Since the beginning of civilization, merchants and shopkeepers have looked for ways to keep track of their money, their goods and inventory, and the questionable integrity of their sticky-fingered employees.
Before the invention of the cash register, stores and businesses primarily relied on manual record-keeping, using pen and paper to add and track transactions, and writing any detailed notes in a ledger book. Owners relied on their employees to record transactions honestly and accurately, yet even honest clerks were prone to errors and inconsistencies, and with money typically kept in open cash boxes, profits were always vulnerable, accessible, and up for grabs.
As American cities and businesses began to blossom, so did the demand for more accurate record keeping, and the ability to monitor millions of cash sales.
If only some industrious entrepreneur would invent a secure system and/or device that could ensure accuracy and transparency every time the cash box was opened.
Ka-Ching.
In 1879, a frustrated saloon owner, James Ritty, patented the first mechanical device that both recorded transactions, and secured all the cash. It’s said that Ritty was angry with his inability to keep his staff from pilfering his profits, and decides to fight back by inventing “Ritty’s Incorruptible Cashier,” a game-changing contraption that quite simply revolutionized retail sales forever.
“Most people think cash registers were like adding machines,” says Jon Winter, SPARK Co-Founder. “The first cash registers did not add, subtract or multiply. They were designed for one thing and one thing only: to stop bartenders from pocketing the money meant for the cashbox.”
Ringing-Up a Sale.
Ritty’s first cash register was made of inlaid wood and brass, and weighed over fifty pounds. It featured a large oval clock-like display to record any money received. It featured two lower rows of keys, and a locked drawer to hold the cash receipts. No customer receipt yet, but they did have a bell that would ring every time a transaction was completed.
That iconic bell reminded everyone—including the business owner—that a sale had been made, and someone had their hand in the till.
In 1884, John Henry Patterson (1844-1922)—the real hero of this story—bought Ritty’s company and created the National Cash Register Company (NCRC). Patterson was a visionary, and devoted the rest of his life to getting his cash registers into every shop and business in the country—and he dared near did.
He immediately bought out his competitors, incorporating their best ideas into his new machines. NCRC engineers designed cash registers to accommodate a wide variety of businesses and budgets, and ultimately manufactured the best machines in the business.
Patterson also established a sales training school, and used aggressive sales techniques and pervasive advertising to make NCRC cash registers the staple of modern retail they became.
By 1900, the National Cash Register Company dominated the American cash register market, selling over one million machines. By 1925—less than 50 years after its invention, two million NCRC cash registers were ringing up sales all over the country.
The SPARK Museum has an excellent example of an early NCRC cash register, custom built in 1912, and on permanent display in our galleries.
This mountain of brass machinery is covered with an ornate and intricate art deco design, carved into the rounded chasse, featuring two glass display windows atop a sturdy mahogany, spring-loaded cash drawer.
“Your first thought when seeing this cash register is, ‘It looks rather heavy’”, says Winter. “It weights well over 100 pounds, and designed not to fit on your horse.”
On display at the SPARK Museum
“You address the machine from left to right,” says Winter. There’s a pinch bar that slides up and down so the cashier can select the type of sale (i.e., CASH, CHARGE, PAID OUT). The lettered keys identify the employee taking responsibility for the transaction—but the best part is manually pressing down the keys, and feeling their weight, and hearing that deep click when they lock into place,” says Winter. “It’s why this machine is over 100 years old and still going strong.”
The cashier then turns the handle on the right two full turns and literally rings-in the sale. Ka-Ching! The drawer springs open, and a finger points in the windows, displaying the grand total on both sides of the machine.
“A visual and audible validation of every transaction,” says Winter. “Brilliant.”
On the left is the receipt paper roll that fits in the brass cover.
Inside is also cash register tape, which stays inside and records all the transactions. There’s space for a note pad and pencil, so the cashier can add up the total before ringing-in the sale.
“It won’t make change for you either,” laughs Winter. “I know it’s hard to imagine, but way back in the Stone Age, cashiers were expected to know how to count.”
Stay grounded.