New York, New York) Dec. 19, 1897

One of Ingersoll’s one-dollar novelties. From The World (New York, New York) Dec. 19, 1897.

The Courier-Journal (Louisville, Kentucky) Dec. 19, 1897

Child’s play. From The Courier-Journal (Louisville, Kentucky) Dec. 19, 1897.

1898 Yankee Advertisement

The last advertisement for the Yankee (that I could find) appears in 1898. From Hardware, see here.

© 2015, Mark Adams. All rights reserved.

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