Figure 1. The first telephone toll Switch board. It was designed and equipped with twenty Calculagraphs. Installed April 1, 1895. |  |
There are many treasures to be found within the collections of the Library and Research Center. Recently, a visitor to the library pointed out a little known collection that happens to be a part of our archives—the papers of Henry Abbott, watchmaker and inventor. Henry Abbott was born in 1850 in Danbury, CT. His family relocated to New Jersey where he went to work as a watchmaker at the age of 16. Abbott worked very hard learning his new trade. His day started at 6 a.m. and ended at 9 p.m. He was paid $5.00 a month plus room and board. His hard work eventually paid off, and he was able to open his own jewelry shop at the age of 21 on Maiden Lane in New York City. At that time the duty on imported watches was 25 percent but only 15 percent was levied on movements, parts, and cases. To save money importers would ship uncased movements and cases as parts and have them assembled in the United States. Abbott obtained contracts with several importers to case their watches with either foreign or domestically manufactured cases. It was during this time that Henry Abbott also developed a long-lasting friendship with Edward Howard and contracted to case E. Howard watches in New York prior to their being shipped to other parts of the country. Figure 2. A close-up of
the Calculagraph |  |
During his lifetime Henry Abbott obtained 40 U.S. patents. He patented several watch stem winding improvements, converting over 100,000 key wind watches to stem wind. He held several patents that revolutionized the process of making enamel dials. The Elgin Watch Company, which employed 120 workers to paint dials, was able to streamline their work force to 12 workers after implementing Abbott’s process. Other patents held by Henry Abbott include a “type-writing” machine, eyeglasses, and various other machines used in watch production, but his most famous invention, whose concept still has an effect on our daily lives, was the “Calculagraph.” | The “Calculagraph” was a device designed to record times and calculate the difference. It was first used in a New York City pool hall that charged patrons for the amount of time they played on a table. In 1894 the Calculagraph was marketed to the telephone companies of New York as a device to record and calculate the time of telephone calls. The Calculagraph was an instant success. The first telephone company to implement the device was AT&T. Eventually, the Calculagraph was being used coast-to-coast, and by 1939 it was marketed to other parts of the world. Thus, the concept of “paying for time” can be attributed to Henry Abbott, a concept that effects all of us when we gaze upon our long distance telephone bills. Figure 3. Henry Abbott.
Photo taken
approximately 1937 |  |
Although the collection of Henry Abbott’s papers is small, it is still very telling of the story of a very ingenious watchmaker and inventor. The materials within the collection were rescued from Henry Abbott’s estate and were donated to the Library and Research Center in 1991 by Richard Feeley of Denville, NJ, who had recognized their potential historical value and saved them from destruction. Papers in the collection include original patents issued by the U.S. Patent Office, legal documents, newspaper clippings, photographs, catalogs, and correspondence. Collections such as Henry Abbott’s papers are available for examination by visitors to the Library and Research Center. Thanks to donors like Mr. Feeley these materials and others like them are secure and are being preserved for the future. References NAWCC Bulletin, February 1961. Henry Abbott: Horological Inventor Extraordinary, by William C. Moodie, Sr., pp. 584-591. Abbott, Henry. The Birth and Early Days of the Calculagraph. (New York: Calculagraph Co.), 1939. Henry Abbott Papers, MG # 035. NAWCC Library and Research Center Archives. |
