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This is just a reminder that Nic Costa's new book: Penny in the Slot-Conceiving the Internet- the Birth of the Coin Machine is available to purchase direct from Amazon in addition to his two other best selling works entitled Automatic Pleasures and More Automatic Pleasures. For some unknown reason o...

!!YIPPEE!! At long last! Coin machines officially acknowledged! !!YIPPEE!! !! The councillors of Great Ryburgh in Norfolk have voted to apply for a blue plaque to be set up in the village to commemorate one of the founding fathers of the coin op industry: Percival Everitt. It’s early days but we’ll ...

We have just learned that a notable somebody who wishes to remain anonimous is prepared to pay some $50,000 for any surviving example of John Perry's Mechanical Pump Automaton of 1863. We know it was manufactured for some 40 years and in use throughout the UK if not further afield. Full details of t...

You've got some wonderful machines shown here. Don't forget Nic Costa's latest book is the only one to give a detailed history concerning the hitherto unknown development of coin op postage stamp vending machines. They date back to the 1840's. One was shown and in use at the Great Exhibition of 1851...

Large fortune teller most probably by Amusement Equipment Company of Wembley c 1935.

As you can see Rich's machine dates from 1826-8 after the introduction of the first proper pennies.

Really good observations as ever. The key to developing coin operated machines was having reliable and consistent coins. These were the major developments in the late 1700's as witnessed by Abel Buell's efforts in the States and Solomon Henry's in the UK, as detailed by Nic Costa.

If you want to clear the fog on the early history of mechanised cigarette manufacture and the earliest coin op cigarette venders then you need Nic Costa's new book, available from Amazon: Penny in the Slot- Conceiving the Internet, the Birth of the Coin Machine -even young Percy Everitt had a stab a...

Nic Costa's new book has just been released on Amazon worldwide. The title is Penny in the Slot- Conceiving the Internet, the Birth of the Coin Machine 1735-1883. The forward is by Dr Alan Meades. Unfortunately due to logistics we can't sell signed copies as yet. There are 294 pages packed with new ...

Hi there, thanks for the kind words. The book will be published within the next few days. Will let you know exactly when. Some of you may be interested to learn that the maker of the first coin op working model, and drink vending machine, and owner and operator of the world's first coin op amusement...

You're absolutely right. This is the first 'device' in Nic Costa's forthcoming book Penny in the Slot. However all the surviving paraphernalia are modern conceptions, nothing other than his biography survives from that time. However it's a very early instance of what we would now call the 'dark web'.

Post split, moved & merged - Site Admin. You may be interested to learn that Nic Costa's latest work entitled Penny in the Slot- Conceiving the Internet- the Birth of the Coin Machine 1735-1883 . It will be available from Amazon by mid February. Will keep you informed. Here's the Forward to the...

Walter Streets wrote his biography. Does any surviving member of the Streets family know what became of it?

The book only covers the period to 1893, so no bandits...but maybe you could do it?

The book only covers the period to 1893, so no bandits...but maybe you could do it?

In response to your post re Nic Costa Archive: It's coming at last after 7 years buried on Nic Costa's computer his new book covering the earliest years of coin operated machines- if you like to learn about people being beaten up and threatened, machines smashed, murder, paedophiles being caught, bi...

Topic copied & split from Introductions - Site Admin. In response to your post re Nic Costa Archive: It's coming at last after 7 years buried on Nic Costa's computer his new book covering the earliest years of coin operated machines- if you like to learn about people being beaten up and threate...

Point 1: My apologies I should have clarified the info I have re Firman - I was not referring explicitly to the Roman Head but to the Egyptian bell and one or two other curious ‘Firman’ designs such as treefrog’s skyscraper, which I too think is a great looking machine. (Although alternative Roman h...

...Point 2: Mathewson. Your research re Mathewson is impeccable, well done. However, Fred Bolland was an extremely erudite and likeable old man when I knew him. His memory was excellent. The existence of the design patent does not in fact countermand Fred’s version that the original design was made ...

From the horse's mouth many moons ago - Harry Holloway, long since dead. Firman was no designer or artist, he was a car mechanic. He may have rebuilt or recast poor copies from the original castings but he was not a designer! Compare the so called Firman designs to those of Eckland's and you'll read...