1904 Underwood 5 #59675-5
Status: My Collection
Hunter: James Grooms (jgrooms)
Created: 09-16-2024 at 06:12AM
Last Edit: 09-16-2024 at 01:38PM
Description:
As found. A nice example. It has good rubber so had to have been partially rebuilt without the typical paintover.
As always the newspaper ads are a look into a long forgot past. These from 1903-1906 show one dealer touting a thousand machines in use in his territory. And by 1906 the most typewriters sold in such a short time. The ad search returns from 1900 to 1910 will grow by 800%. While not scientific, clearly a reflection of the massive increase in dealers and their ad budgets.
Typeface Specimen:
Links:
Photos:
Hunter: James Grooms (jgrooms)
James Grooms's Typewriter Galleries [ My Collection ] [ My Sightings ]
Status: Typewriter Hunter
Points: 6156
As with many, the bug is back there somewhere due to an Underwood No. 5. My grandfather was on a small town school board and used one for this. My parents had a yellow Royal Safari that I used to index card everything, including a beer can collection. Collection syndrome clue! The long dormant tic was activated when my neighbors left a Remington Quiet Riter on the curb when they moved in circa 2010, Yes a believe it or not story is next, when a Hermes 3000 comes home with the girlfriend from work for free. Yes, free! From there the addiction is full steam. And yes, I now have a No. 5. Typewriters are the perfect blend of using one's technical skills, history and functional purpose.
RESEARCH NOTE: When researching the Underwood 5 on a computer with lots of screen real estate, you may find that launching the Underwood Serial Number page and the Underwood 5 By Model/Year/Serial page in new browser windows can give you interesting perspectives on changes throughout the model series.