Company type | Manufacturing |
---|---|
Industry | Communications |
Founded | 1928 |
Headquarters | Chicago, Illinois, United States |
Products | Teleprinter equipment |
The Teletype Corporation, a part of American Telephone and Telegraph Company's Western Electric manufacturing arm since 1930, came into being in 1928 when the Morkrum-Kleinschmidt Company changed its name to the name of its trademark equipment. [1] Teletype was responsible for the research, development and manufacture of data and record communications equipment, but it is primarily remembered for the manufacture of electromechanical teleprinters.
Because of the nature of its business, as stated in the corporate charter, Teletype Corporation was allowed a unique mode of operation within Western Electric. It was organized as a separate entity, and contained all the elements necessary for a separate corporation. Teletype's charter permitted the sale of equipment to customers outside the AT&T Bell System, which explained their need for a separate sales force. The primary customer outside of the Bell System was the United States Government.
The Teletype Corporation continued in this manner until January 8, 1982, the date of settlement of United States v. AT&T, a 1974 United States Department of Justice antitrust suit against AT&T. At that time, Western Electric was fully absorbed into AT&T as AT&T Technologies, and the Teletype Corporation became AT&T Teletype. The last vestiges of what had been the Teletype Corporation ceased in 1990, bringing to a close the dedicated teleprinter business. One of the three Teletype manufacturing buildings in Skokie, Illinois remains in use as a parking garage for a shopping center.[ citation needed]
The Teletype Corporation had its roots in the Morkrum Company. In 1902, electrical engineer Frank Pearne approached Joy Morton, head of Morton Salt, seeking a sponsor for Pearne's research into the practicalities of developing a printing telegraph system. Joy Morton needed to determine whether this was worthwhile and so consulted mechanical engineer Charles Krum, who was vice president of the Western Cold Storage Company, which was run by Morton’s brother Mark Morton. Krum was interested in helping Pearne, so space was set up in a laboratory in the attic of Western Cold Storage. Frank Pearne lost interest in the project after a year, [2] and left to become a teacher at Armour Institute, now Illinois Institute of Technology. Krum was prepared to continue Pearne’s work, and in August 1903 a patent was filed for a "typebar page printer". [3]
The present-day Pearne family disputes the claim that their ancestor lost interest, saying that Morton didn't pay him enough to support his family and that is why he left.[ citation needed] It is perhaps noteworthy that many of the engineering staff of Teletype were educated at Armour/IIT, beginning with Howard Krum.
In 1904, Krum filed a patent for a "type wheel printing telegraph machine" [4] which was issued in August 1907.
In 1906, the Morkrum Company was formed, with the company name combining the Morton and Krum names and reflecting the financial assistance provided by Joy Morton. This is the time when Charles Krum's son, Howard Krum, joined his father in this work. It was Howard who developed and patented the start-stop synchronizing method for code telegraph systems, which made possible the practical teleprinter. [5]
In 1908, a working teleprinter was produced, called the Morkrum Printing Telegraph, which was field tested with the Alton Railroad.
In 1910, the Morkrum Company designed and installed the first commercial teletypewriter system on Postal Telegraph Company lines between Boston and New York City using the "Blue Code Version" of the Morkrum Printing Telegraph. [6] [7]
In 1925, the Morkrum Company and the Kleinschmidt Electric Company merged to form the Morkrum-Kleinschmidt Company.
In December 1928, the company changed its name to the less cumbersome "Teletype Corporation".
In 1930, the Teletype Corporation was purchased by the American Telephone and Telegraph Company for $30,000,000 in stock and became a subsidiary of the Western Electric Company. [8] While some principals in the Teletype Corporation retired, Howard Krum stayed on as a consultant. Sterling Morton, who no doubt got his job as President of Teletype because of his family's investments in the company, became head of the family's salt business. Although he was not educated as an engineer he seems to have had quite an aptitude for invention, as evidenced by his name on several of the company's patents.
In 1974, the Teletype Corporation, being a Western Electric company subsidiary, went on strike with its 1400 International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers employee members at Little Rock over improved benefits, pay increases, and cost‐of‐living adjustments. A ratified contract was agreed on September 3, 1974 with other Western Electric plants to end the strike; however, the contract was subject to ratification at the Arkansas plant. [9]
In 1916, Kleinschmidt filed a patent application for a type-bar page printer [20] This printer utilized Baudot code but did not utilize the start-stop synchronization technology that Howard Krum had previously patented. The type-bar printer was intended for use on multiplex circuits, and its printing was controlled from a local segment on a receiving distributor of the sunflower type. In 1919, Kleinschmidt appeared to be concerned chiefly with development of multiplex transmitters for use with this printer. [21] Kleinschmidt made his Kleinschmidt keyboard perforator which was later manufactured by Teletype.
Teletype models and their dates:
Starting with the Model 28, Teletype page printer model numbers were often modified by letters indicating the configuration. The configurations, in increasing order of equipment level and cost, were:
Not all models came in all three configurations. Teletype Corporation documents suffixed the configuration to the model number, e.g., "Model 33 ASR" (Model 33 Automatic Send and Receive). In contrast, some customers and users tended to place the configuration before the model number, e.g., "ASR-33".
The U.S. military had their own system of identifying the various models, often identifying various improvements, included options / features, etc. The TT-47/UG was the first Model 28 KSR, and while Teletype's designation for the basic machine remained the same over the next 20+ years, the TT-47/UG took on suffixes to identify the specific version. The last TT-47/UG was the TT-47L/UG. The U.S. Navy also assigned some "set" designations using the standard Army/Navy system, such as the AN/UGC-5, a Teletype Model 28 ASR which has a keyboard, printer, tape punch and reader facilities all in one cabinet.
Company type | Manufacturing |
---|---|
Industry | Communications |
Founded | 1928 |
Headquarters | Chicago, Illinois, United States |
Products | Teleprinter equipment |
The Teletype Corporation, a part of American Telephone and Telegraph Company's Western Electric manufacturing arm since 1930, came into being in 1928 when the Morkrum-Kleinschmidt Company changed its name to the name of its trademark equipment. [1] Teletype was responsible for the research, development and manufacture of data and record communications equipment, but it is primarily remembered for the manufacture of electromechanical teleprinters.
Because of the nature of its business, as stated in the corporate charter, Teletype Corporation was allowed a unique mode of operation within Western Electric. It was organized as a separate entity, and contained all the elements necessary for a separate corporation. Teletype's charter permitted the sale of equipment to customers outside the AT&T Bell System, which explained their need for a separate sales force. The primary customer outside of the Bell System was the United States Government.
The Teletype Corporation continued in this manner until January 8, 1982, the date of settlement of United States v. AT&T, a 1974 United States Department of Justice antitrust suit against AT&T. At that time, Western Electric was fully absorbed into AT&T as AT&T Technologies, and the Teletype Corporation became AT&T Teletype. The last vestiges of what had been the Teletype Corporation ceased in 1990, bringing to a close the dedicated teleprinter business. One of the three Teletype manufacturing buildings in Skokie, Illinois remains in use as a parking garage for a shopping center.[ citation needed]
The Teletype Corporation had its roots in the Morkrum Company. In 1902, electrical engineer Frank Pearne approached Joy Morton, head of Morton Salt, seeking a sponsor for Pearne's research into the practicalities of developing a printing telegraph system. Joy Morton needed to determine whether this was worthwhile and so consulted mechanical engineer Charles Krum, who was vice president of the Western Cold Storage Company, which was run by Morton’s brother Mark Morton. Krum was interested in helping Pearne, so space was set up in a laboratory in the attic of Western Cold Storage. Frank Pearne lost interest in the project after a year, [2] and left to become a teacher at Armour Institute, now Illinois Institute of Technology. Krum was prepared to continue Pearne’s work, and in August 1903 a patent was filed for a "typebar page printer". [3]
The present-day Pearne family disputes the claim that their ancestor lost interest, saying that Morton didn't pay him enough to support his family and that is why he left.[ citation needed] It is perhaps noteworthy that many of the engineering staff of Teletype were educated at Armour/IIT, beginning with Howard Krum.
In 1904, Krum filed a patent for a "type wheel printing telegraph machine" [4] which was issued in August 1907.
In 1906, the Morkrum Company was formed, with the company name combining the Morton and Krum names and reflecting the financial assistance provided by Joy Morton. This is the time when Charles Krum's son, Howard Krum, joined his father in this work. It was Howard who developed and patented the start-stop synchronizing method for code telegraph systems, which made possible the practical teleprinter. [5]
In 1908, a working teleprinter was produced, called the Morkrum Printing Telegraph, which was field tested with the Alton Railroad.
In 1910, the Morkrum Company designed and installed the first commercial teletypewriter system on Postal Telegraph Company lines between Boston and New York City using the "Blue Code Version" of the Morkrum Printing Telegraph. [6] [7]
In 1925, the Morkrum Company and the Kleinschmidt Electric Company merged to form the Morkrum-Kleinschmidt Company.
In December 1928, the company changed its name to the less cumbersome "Teletype Corporation".
In 1930, the Teletype Corporation was purchased by the American Telephone and Telegraph Company for $30,000,000 in stock and became a subsidiary of the Western Electric Company. [8] While some principals in the Teletype Corporation retired, Howard Krum stayed on as a consultant. Sterling Morton, who no doubt got his job as President of Teletype because of his family's investments in the company, became head of the family's salt business. Although he was not educated as an engineer he seems to have had quite an aptitude for invention, as evidenced by his name on several of the company's patents.
In 1974, the Teletype Corporation, being a Western Electric company subsidiary, went on strike with its 1400 International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers employee members at Little Rock over improved benefits, pay increases, and cost‐of‐living adjustments. A ratified contract was agreed on September 3, 1974 with other Western Electric plants to end the strike; however, the contract was subject to ratification at the Arkansas plant. [9]
In 1916, Kleinschmidt filed a patent application for a type-bar page printer [20] This printer utilized Baudot code but did not utilize the start-stop synchronization technology that Howard Krum had previously patented. The type-bar printer was intended for use on multiplex circuits, and its printing was controlled from a local segment on a receiving distributor of the sunflower type. In 1919, Kleinschmidt appeared to be concerned chiefly with development of multiplex transmitters for use with this printer. [21] Kleinschmidt made his Kleinschmidt keyboard perforator which was later manufactured by Teletype.
Teletype models and their dates:
Starting with the Model 28, Teletype page printer model numbers were often modified by letters indicating the configuration. The configurations, in increasing order of equipment level and cost, were:
Not all models came in all three configurations. Teletype Corporation documents suffixed the configuration to the model number, e.g., "Model 33 ASR" (Model 33 Automatic Send and Receive). In contrast, some customers and users tended to place the configuration before the model number, e.g., "ASR-33".
The U.S. military had their own system of identifying the various models, often identifying various improvements, included options / features, etc. The TT-47/UG was the first Model 28 KSR, and while Teletype's designation for the basic machine remained the same over the next 20+ years, the TT-47/UG took on suffixes to identify the specific version. The last TT-47/UG was the TT-47L/UG. The U.S. Navy also assigned some "set" designations using the standard Army/Navy system, such as the AN/UGC-5, a Teletype Model 28 ASR which has a keyboard, printer, tape punch and reader facilities all in one cabinet.