Before Photocopying: The Art and History of Mechanical Copying 1780-1938

by Barbara J. Rhodes, William W. Streeter

The authors cover the art and history of mechanical copying from the dawn of the industrial revolution to the remarkable founding of the Xerox Corporation.
This work presents the first scholarly study of the precursors of today's high-tech, high-speed copiers. Its illustrations offer an incredible array of copying equipment from U.S. Patent Office documents, vintage photographs, and 19th century company catalogs.
Before Photocopying is an important addition to the libraries of all copybook conservators, collectors, and historians of American and British business history.

498 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 1999

Reviews

[Jonathan Farley · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Fascinating review of all the office reprographic systems before the photocopier. Some of the systems are amazing and some of them are just mental... God knows what modern Health and Safety would make of some of the chemicals used.