Mechanical Duplicators
Until the late 18th century, if an office wanted to keep a copy of an outgoing letter, a clerk had to write out the copy by hand. This technology continued to be prevalent through most of the 19th century. For this purpose offices employed copy clerks, also known as copyists, scribes, and scriveners.
A few alternatives to hand copying were invented between the mid-17th century and the late 18th century, but none had a significant impact in offices.
Read more about this topic: Duplicating Machines
Famous quotes containing the word mechanical:
“A man should have a farm or a mechanical craft for his culture. We must have a basis for our higher accomplishments, our delicate entertainments of poetry and philosophy, in the work of our hands.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)