The Alexis typewriter was the result of a small-town inventor’s desire to design and manufacture his own typewriter. James A. Wallace (1845–1906) was born in Alexis, Illinois (population 900), where he is now buried. A dynamic individual, Wallace held various occupations, including bicycle repair, writing, and photography (see his portrait below). He was also an avid musician.
The Alexis typewriter is a superb example of the unique designs emerging from the ‘Wild West’ of typewriters during the 1880s and 1890s, a time when a great variety of ingenious typewriters were introduced. While some ideas were more successful than others, the period saw both triumphs and failures.
At 16 inches wide, the Alexis typewriter is quite imposing on its beautiful wooden base. The prominent long lever, used for typing, with ALEXIS TYPE-WRITER cast onto its surface, is especially striking and contributes to the typewriter’s distinctive appearance.
This typewriter uses a rubber membrane (1″ x 7″) with characters molded onto its surface in two rows—one for lowercase and one for uppercase. The membrane is held in the carriage, seen located at the center top of the typewriter, which features a handle for moving the carriage and a small pointer for character selection. To type, the desired character is selected using the pointer, and the long lever is then pushed down to imprint the character onto the paper. The paper feeds flat and straight underneath the carriage (see third image below).
Here is an abridged passage from a 1974 Alexis newspaper article that sheds light on the Alexis Typewriter Company.
“.. the Alexis correspondent told the Review on Aug.14, 1888, of the invention of a typewriter by Wallace. It was said that for simplicity, durability and cost, the type-writer was for all people. Mr. Moffat (publisher of the Monmouth Review-Altas) commented that he used one of them a bit, but he indicated it never became a very popular invention. The Alexis Manufacturing Company formed to make and sell the Alexis Typewriter, was incorporated in June 21st, 1890. Capital stock was $1,000. Soon after, it was said five men were being put to work in the manufacture of the machine. Although the St. Louis dealer, through which the Alexis company had bought the dies for the machine, said he could manufacture the machine much cheaper, it was decided to make the typewriter in Alexis. They would soon be on the market for $15 each.”
The town of Alexis has not grown significantly in population since the 19th century, but what a remarkable legacy James A. Wallace left behind when he chose to design a typewriter in, and name it after, his hometown.
The great portrait of James A. Wallace (seen below) is courtesy of his great-granddaughter.
