Scope and Content of Collection
Title: Guide to the Thomas J. Buckholtz, Raymond DeSaussure, and George Michael Computer Manual Collection
Bulk Dates: 1960-1982
Collection number: X2592.2004
76 linear feet
Computer History Museum
Abstract: The Thomas J. Buckholtz, Raymond DeSaussure, and George Michael Computer Manual Collection at the Computer History Museum
is comprised of manuals and promotional materials from a wide variety of computer-related companies and institutions. The
Collection covers 1950 through 1990, encompassing approximately 2,000 items.
Languages represented in the collection:
Collection is open for research.
The Computer History Museum can only claim physical ownership of the collection. Users are responsible for satisfying any
claims of the copyright holder. Permission to copy or publish any portion of the Computer History Museum's collection must
be given by the Computer History Museum.
[Identification of Item], [Item Date], Buckholtz, DeSaussure, and Michael Collection, Lot X2592.2004, Box ID [#], Accession
[#], Computer History Museum.
The collection was a gift of Thomas J. Buckholtz and Helen T. Buckholtz in 2003. The materials were saved by Thomas J. Buckholtz,
Raymond DeSaussure and George Michael while they worked at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory in California.
Scope and Content of Collection
The scope of the Thomas J. Buckholtz, Raymond DeSaussure, and George Michael Computer Manual Collection spans the rise of
the information age during the second half of the twentieth century. The Collection reflects, among other areas, mainframe
computers, minicomputers, personal computers, input and output (I/O) devices, computer storage and memory devices, software
development, supercomputing and networking materials.
The Collection consists of over 2,000 documents. The bulk of the materials are computer manuals (40%) and marketing materials
(30%). Also included are specifications, technical papers and technical reports from 1950 through 1990. The bulk of the materials
cover 1960 to 1982.
The Collection represents over 580 individual companies or institutions producing items ranging from peripheral devices, one-of-a
kind machines to mass-produced computers. The Collection is organized alphabetically by the name of the originating institution
or company. Some companies are represented by over a hundred folders while others may have only one folder. A folder holds
one document if it is manual or many smaller items such as marketing brochures. Seventy-eight percent of these companies are
represented with only one folder. On the other hand, the larger and longer-lived computer companies have much more documentation.
Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) is the largest with 254 folders encompassing about one-eighth of the entire collection.
The DEC materials span 1960 to 1982. International Business Machines (IBM) follows closely with 171 folders spanning over
30 years from 1954 to 1985. There is also a large amount of documentation for machines unique to Lawrence Livermore Laboratory.
Additionally, Control Data Corporation (CDC) and Data General (DG) are well represented.
Due to the large size of the collection, in lieu of a listing of every folder, included below is an alphabetical list of all
the companies represented with an adjoining column containing the number of folders for that company. To search for an individual
folder representing a particular computer company or product, please use the Computer History Museum's online catalog at http://archive.computerhistory.org/search/.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in
the library's online public access catalog.
Computer input-output equipment
Computer Storage Devices
Electronic Digital Computers