Monroe Systems for Business is a provider of electric

calculator An electronic calculator is typically a portable electronic device used to perform calculations, ranging from basic arithmetic to complex mathematics. The first solid-state electronic calculator was created in the early 1960s. Pocket-si ...

s, printers, and office accessories such as paper shredders to business clients. Originally known as the Monroe Calculating Machine Company, it was founded in 1912 by Jay Randolph Monroe as a maker of adding machines and calculators based on a machine designed by

Frank Stephen Baldwin Frank Stephen Baldwin (April 10, 1838 – April 8, 1925) was an American who invented a pinwheel calculator in 1875. He started the design of a new machine in 1905 and was able to finalize its design with the help of Jay R. Monroe who eventually ...

. It was later known as ''Monroe THE Calculator Company,'' and ''Monroe Division of Litton Industries.''

History

In 1911, Jay Randolph Monroe first saw the Baldwin Calculator, the invention of

. Although Mr. Baldwin's machine had been patented in 1874 and had been judged by the

Franklin Institute The Franklin Institute is a science museum and a center of science education and research in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is named after the American scientist and wikt:statesman, statesman Benjamin Franklin. It houses the Benjamin Franklin ...

as the most noteworthy invention of that year winning the

John Scott Medal John Scott Award, created in 1816 as the John Scott Legacy Medal and Premium, is presented to men and women whose inventions improved the "comfort, welfare, and happiness of human kind" in a significant way. "...the John Scott Medal Fund, establish ...

, it had not been developed for commercial use. Mr. Monroe recognized the merits of the Baldwin Calculator, and in April 1912 he organized the Monroe Calculating Machine Company, and in a small rented room near

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

, the manufacture of the first Monroe Adding-Calculator was begun. The following year the firm moved to

Orange, New Jersey The City of Orange (known simply as Orange) is a Township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 34,447, an increase o ...

. The factory personnel consisted of only nine men and the entire heavy factory equipment was a lathe and two small presses. Even with these meager tools, tolerances were maintained to within thousandths of an inch to insure the accurate performance of the finished machine. The first Monroe was offered to the business world in 1914. In 1932, the company was awarded the Franklin Institute's

John Price Wetherill Medal The John Price Wetherill Medal was an award of the Franklin Institute. It was established with a bequest given by the family of John Price Wetherill (1844–1906) on April 3, 1917. On June 10, 1925, the Board of Managers voted to create a silv ...

. For many years, Monroe was headquartered in

and

Morris Plains, New Jersey Morris Plains is a borough in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 6,153, an increase of 621 (+11.2%) from the 2010 census count of 5,532, which in turn reflected a ...

with its manufacturing plants in New Jersey, Bristol, Virginia and

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

. In 1958, the company was acquired by

Litton Industries Litton Industries, Inc., was an American defense contractor that specialized in shipbuilding, aerospace, electronic components, and information technology. The company was founded in 1953 and was named after inventor Charles Litton Sr., who was ...

. Monroe also sold product overseas, advertising, (e.g.) ‘the world’s first really low-cost electronic computer’ (£12,500- Monrobot, 1962) in the UK from offices at

Bush House Bush House is a Grade II listed building at the southern end of Kingsway between Aldwych and the Strand in London, England. It was conceived as a major new trade centre by American industrialist Irving T. Bush, and commissioned, designed, ...

, London. Litton sold Monroe in 1984. In the mid-1980s, the company diversified and began carrying a line of private-labeled copiers (manufactured by Mita Corp.) and cross-cut paper shredders, but those items have been discontinued. In the 1970s and 1980s, the company had some 300 sales and service branch offices in the United States. In 1972, Monroe announced a pocket-sized electronic display calculator at $269. As low-cost electronic calculators from Japan became readily available through retail distribution, the mechanical calculator companies like Monroe, Friden, and

Marchant Marchant is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Adio Marchant (born 1987), English singer and songwriter known professionally as Bipolar Sunshine * Alison Marchant, Australian politician * Cecil Marchant (1895–1965), English WW ...

declined even as they introduced

programmable calculator Programmable calculators are calculators that can automatically carry out a sequence of operations under the control of a stored computer programming, program. Most are Turing complete, and, as such, are theoretically general-purpose computers. ...

s. In 1980, the company name was changed to "Monroe Systems for Business". This change in name was to reflect the diversification of the company from a calculator-only company to one which addressed the broader needs of the office. During this period, Monroe introduced bookkeeping machines, magnetic stripe ledger card accounting machines, programmable calculators, computers, copiers, facsimile and shredders. Since 2016, Monroe Systems for Business has been owned by Arlington Industries. Bill Ault serves as chief operating officer. In 2019, Monroe acquired Typewriters.com, a typewriter supplier. It also began selling accounting products. Also in 2019, Monroe became an

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology company * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek myth ...

channel partner.

Products

Mechanical and electromechanical calculators

Early models of calculator were designated by letters. The letters A, B, and C are lost in the records of those early days devoted to constructing a suitable pilot model. The "D" model started manufacture in 1915 with serial numbers below 4,000. The "E" model started manufacture in 1916 with serial numbers beginning at 4,000. The "F" model was introduced in 1917 with serial numbers above 6,000. The "G" model was the first machine of the refined style, and was introduced in 1919 with serial numbers above 20,000. The "H" and "I" were never released for production. The "K" was the real start of the big forward march by the Monroe Company. The "K" hand machine, introduced in 1921, was followed by KA, KAS, KAA, KASC, KASE, etc., machines all more fully automatic than the former. The "L" model was produced from January 1929 to February 1971. The "M" model further refined the "L". *

Electromechanical Electromechanics combine processes and procedures drawn from electrical engineering and mechanical engineering. Electromechanics focus on the interaction of electrical and mechanical systems as a whole and how the two systems interact with each ...

models; rotary calculator display models and printing models : Model 145 was the last adding machine model produced. : Model 570 was the last electro-mechanical four-function calculator model produced.

Electronic calculators

* Electronic calculator models: **Visual Display only ***400 and 600 series **Paper tape and visual display ***1300 and 1400 series * Programmable models: **The 1600 and 1800 series calculators, from OEM Compucorp competed against similar desktop calculators from

Wang Laboratories Wang Laboratories, Inc., was an American computer company founded in 1951 by An Wang and G. Y. Chu. The company was successively headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts (1954–1963), Tewksbury, Massachusetts (1963–1976), Lowell, Massachuse ...

. **Model 200 billing machine for accounts receivable functions. **Monrobot III – general-purpose computer, public debut in 1952 on the TV broadcast of the national election results over the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

network. **Monrobot V – portable, general-purpose, used by military for surveying and mapmaking, 1955 ** Monroe Calculating Machine Mark XI (or "Monrobot XI") was an inexpensive, relatively slow, general-purpose computer introduced in 1960 As of 2019, Monroe Systems for Business sells Medium-Duty, Heavy-Duty and Handheld calculators.

References

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External links