Linotype Composing Machine, circa 1915
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Artifact Overview
Invented by Ottmar Mergenthaler in 1886, the Linotype machine revolutionized the printing industry. Instead of setting individual pieces of type by hand, printers operated the Linotype's keyboard to assemble a mould of an entire line of type. The machine then cast the entire line in type metal and printers assembled individual lines of type into full pages.
Artifact Details
Artifact
Composing machine
Date Made
circa 1915
Creators
Place of Creation
Creator Notes
Made by Mergenthaler Linotype Company in New York, New York.
Location
Not on exhibit to the public.
Object ID
92.166.1
Credit
From the Collections of The Henry Ford. Gift of Russell P. Lorway.
Material
Brass (Alloy)
Leather
Metal
Dimensions
Height: 81.5 in
Width: 53.5 in
Length: 56.5 in
Inscriptions
plate at top:
LINOTYPE
brass plate:
LINOTYPE / (TRADE MARK) / PATENTED MAR. 17 1874 ... JUL. 13 1897 / OTHER APPLICATIONS PENDING / MERGENTHALER LINOTYPE CO. NEW YORK CITY
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