tabulating machine

A tabulating machine is a device that records and sorts statistical data. Invented by Herman Hollerith, it was a crucial precursor to the modern computer. The U.S. Constitution requires a census every 10 years, and by the late 19th century, the growing population and expanded census questions made manual tabulation time-consuming and inefficient.12

Hollerith's machine used punched cards, where data was encoded by the position of perforations. This system allowed for the rapid electrical reading and sorting of census data. In a test for the 1890 census, Hollerith's system processed data for over 10,000 people in just 5.5 hours, a significant improvement over competing systems. Hollerith's success with the U.S. census led to widespread adoption of his machines in Europe for various statistical purposes. In 1896, he founded the Tabulating Machine Company, which eventually grew into IBM.1