Xerography--Where It All Began

Wanting to replace the cumbersome monicker "electrophotography," Carlson and Haloid took the advice of a classical language professor at Ohio State University, who suggested "xerography," derived from the Greek words for "dry" and "writing." Haloid then coined the word "Xerox."

In 1959, the 914 copier was unveiled. It took about 15 seconds to produce the first copy and then 7.5 seconds for each additional copy. It was a smashing success. The first 914 was shipped March 1, 1960, to Standard Press Steel, in Pennsylvania.