Jaap's Mechanical Calculators Page

Comptometer Books and Manuals

Methods of Operating the Comptometer
Easy Instructions for operating the Comptometer
Comptometer Course for Business
Other Felt & Tarrant books and manuals
Books by others


Methods of Operating the Comptometer

This booklet is the first standard manual for using the Comptometer. The first version from 1895 was probably written by Dorr Felt himself for use with the wooden model Comptometer. It was updated many times over the years as new Comptometer models were made. There are versions of this manual with copyrights from 1895, 1904, 1911, 1913, 1915, 1916, 1920, 1921, and 1928. The years shown in bold font are versions I have in my collection and are shown in more detail below.

It starts with directions for oiling, and then explains addition, multiplication, subtraction, and division, as well as some more advanced techniques such as common fractions, Stone measure, British currency, compound interest, discounts, and square roots. This manual was later superseded by "Easy Instructions for operating the Controlled-Key Comptometer", which concentrates on the four basic arithmetic operations.


Methods of Operating the Comptometer    (PDF, 13.3 MB or archive.org)
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, U.S.A.
Copyright 1895
36 page stapled booklet
128mm × 180mm

The version shown here is a first edition from 1895, when the Comptometer still had a wooden case and only one key could be pressed at a time. My copy has a library stamp on the front cover that says "Library U.S. Patent Office, Nov 29 1896", and inside is written in pen "Writen by D.E. Felt.". The page that describes oiling of the mechanism has been stamped with the text "Oiler given when Comptometer is billed". This may refer to the small oil can shown in the Paraphernalia section.

Methods of Operating the Comptometer 1895
Methods of Operating the Comptometer 1895, preface
Methods of Operating the Comptometer 1895, oiling
Methods of Operating the Comptometer 1895, division

Methods of Operating the Comptometer    (PDF, 19.1 MB or archive.org)
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, U.S.A.
1911 (Copyright 1895, 1904, 1911)
58 page stapled booklet
126mm × 178mm

This is the 1911 edition of the standard manual for using the Comptometer. It has now expanded to 58 pages, though it tackles exactly the same set of subjects. This version is from just before the "Controlled-Key" mechanism was introduced, so the illustrations and photos use the model B or C Comptometer.

Note the presence of the shield logo - a shield with the symbols of the four arithmetic operations on it, with Comptometer written across the top. This logo would often be used in printed material, as well as the rings and badges, but never on the Comptometer machines themselves, and rarely in advertising.

Methods of Operating the Comptometer
Methods of Operating the Comptometer, title page
Methods of Operating the Comptometer, oiling
Methods of Operating the Comptometer, back

Methods of Operating the Comptometer    (PDF, 20.8 MB or archive.org)
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, U.S.A.
1921 (Copyright 1895, 1904, 1911, 1913, 1915, 1916, 1920, 1921)
67 page stapled booklet
136mm × 196mm × 4mm

This is the 1921 edition of the above standard manual for using the Comptometer. It has now expanded to 67 pages, mostly by having additional pages inserted at the start before the main text. These pages deal with oiling, the Controlled-Key mechanism and error correction, and the features of the clearing mechanism of the model H.

Methods of Operating the Comptometer
Methods of Operating the Comptometer
Methods of Operating the Comptometer
Methods of Operating the Comptometer

Methods of Operating the Comptometer    (PDF, 20.3 MB or archive.org)
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, U.S.A.
1928 (Copyright 1895, 1904, 1911, 1913, 1915, 1916, 1920, 1921, 1928)
68 page stapled booklet
136mm × 196mm × 4mm

This is the 1928 and probably final edition of the above standard manual for using the Comptometer. It is almost the same as the 1921 edition - just a few pages have been rewritten, and it runs to only one more page than before. References to the model H have been updated to the model J.

Methods of Operating the Comptometer
Methods of Operating the Comptometer
Methods of Operating the Comptometer
Methods of Operating the Comptometer
Methods of Operating the Comptometer

Handleiding voor de behandeling van den Comptometer    (PDF, 9.71 MB or archive.org)
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Amsterdam
1919-1920
26 page stapled booklet
142mm × 204mm

This booklet is a Dutch manual for the Comptometer. It is a shortened version of the Methods of Operating the Comptometer booklet above, leaving out the directions for oiling and the more advanced calculation techniques. It explains the "Controlled-Key" mechanism, addition, multiplication, subtraction, and division.

The illustrations in the booklet show the model F Comptometer. There is no publication year inside, but it probably dates from 1919 or 1920 because it says that the Dutch office of Felt & Tarrant was in Amsterdam, Koningsplein 1. From phone books and newspaper ads I found the successive addresses of their office and the dates they resided there:

1909-1919Damrak 28-30, AmsterdamMove took place on 1st May 1919
1919-1931Koningsplein 1, Amsterdam
1932-1943Prins Hendrikkade 20, Amsterdam
1946-1950Rokin 84, Amsterdam

They kept the same telephone number throughout, apart from the addition of a digit when the telephone exchange was upgraded.

Handleiding voor de behandeling van den Comptometer, cover
Handleiding voor de behandeling van den Comptometer, page 1
Handleiding voor de behandeling van den Comptometer, page 22
Handleiding voor de behandeling van den Comptometer, back

Comptometer - Méthode Pour Opérer    (PDF, 18.9 MB or archive.org)
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Paris
1915-1920?
48 page stapled booklet
135mm × 210mm

This booklet is a French manual for the Comptometer. It is a translation of the Methods of Operating the Comptometer booklet above, even including the sections on British currency and Imperial weights.

There is no publication year inside, but it probably dates from 1915-1920, as the illustrations show the model F Comptometer. It included a card with a further explanation of how to use the Controlled-Key mechanism and correcting errors.

Comptometer - Méthode pour Opérer, cover
Comptometer - Méthode pour Opérer, page 1
Comptometer - Méthode pour Opérer, page 18
Comptometer - Méthode pour Opérer, page 42
Comptometer - Méthode pour Opérer, rear
Comptometer - Méthode pour Opérer, card front
Comptometer - Méthode pour Opérer, card rear

Easy Instructions For Operating the Comptometer

Easy Instructions for the Comptometer Easy Instructions for the Comptometer

This booklet is a simplified manual for using the Comptometer, containing only the basic methods that can be found in the "Methods of Operating the Comptometer" above. It explains addition, multiplication, subtraction, and division. It grew to be the standard Comptometer manual that was supplied with the machine. Those who needed more complicated calculation techniques presumably would take a course.

I own several versions of this booklet, about one from each decade from the 1910s to the 1950s.


Easy Instructions for operating the Comptometer     (PDF, 11.7 MB or archive.org)
1915
Form 112 (booklet), Form 96 (card)
12 page stapled booklet
217mm × 281mm (booklet), 104mm × 167mm (card)

This thin booklet has no copyright year, and strangely does not mention the company Felt and Tarrant anywhere. The version shown here is from approximately 1915. Its title is listed in The 1911 Register Of Copyright Entries, and while the text is probably from that year, the pictures on the front and inside have been updated to show a model E, and a picture on the back shows a model F. A small card was included to explain the Controlled-Key mechanism and error correction. A French version of that card can be seen above that was included with "Méthode Pour Opérer"

Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1915, cover
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1915, inside
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1915, inside
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1915, back
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1915, card, front
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1915, card, back

Easy Instructions for operating the Controlled-Key Comptometer Adding and Calculating Machine    (PDF, 14.3 MB or archive.org)
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, Ill.
1920
Form 112
22 page stapled booklet
184mm × 235mm

This is the 1920 version of the above booklet, which is a simplified manual for using the Comptometer. It has now been expanded to explain the "Controlled-Key" mechanism. At the end it has a list of the various tables that were available, some of which you can find in the Tables section of my collection.

Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1920, cover
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1920, pages 16/17
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1920, pages 22/23
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1920, back cover

Easy Instructions for operating the Controlled-Key Comptometer     (PDF, 12.3 MB or archive.org)
1920?
Herbert E. Robbins Ltd.?
24 page stapled booklet
185mm × 236mm

This is the British version of the above 1920s booklet. Unfortunately it is missing its front and back covers. The contents of many pages are virtually identical to the American version apart from the photographs which now feature a Comptometer with a keyboard for British Currency, but a few pages of the American version have been omitted to make room for instructions about handling currency correctly.

Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1920, UK version
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1920, UK version
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1920, UK version
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1920, UK version

Easy Instructions for operating the Controlled-Key Comptometer    (PDF, 18.3 MB or archive.org)
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, Illinois
1930 (?)
Form 1017
20 page stapled booklet
185mm × 232mm

This version has no copyright year, but shows the model H or J on the first page. It could date anywhere from about 1921 to 1934, but I guess it is from 1930, and that this is the first version that was used as the new simplified standard manual, replacing the final 1928 version of "Methods of Operating the Comptometer". All the later versions use the same design for the front cover, apart from the colour.

Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1930, cover
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1930, introduction
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1930, page 11
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1930, division
Easy Instructions for the Comptometer 1930, table list

Easy Instructions for operating the Controlled-Key Comptometer    (PDF, 12.5 MB or archive.org)
Comptometer Division, Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, Illinois
1941 (?)
Form 1017-L
22 page stapled booklet
167mm × 205mm

This version is from the 1940s, possibly 1941, but there is no publication year inside. The first page shows the model K and model M. It has 19 pages plus 3 pages of tables.

Easy Instructions, cover
Easy Instructions, page 1

Easy Instructions for operating the Accuracy Key Comptometer    (PDF, 10.7 MB or archive.org)
Comptometer Corporation, Chicago, Illinois
1958
Form 1017-R
22 page stapled booklet
164mm × 203mm

This is the 1958 edition. It is virtually identical to the 1940s edition, except that all photographs and drawings were updated to new models, and the page about the Controlled-Key (now the Accuracy Key) has been rewritten.

One interesting change is the claim in the introduction that there are now eight different standard sizes of comptometer. Whereas there used to be only 8, 10, 12 column keyboards as standard, with a 20 column version for special statistical work, there are now apparently also 5, 7, 9, and 11 column versions. The Customatic shown in the photo on that page does have 9 columns.

Easy Instructions, cover
Easy Instructions, introduction
Easy Instructions, accuracy key
Easy Instructions, division
Easy Instructions, back cover

Impiego della Comptometer a Tastiera Controllata sul Lavoro Pratico    (PDF, 11.8 MB or archive.org)
Ditta Renzo Ferraris, Carlo Ferraris Soc. Acc.
1950-56
22 page stapled booklet
164mm × 203mm

This is an Italian version of "Easy Instructions for operating the Controlled-Key Comptometer". There is no publication year inside, but it is probably from between 1950 and 1956 as the first page shows the models 992 and 3D11. It has 19 pages plus 3 pages of tables.

Impiego della Comptometer a Tastiera Controllata sul Lavoro Pratico
Impiego della Comptometer a Tastiera Controllata sul Lavoro Pratico

Comptometer Course for Business

This is a large book that was used for a course that lasted about three months. It was used in Comptometer schools that Felt & Tarrant had set up. The title changed slightly over the various editions that were printed.

1925, 1931The Comptometer Course in Business Arithmetic
1935Business Arithmetic for use only with the Comptometer
1947, 1951, 1954, 1958, 1963The Comptometer Course for Business Training

The Comptometer Course in Business Arithmetic.    (PDF, 88.0 MB or archive.org)
Compiled for use only in the instruction of the operation of the Comptometer - adding and calculating machine.
Practical Training for Modern Business
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, Illinois
Revised Edition
Copyright 1925, 1931
Form 1004-E
195 page bound book
193mm × 254mm × 14mm

This book opens vertically, like a notebook. It has 195 pages - pages 1 to 96 on one side, and then turn it over to get pages 97 to 195. It contains a great many exercises, with which to practice working on the Comptometer.
In my copy of the book, many of the pages have answers penciled in. The front flyleaf is inscribed "Maxine Fick, 5069 N Damen Ave., Chicago, Ill." with the telephone number "Ravenswood 2264". At the time of the 1930 US census she was 13 years old. Underneath is written "Bryant & Stratton College, 18 S. Michigan", which is a chain of business schools. I found an online image of an advert for this school from 1937.

The Comptometer Course in Business Arithmetic
The Comptometer Course in Business Arithmetic
The Comptometer Course in Business Arithmetic, title page
The Comptometer Course in Business Arithmetic, page 29
The Comptometer Course in Business Arithmetic, signed flyleaf
Bryant & Stratton

Comptometer Course for Business Training.
Comptometer Division, Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, Illinois
Copyright 1954
Form 1004-S
304 page bound book
185mm × 255mm × 22mm

This is the 1954 edition of the book. It opens vertically, like a notebook. It has 304 pages - Part One consisting of pages 1 to 152 is on one side, and if you turn it over you have Part Two, also with pages numbered 1 to 152. It contains a great many exercises, with which to practice working on the Comptometer. It covers the same subjects as the previous editions, but in a less terse manner.
My copy of the book is in good condition, and only a few of the pages have answers lightly penciled in.

Comptometer Course for Business Training
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Part One Title Page
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Part One, page 2
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Part One, page 3
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Part One, page 4
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Part One, page 6
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Part One, page 11
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Part One, page 20
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Part Two Title Page
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Part Two, page 2
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Part Two, page 3
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Part Two, page 4
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Part Two, page 6
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Part Two, page 11

Answer Book for the Comptometer Course for Business Training.    (PDF, 10.7 MB or archive.org)
Comptometer Division, Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, Illinois
1954 (?)
Form 1005-O
55 page stapled book
190mm × 229mm × 4mm

This book contains all the answers to the calculation exercises in "The Comptometer Course for Business Training". It has no copyright year and is hard to date exactly, but its lettering on the cover matches that of the 1954 edition above. The original owner has written their name and address on the inside of the back cover: "Property of Lottie Marche, 7132 S. Glengarry Ave, Whittier, Calif.".

Answer Book for the Comptometer Course for Business Training
Answer Book for the Comptometer Course for Business Training
Answer Book for the Comptometer Course for Business Training
Answer Book for the Comptometer Course for Business Training

Comptometer Course for Business Training.
Victor Business Machines Co. Division / Victor Comptometer Corporation, Chicago 18, Illinois
Copyright 1963
Form No. 651-181 (Formerly 1485)
176 page stapled book
278mm × 212mm × 12mm

This is the 1963 edition of the book, published after Felt & Tarrant were bought by Victor Business Machines. It has been completely rewritten, and has shortened to 176 pages. Many pages of the book are perforated so that part of the page can be filled in and handed in to the teacher for marking. The list of Comptometer models includes not just the former Felt & Tarrant models, but also various Bell Punch Sumlock models that were imported and rebranded as Victor Comptometers.

My copy of the book is in good condition, and only a few of the pages have answers lightly penciled in. The front cover has the name "Willa Hale" written on it, as does the receipt I found in the book which shows it was bought for $3.50 in 1965.

Comptometer Course for Business Training, Front cover
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Copyright page
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Preface
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Lesson 3
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Accuracy Key
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Lesson 48
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Back cover
Comptometer Course for Business Training, Receipt

Comptometer Course for Business Training Answer Book.    (PDF, 8,59 MB or archive.org)
Victor Comptometer Corporation, Business Machines Division, Chicago 18, Illinois
1963 (?)
Form 561-183 (Formerly 1610)
46 page stapled booklet
140mm × 210mm × 3mm

This book contains all the answers to the calculation exercises in "The Comptometer Course for Business Training", including the Review Tests. It has no copyright year, but it belongs to the 1963 edition above so it is presumably also from that year.

Comptometer Course for Business Training Answer Book
Comptometer Course for Business Training Answer Book
Comptometer Course for Business Training Answer Book
Comptometer Course for Business Training Answer Book

Grade Card and Review Tests for Comptometer Course.
1963 (?)
Form 1611
Envelope containing 8 loose one-sided pages
192mm × 268mm envelope, 185mm × 262mm pages

The pages in this envelope are the final Review Tests for the Comptometer Course for Business Training. The envelope itself has a student grade card printed in one side, and on the other side a table for calculating the grades from the number of correct answers on any test. There is no copyright year, but the tests belong to the 1963 edition above so they are presumably also from that year. The envelope seems to be older as it uses a different form number, so may have been printed in the Felt & Tarrant era.

Comptometer Course for Business Training Grade Card
Comptometer Course for Business Training Grade Card
Comptometer Course for Business Training Review Tests
Comptometer Course for Business Training Grade Card
Comptometer Course for Business Training Grade Card
Comptometer Course for Business Training Review Test 1
Comptometer Course for Business Training Review Test 2
Comptometer Course for Business Training Review Test 3
Comptometer Course for Business Training Review Test 4
Comptometer Course for Business Training Review Test 5
Comptometer Course for Business Training Review Test 6
Comptometer Course for Business Training Review Test 7a
Comptometer Course for Business Training Review Test 7b

Other Felt & Tarrant books and manuals

Instruction Manual for the Operation of the Comptometer    (PDF, 17.1 MB or archive.org)
Comptometer Division, Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, Illinois
1944
32 page ring bound book
217mm × 280mm

This instruction book was used at Felt & Tarrant Comptometer schools. It consists of 32 leaves of thick paper printed on only one side, and bound at the top edge by two metal rings. It covers the basics of arithmetic in 14 lessons, and it would take about 13 days to teach. According to its table of contents, there were about five more similar course books to follow for the full 3-month course. It may be that the original owner of this manual followed only the short introductory course.

My copy of this book has the name Gene Fleming written on the front, and some of the answers have been filled in.

Instruction Manual, cover
Instruction Manual, table of contents
Instruction Manual, introduction
Instruction Manual, description of the comptometer
Instruction Manual, review test
Instruction Manual, review test

Courtesy Course of Instruction For Use Only With The Comptometer Adding-Calculating Machine    (PDF, 20.2 MB or archive.org)
Comptometer Division, Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, Illinois
1947
Form 1204-F
40 page stapled book
183mm × 230mm

When a company bought one or more Comptometers, as a courtesy Felt & Tarrant would offer to train some of the company's staff in the use of the Comptometer. This course book was used for such a training course. It covers the basic methods of performing arithmetic in great detail, and includes practise exercises along the way.

Courtesy Course of Instruction, front cover
Courtesy Course of Instruction, title page
Courtesy Course of Instruction, contents and description
Courtesy Course of Instruction, expense sheet
Courtesy Course of Instruction, division
Courtesy Course of Instruction, division
Courtesy Course of Instruction, reciprocals
Courtesy Course of Instruction, back cover

Applied Mechanical Arithmetic as practised on the Controlled Key Comptometer Adding and Calculating Machine.
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, Illinois
Copyright 1914, 1920
First Revised Edition
606 page bound book
183mm × 148mm × 32mm

This book goes into great detail how the Comptometer can be used in various business processes. Mine has the name "Miss Ideus" written on the first page. The book contains prints of several photographs showing the Comptometer being used in the workplace. Pictures of most of those pages can be seen below.

A complete scan of the 1914 edition is available from the Internet Archive, available as a pdf file and in many other formats.

Applied Mechanical Arithmetic
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 6
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 9
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 14
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 15
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 58
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 108
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 128
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 156
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 157
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 159
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 162
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 164
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 166
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 167
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 198
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 201
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 208
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 210
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 238
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 348
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 382
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 407
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 408
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 482
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 562
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 563
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 564
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 565
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 566
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 567
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 568
Applied Mechanical Arithmetic, page 569

Rule for Extracting Cube Root with the Comptometer    (PDF, 5.48 MB or archive.org)
in connection with Cube Root Tables
Felt & Tarrant Manufacturing Co., Chicago, U.S.A.
Copyright November 1911
12 page stapled booklet
133mm × 177mm

This booklet contains a table for calculating cube roots. There are 2 pages of instruction, followed by the table on 10 pages.

The table consists of two columns of entries for the numbers 1 to 1000. The first column gives n3-(n-1)3, the second column gives n3-t3 where t is nearest multiple of ten that is strictly less than n. The instructions explain how you can use the second column to get an integer cube root of up to 3 digits, and how to use the first column to calculate up to 3 digits after the decimal point.

Rule for Extracting Cube Root, cover
Rule for Extracting Cube Root, page 1
Rule for Extracting Cube Root, page 2
Rule for Extracting Cube Root, back

Table of Reciprocals For numbers from 1 to 10,000    (PDF, 33.8 MB or archive.org)
To Be Used in Connection with the COMPTOMETER
Comptometer Division, Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, Illinois
Copyright 1917
Form 192
50 page stapled booklet
178mm × 253mm × 5mm

This booklet contains a table with the decimal expansions of 1/n for n up to 10,000. There are 10 pages of introduction, followed by the table on 40 pages which are tabbed for quick access. It has a sturdy cardboard cover, slightly larger than the pages.

Although the text has a copyright of 1917, the version shown here was printed in the 1940s because the title page has a picture of the model M, and the cover mentions the Comptometer Division of Felt and Tarrant. The 1917 version has the longer subtitle "to Be Used in Connection with the Controlled Key Comptometer Adding and Calculating Machine".

There are three minor mistakes in the table. The reciprocals for 118, 185, and 476 were erroneously rounded up instead of down in the last decimal. These errors may have been deliberately introduced as copyright traps to recognise illegal reproductions.

Table of reciprocals, cover
Table of reciprocals, title page
Table of reciprocals, page 3
Table of reciprocals, page 27

Adding Practice Book To Be Used in Connection With the COMPTOMETER
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, Ill.
1920-1925?
Form 319
80 page spiral-bound book
89mm × 233mm × 10mm

This small spiral-bound exercise book has thick cardboard covers and contains 78 pages which each have a single column of numbers to be added using the Comptometer. It shows no copyright year, but the form number and the picture of a model H mean it probably dates from the early 1920s.

Adding Practice Book, front cover
Adding Practice Book, title page
Adding Practice Book, first page
Adding Practice Book, last page
Adding Practice Book, rear cover

Adding Book
Comptometer Division, Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, Illinois
Copyright 1941
Form E-1257
86 page comb-bound book
146mm × 217mm × 10mm

This comb-bound exercise book has thick cardboard covers and contains 1 page of text followed by 393 sums to be done on the Comptometer.

Adding Book, cover
Adding Book, title page
Adding Book,  pages 1 and 2
Adding Book,  pages 85 and 86
Adding Book, inside of back cover
Adding Book, back cover

Manual of Instruction and drills to be used with Comptometer Educator    (PDF, 7.48 MB or archive.org)
Comptometer Division, Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago, Illinois
1950?
Form 1389
36 page stapled booklet
139mm × 178mm

This booklet with exercises came with the Comptometer Educator (see the Paraphernalia section). I don't know its year of publication, but it is probably some time in the late 1940s or early 1950s.

Comptometer Educator Book, front cover
Comptometer Educator Book, page 1
Comptometer Educator Book, page 2/3
Comptometer Educator Book, page 34/35
Comptometer Educator Book, page 36
Comptometer Educator Book, rear cover

Instructions for operating the Comptometer dictation machine
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Algonquin, Illinois
1955-1957
Form 4010
6-page trifold leaflet
140mm × 217mm

In the mid-1950s Felt & Tarrant diversified by manufacturing a dictation machine. The recording medium was a wide Mylar belt of magnetic tape, called the Erase-O-Matic magnetic belt, which allowed for quick access to any part of the recording just by moving the tape head sideways. This leaflet contains the instructions.

Instructions for operating the Comptometer dictation machine
Instructions for operating the Comptometer dictation machine
Instructions for operating the Comptometer dictation machine
Instructions for operating the Comptometer dictation machine
Instructions for operating the Comptometer dictation machine

Istruzioni per il funzionamento della macchina per dettare Comptometer
Carlo Ferraris Soc Acc., Torino
1955-1957
4-page folded leaflet
141mm × 219mm

This is the Italian translation of the above leaflet "Instructions for operating the Comptometer dictation machine". It does not contain the illustrations, just the text, so it is only 4 pages long.

Istruzioni per il funzionamento della macchina per dettare Comptometer
Istruzioni per il funzionamento della macchina per dettare Comptometer
Istruzioni per il funzionamento della macchina per dettare Comptometer
Istruzioni per il funzionamento della macchina per dettare Comptometer
Istruzioni per il funzionamento della macchina per dettare Comptometer
Istruzioni per il funzionamento della macchina per dettare Comptometer

The Soldiers' French Phrase Book    (PDF, 13.2 MB or archive.org)
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co., Chicago
Copyright 1918
2nd Edition
56 page stapled booklet
107mm × 134mm

This small book was published by Felt & Tarrant and given for free to American soldiers to aid them in the Great War. It contains words and phrases that are supposedly useful to a soldier in France, though for many there was unlikely to have been any opportunity to put them to use. Near the back there is an advert for the Comptometer, described as "the Machine Gun of the Office". The first page says:

In the hope that it may prove a convenient and serviceable aid to the intelligible expression in French of words and phrases necessary to communicate the common wants, wishes and desires of everyday military and social life, this French Phrase Book is presented to the soldier boys of America
with the complements of
Felt & Tarrant Mfg. Co.
Chicago

This book has a name written on the inside cover in pencil, "Wilburn C Buttler, Ft. Worth". The closest match is from the 1920 census - Wilburn C. Butler, in Fort Worth (Ward 11), Tarrant County, Texas. He was born on 8 October 1888, died on 3 April 1955, and is buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Fort Worth.

The Soldiers' French Phrase Book, cover
The Soldiers' French Phrase Book, title page
The Soldiers' French Phrase Book, advert

Books by others

Office Machine Practice Series No. 5, The Comptometer    (PDF, 26.9 MB or archive.org)
By C. H. Katenkamp
Published by Gregg Publishing Company
Copyright 1932
96 page stapled book
142mm × 204mm × 5mm

Chester Katenkamp wrote a series of Office Machine Practice booklets, of which this is the one for the Comptometer. Others include the Burroughs calculator, the Monroe calculator, and the Sundstrand machine. It is essentially a manual and course, explaining the four arithmetic operations an providing practice exercises. It also has sections on handling fractions and decimal points.
This book is in good condition, partly because the centre pages have been strengthened with tape along the spine to prevent the staples from tearing through, and similarly there is tape along the spine on the outside of the cover. There were many pencil marks inside but I was able to mostly erase them.

Office Machine Practice Series No. 5, The Comptometer - C. H. Katenkamp
Office Machine Practice Series No. 5, The Comptometer - C. H. Katenkamp
Office Machine Practice Series No. 5, The Comptometer - C. H. Katenkamp
Office Machine Practice Series No. 5, The Comptometer - C. H. Katenkamp
Office Machine Practice Series No. 5, The Comptometer - C. H. Katenkamp
Office Machine Practice Series No. 5, The Comptometer - C. H. Katenkamp

Comptometer Course
By Madge Warner
Published by Wilson's Modern Business College, 2003 Fifth Avenue, Seattle, Washington.
Copyright 1937
58 page staple bound book
228mm × 288mm × 8mm

Apart from books by Felt & Tarrant themselves, there are also books by others such as this one. It is similar to the Business Arithmetic course book above, also opens vertically, but is printed on only one side. It has 54 pages covering 51 lessons, but there are also 4 loose pages inserted at the back covering lesson 117. Note that the book also mentions the Burroughs calculator, a cheaper rival calculator that is very similar to the Comptometer but without the error detection mechanisms.
The front of this course book has been signed with the student's name, Eileen Powell.

Comptometer Course
Comptometer Course, page 1
Comptometer Course, page 2
Comptometer Course, page 43

How to Use the Calculator and the Comptometer    (PDF, 50.1 MB or archive.org)
By James R. Meehan
Published by Gregg Publishing Division, McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc.
Copyright 1940, 1947, 1952
Third Edition
128 page stapled book
217mm × 280mm × 7mm

This is another course book for both the Comptometer and the Burroughs calculator. It consists of 40 lessons, with an emphasis on addition, but also covers subtraction, multiplication and division. Its pages have perforations, so that when the answers to an exercise are filled in, it can be torn out and handed in to the teacher. This may make this book somewhat rare to find despite having been very widely used as an alternative to Felt & Tarrant's Comptometer Course for Business Training. There were five editions - 1940, 1947, 1952 (shown here), 1959, and 1964.

How to Use the Calculator and Comptometer, Front cover
How to Use the Calculator and Comptometer, Title Page
How to Use the Calculator and Comptometer, Copyright
How to Use the Calculator and Comptometer, Preface
How to Use the Calculator and Comptometer, Preface
How to Use the Calculator and Comptometer, Contents
How to Use the Calculator and Comptometer, Introduction
How to Use the Calculator and Comptometer, Introduction
How to Use the Calculator and Comptometer, Page 35
How to Use the Calculator and Comptometer, Page 117

Key-Driven Calculator Course
By Raymond Charles Goodfellow and Peter Lawrence Agnew
Published by South-Western Publishing Company
Copyright 1942
Second Edition
167 page book
213mm × 272mm × 9mm

This is also a course book for both the Comptometer and the Burroughs calculator, and it contains 59 jobs. As with Meehan's book above, its pages are designed to be filled in and torn out as they have perforations near the spine, and this may make it somewhat rare to find this book intact. Shown here is the second edition from 1942, but the 1949 third edition follows below.

Key-Driven Calculator Course, Front cover
Key-Driven Calculator Course, Title Page
Key-Driven Calculator Course, Foreword
Key-Driven Calculator Course, Contents
Key-Driven Calculator Course, Job 1
Key-Driven Calculator Course, Job 4

Key-Driven Calculator Course for the Burroughs Calculator and Comptometer
By Raymond Charles Goodfellow and Peter Lawrence Agnew
Published by South-Western Publishing Company
Copyright 1949
Third Edition
158 page ringbound book
281mm × 210mm × 8mm

This third edition has virtually the same contents as the second edition above, but it is laid out differently because the book is now spiral bound and of a different format. Each page page has a vertical perforation at about one third of the way along. The inner third of the page contains an explanation of a job, and the detachable two-thirds has the job itself with spaces where the answers can be filled in. There was a fourth edition of this book in 1962, and also a sequel, the "Advanced Key-Driven Calculator Course" by Peter Lawrence Agnew and Mary Margaret Brady in 1958.

Key-Driven Calculator Course, Front cover
Key-Driven Calculator Course, Title Page
Key-Driven Calculator Course, Foreword
Key-Driven Calculator Course, Job 1
Key-Driven Calculator Course, Job 1
Key-Driven Calculator Course, Job 1

Kantoormachine Gids (Office Machine Manual)     (PDF, 4.69 MB)
International Office Machines Research
5 loose leaves, perforated for a ring binder.
157mm × 246mm
1939, 1940, 1951

The Kantoormachine Gids was a Dutch consumer guide to office machines. It gave detailed technical specifications of the many office machines that were available. It was printed on loose perforated pages that could be kept in a ring binder, so that as when new machines appeared on the market, new pages could be added. Presumably you could get a subscription so that you would be sent regular updates.

The 10 pages here consist of:
a 4 page installment from July 1939 describing the models J, JS (Super Totaliser), and K;
2 pages from June 1940 describing the model M;
4 pages from April 1951 describing the 992 and 3D11 models.

Kantoormachine Gids

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