A selection of items from Hagley's extensive collection of unique archives about the history of digital computing and technology.
ENIAC photograph by William Rittase, 1946
This photograph introduced the world to ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer), America’s first electronic computer. University of Pennsylvania developed it during World War II to automate ballistic computations. View photograph in the Digital Archives. Read more about the photographs in the article "Photographer William M, Rittase and his Iconic Image of the ENIAC" from the Hagley Collections and Research newsletter.
Sperry Corporation, UNIVAC Division photographs and audiovisual materials. (Accession 1985.261)
Memorandum explaining the name "Univac," 1947
The UNIVAC I (Universal Automatic Computer) were the first computers built for commercial use. These machines weighed almost 30,000 pounds! Read the entire document in the Hagley Digital Archives.
Sperry Rand Corporation, Univac Division records (Accession 1825.I)
UNIVAC Disc File architectural model, circa 1950s
PHOTO HERE
This disc file for UNIVAC was never manufactured, as magnetic tape came out beforehand and rendered it obsolete. Had it been built, this disc file would have had the storage capacity of only a megabyte, and the disks would have been six feet in diameter!
Tim Bergin collection of UNIVAC/ENIAC materials (Accession 2806)
Grace Hopper demonstrates COBOL at Sperry Rand, 1957
In 1955, mathematician Grace Hopper created FLOW-MATIC, the first English-like computer programming language. Her work influenced the development of COBOL (Common Business-Oriented Language). This language is still in use today. Left to right: Donald Cropper, K.C. Krishnan, Grace Hopper, and Norman Rothberg.
Sperry Corporation, UNIVAC Division photographs and audiovisual materials (Accession 1985.261)
COBOL initial specifications, 1960
Published Collections (Call Number f HF5548.5.C2 C66 1960)
RCA COSMAC VIP Game Manual, 1978
Engineer Joseph Weisbecker developed and designed computers for RCA. He invented an 8-bit microcomputer, which RCA released as "COSMAC." Weisbecker also saw computers’ potential to be fun and educational. He and his daughter, Joyce, wrote several early computer game programs. Watch emulation of the RCA game Swords in the Hagley Digital Archives. View the RCA COSMAC Game Manual in the Hagley Digital Archives.
Joseph Weisbecker Papers, David Sarnoff Research Center records (Accession 2464.09)
InternetMCI installation package, 1995
Microsoft introduced the world’s first commercial email client, MSMail, in 1988. The novelty of Internet and Email had not yet worn off by 1995 when MCI produced this internet installation package. MCI Communications Corporation records (Accession 2225)