Some little-known typewriters (A-C)

It occurred to me that one of the mystery machines I showed you a couple of posts ago is very similar in principle to the Kent, one of the never-yet-found rarities of typewriter history. The Kent was an electric typewriter that used a typewheel moving along a horizontal axis—invented in 1892!

Now, several readers expressed curiosity about the 7000 photos I said I have on my computer. So I thought I'd show you some more inventions from my files — machines that are not completely unknown, but  very obscure. Today we'll look at some samples from letters A through C.

This Airgam Plumita 14 is about as flimsy a toy as you can ever find. Probably made in Spain.




The Alba is somewhere between a toy and a simple portable. It was made in both 3-bank and 4-bank versions (I have a 4-bank).



The American Telegraph Typewriter is known only from stationery and stock certificates.



The Avanti is a handsome German standard. This one bears serial number 1491.




Wouldn't it be sweet to find a Barrett, the predecessor to the Fox?



Here's a silly-looking typewriter marked B.A.T. It looks like a modern version of a 19th-century index machine.






The Bavaria is an attractive three-bank.




This Bolida looks strong and well-made.



This contraption is a Brady-Warner.




Meet the Business:



The Cantelo is a wonderful prototype, now in Flavio Mantelli's collection.

No collector would mind finding a Cash book typewriter. (It would be worth some serious cash, too.)


The Celtic is a rare French machine. There was also a Celtic portable that has never been found, to my knowledge.




The Child's typewriter is one of the ridiculous little gadgets of the 19th century that is very rare now.



The Comet is one of several thrust-action German machines that imitate the Adler, in turn based on the American Wellington.



Ever seen a Condé?



And finally, if you thought the Barbie Typewriter was the girliest typewriter in the world, I give you: the Creamy Mami.