GRIMME, NATALIS & Co.
Braunschweig (Brunswick), Lower Saxony, Germany
Established 1871 - 1959
Manufacturer of sewing machines and calculating machines
1871. The company was formed by Carl Grimme and Kaufmann A. Natalis who had been producing sewing machines independently of each other.
1883. Bronze Medal at Amsterdam Exhibition. Messrs. Grimme, Natalis & Co., show four different kinds of machines splendidly made and well finished. Indeed, all their manufactures, which embody many improvements, give proof of most careful workmanship.
In 1892 Grimme, Natalis & Co., which had specialized in sewing machines, purchased the rights to manufacture pinwheel calculating machines on the design of the Swede W. T. Odhner. Under the leadership of the engineer Franz Trinks, they began manufacturing and improving a machine called the Brunsviga. This is a relatively early example which were extremely successful.
1904. Death of Albert Natalis.
1921. Became Grimme, Natalis & Co. AG (Aktiengesellschaft, or corporation).
1927. The name changed to "Brunsviga Maschinenwerke Grimme, Natalis & Co. AG" and later to just "Brunsviga Maschinenwerke AG" (Brunsviga Machine Works)
1957. Brunsviga entered into an agreement with Olympia Werke AG of Wilhelmshaven (part of the AEG group), which led ultimately to the company being absorbed into Olympia in 1959.
collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk
1870. Isidor Nasch, of Berlin, in the Kingdom of Prussia and Grimme Charles (Carl ?), of Brunswick, in the Dukedom of Brunswick, manufacturers. Improvements in sewing machines to produce overcast and button hole hems by means of one single needle. The basis of this invention is common shuttle sewing machine the motion of the needle is altered while the shuttle operates in the usual manner. While the stuff is being equally moved by the feed bar alternate motion is imparted to the needle, so that it passes once through the stuff and the second time close beside it, but the shuttle passes each time through the loop formed by the needle. On the shaft of the fly wheel there is cog wheel which gears into larger wheel on whose shaft is an eccentric by which an oscillating motion is imparted to lever. The other end of the lever is connected to piece which is coupled to tube by flange through which the needle bar can move. To make the simple quilting stitch, the tube with the needle holder may be adjusted and fixed in the proper position by screws.
English Patent GB 413 February 11, 1870
Luxembourg Patent No.508/1871 equivalent to
Patent GB 413/1870
In 1892 the German firm of Grimme, Natalis & Co. in Braunschweig, which had specialized in sewing machines, purchased the rights to manufacture pinwheel calculating machines on the design of the Swede W. T. Odhner. Under the leadership of the engineer Franz Trinks, they began manufacturing and improving a machine called the Brunsviga.
This is a relatively early example
The lever-set non-printing manually operated machine has a brass and steel mechanism and a metal frame, painted black, with an iron base. Seven slots in the front have levers moved forward to release pins on pinwheels below and set a number. A brass crank with a wooden handle on the right side of the machine rotates backward (clockwise) for addition and multiplication and forward (counterclockwise) for subtraction and division.At the front of the machine, a movable carriage carries ten windows that show dials of the result register on the right and eight windows for the revolution register on the left. Holes for decimal markers above the registers presently contain no markers. Depressing a lever at the front of the machine releases the carriage for shifting. An arrow on the left of the cover of the machine points to the wheel of the revolution counter that will be affected by turning the crank when the carriage is in any one position. Rotating wing nuts at the ends of the carriage zeros the registers on it.Marks on the top of the machine read: BRUNSVIGA and: No1750. A mark at the top of a list of patents on the left side of the machine reads: Grimme, Natalis & Co., Braunschweig (Brunswick) Patente: W.T. Odhner.
The patents are from Germany, Belgium, England, Austria, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, Hungary, Russia (no number), Luxembourg (no number) and the United States (no number). This machine came to the Smithsonian from the personal collection of Brooklyn high school teacher L. Leland Locke.