#8: An Early Calculator

Can you believe that this giant machine is an early version of a calculator? Today’s calculators fit in our pockets. Heck, most of us just use the calculator on our smartphones! However, that wasn’t the case back in 1911. This Marchant XLA calculator was produced by the Marchant Calculating Machine Company in the late 1910s.

Marchant had a reputation for developing and producing reliable calculating machines. This design, created by employee Carl Friden, was a huge success for the Marchant company. They eventually developed a faster, quieter calculating machine, but this model was one of their first commercial successes.