Christopher Sholes, typewriter creator, was born in Montour County

Dec. 28—Editor's Note: This is the first in a series of Did You Know stories looking at interesting things, facts and people from the Valley's history that may surprise some residents.

DANVILLE — Among the many historically relevant individuals who grew up in the Valley is a man born in Moorseville, Chistopher Sholes, whom historians credit with inventing the first typewriter.

"It was an invention that industry needed," said Lynn Reichen, president, Montour County Historical Society.

"Moorseville, yes, that's where he is from," Reichen said "Born in 1819, he lived in a small house, up the road that is not easily seen. We think that the remains of his house is still there, but we can't be absolutely positive it is his."

A marker honoring Sholes was dedicated on May 1, 1965, said Montour County historian Sis Hause. "It sits on Route 11 northbound, the Danville-Northumberland highway, beside the railroad tracks and in front of the Danville Middle School."

The text says: "Christopher Sholes, Typewriter Inventor born at Mooresburg, Feb. 14, 1819. Went to school and worked as a printer in Danville. Migrated to Wisconsin at the age of 20. His first writing machine patent was issued June 23, 1868."

There is also a marker on Route 642 near the one-room school house museum in Mooresburg.

In his early years, before moving with his family west to Wisconsin, he worked for the Danville Intelligencer, which was the newspaper in Danville, Reichen said.

In an article published by Investor's Business Daily in 2015 on Sholes, author Shana Smith said, "Sholes started building his machine by attaching a Morse telegraph key to a carved W that struck carbon paper, fronting plain paper, against a glass surface."

Beginning in 1864, Sholes, working with contributors Carlos Glidden and Samuel Soule, began work on a machine that would add serial numbers to blank pages, according to the book "Mr. Typewriter," by Arthur Toye Foulke. The trio refined the product, filing for new patents in 1864, 1866 and 1867.

In September 1867, with engineering help from Glidden and financial support from James Densmore, Sholes replaced the numbers with letters to complete his first typewriting device, Foulke wrote.

Part of his genius was where he placed the letters of the alphabet on the type-writer keys, known as the QWERTY keyboard — referencing the first six letters, from left, on the top row — a system that is still seen on computer and phone keyboards.

"How did he figure out which keys should be where they are?" Reichen said. "Why is the W on the top row and the M on the botom row?"

At least 20 other typewriting devices were invented before Sholes came along. He made it click.

"He got the design right, the machine capabilities were good enough and somebody figured out how to sell it," wrote James Cortada in "Before the Computer," adding, "the typewriter was essentially the first of many new technologies. Ultimately, it was (this industry) that provided the seedbed for many activities in the age of the computer."

Montour County historian Sis Hause contributed to this article.