Wisconsin History Day By Day

Related Web Sites:

Read More About It

"Henry W. Ruby's Story of the Invention of the Typewriter" by Henry Ruby

"Wisconsin Blue Book," 1958

Vocabulary:

practical

patented

rights

Interesting Fact:

Mark Twain was among the first users of the typewriter.

Study Questions:

How was the term "typewriter" chosen for this invention?

Explain how Sholes invention worked.

Why did Sholes arrange the letters on the keyboard the way he did?

U.S. historical events that occurred on June 23:

1931: Wiley Post and Harold Gatty take off from New York on the first around-the-world flight in a single-engine plane.

June 23

June 23, 1868: The first practical typewriter was patented by Christopher L. Sholes, a Wisconsin newspaperman and politician. With his partner, James Dinsmore, Sholes turned over the rights to the typewriter to the Remington Arms Co., which then produced the world's first office machine in 1873.

Wisconsin History Day By Day homepage January - December calendar page

June 23, 1868: The first practical typewriter was patented by Christopher L. Sholes, a Wisconsin newspaperman and politician. With his partner, James Dinsmore, Sholes turned over the rights to the typewriter to the Remington Arms Co., which then produced the world's first office machine in 1873.