reply to u/HenRoRo61

Earlier today, in a now-deleted post, someone had posted a question about identifying one of Helen Keller's typewriters based on this video in her archive.

Having done some initial digging, I thought I'd share some of the details I've found for those who may find it interesting.

According to researcher Richard Polt, Helen Keller was known to use both a Hammond and an L.C. Smith no. 5.

As for the Remington Noiseless, it definitely appears to be a mid-century Noiseless Standard with a tabulator. To know the year, you'd need either the specific serial number (to cross check https://typewriterdatabase.com/remington.42.typewriter-serial-number-database) or you'd need many more examples than the Typewriter Database currently has listed under the generic Remington Noiseless.

If you're careful at looking at the design choices and changes in some of the Remington Portables from that time period which would have likely tracked the design changes of their desktop standards, you might be able to extrapolate a closer dating based on the styling, but this will still only give you a dating within a year or so.

The tabulator was at the top of the keyboard by 1937, so you can probably presume it was a model from that point or thereafter until 1954. Most American typewriter manufacturers didn't make machines from '41-45 due to WWII, so you can discard those dates. Remington had moved into thicker/taller plastic keys by the early 1950s, so I would guess her machine was more likely from the late 1940s.

Looking more closely at the Remington Noiseless 10, I'd suggest that this is the most likely set of candidates, particularly in the timeframe of 1946-1947. Hers obviously had the openings in the rear and had the metal covers on the sides (as opposed to glass found on some models). Comparing hers in the film to some of these individual galleries may help to narrow things down with respect to dating.

Perhaps others with more Remington Standard experience, may be able to narrow things down here.

The appraisal of her Remington Noiseless in 1957 was $135.00.

One might find some close noiseless models in the $20-40 range + shipping (these are about 30 pounds and will cost about $35 for shipping) via ShopGoodwill.com. Here are some recent sales for comparison. Based on the video you'll want the bigger, heavier ones (25+ pounds) rather than the smaller portables with cases (usually under 20 pounds). Generally machines purchased this way are reasonably functional, but usually need some cleaning and work to be restored to full functionality.

Unless you're sure they're being sold by repair shops and have been cleaned and are fully functional, don't overspend on potential exemplars on sites like Etsy or eBay which are likely to be only marginally better (aka dusted off) than ShopGoodwill machines, but at 5-10x the price.

Hellen Keller's brailler: https://www.afb.org/HelenKellerArchive?a=d&d=A-HK08-B049-183&e=-------en-20--1--txt--typewriter------3-7-6-5-3--------------0-1

She apparently owned a \~1938 or 1939 Corona Silent as well: https://www.afb.org/HelenKellerArchive?a=d&d=A-HK08-B045-184.1.1&srpos=19&e=-------en-20--1--txt--typewriter------3-7-6-5-3--------------0-1

One might have some luck trying to find a Corona Silent typewriter from that era, but the unique color is going to put a machine like it into the $100-200 range (at a minimum and potentially going up from there depending on the condition) unless you get lucky at a garage sale somewhere.

I was in a vintage shop about 30 minutes from downtown Los Angeles earlier in the week and the proprietor had a mostly functioning 1950 Smith-Corona Sterling for sale for a roughly equivalent US $150. (One key was disconnected, but fixable, and some keys were sticky, the ribbon was disintegrating, it was incredibly dirty, with a case in very poor condition.) The Sterling was similar to the Silent, but without some of the extra bells and whistles. She wouldn't accept an offer of $40 for it, which I thought was a reach for the dreadful condition it was in. Her reasoning was that she was sure that someone (read: a sucker) would pay the $150 for it. At a yard sale it might be worth $5. Cleaned up a bit maybe $30. In online platforms they're going for a bit more, but you're also saving yourself some level of "shoe leather" in the work of searching for the exact model you want.

I've been specifically watching this model and a few related ones for a few months, and machines of indeterminate condition (though in my experience they're usually reasonably functionable or easily fixable), like this go for about $50 on ShopGoodWill.com (as auction items). There are usually about 4-5 per week which come up as this was a popular model in the 50s. You can probably find similar prices on eBay, though sellers there usually have a little more information about the working condition. They're definitely common enough that you could easily wait for the exact color options and typeface (pica or elite) that you're looking for, and could also probably purchase two for the price he's asking (including shipping.) I've been watching for a similar mid-50s Smith-Corona Clipper with similar colors and elite type for a while and just bought one online last week for $35. Patience definitely pays off.

I would only go as high as $150 on that machine if I knew it was well functioning and had a brand new platen in the last several years. You can tell him that most of the expensive machines in the range he's asking for are all fully functioning, have been well maintained and/or recently serviced, and often have new platens, rubber rollers, and feet replaced. He'll know that this isn't the case with his and may come down in price. They're likely pricing it based on other listings they see and not pricing it based on actual sales. If it's their only machine, wait things out until they see that there aren't any takers. If it's a vintage shop, simply move on.

The Smith-Corona Silents from this time period are really spectacular and solid machines, so good luck in your search for the perfect one.

—Tom Hanks in TribLive 2020-05-22 at https://web.archive.org/web/20200522085215/https://archive.triblive.com/aande/books/tom-hanks-on-his-love-of-typewriters-and-the-free-press/

I've seen several sites and listings for Smith-Corona typewriters which mention this interview quote.