Artifacts of the Digital Age

Preserve, Educate, Empower.

In the past half century, computing has grown from a few gadgets to an almost universal extension of human life. Yet while computing has become commonplace, the history of its innovation is being lost every day, as "old" technology is discarded, recycled or consigned to the landfill.

Computer Museum of America (CMoA), located in Roswell and just 20 minutes north of Atlanta, was created to preserve the stories and artifacts from the digital age while educating and inspiring visitors of all ages and backgrounds.

Developed from the passions of an avid collector of computers and technology over a period of 54 years, CMoA has evolved into one of the world’s most comprehensive collections of computing artifacts, preserving the history of computing for future generations. These artifacts of the digital revolution are beautiful and valuable in their own right, and even more valuable as a permanent record of the innovation process and market experiments that drove discovery forward. From this collection, CMoA has curated engaging exhibits to share the stories from the history of computing, while also allowing the organization to loan rare artifacts to other museums including the Smithsonian Institution.

Over the past several years, CMoA has continued the process of formally archiving its collection, while working on exciting plans to share it with a broader audience. The staff has continuously added new exhibits and enhanced the original exhibits unveiled when the museum opened on July 20, 2019.

Hardware

From some of the earliest personal computers from a vast number of manufacturers, peripherals, minis and one of the world’s largest collections of supercomputers, the hardware exhibits are extensive. Many rare prototypes and one-offs are represented.

Software

CMoA holds a formidable collection of historical Operating Systems, Application Programs, Games, Databases and Customized Systems across a variety of platforms & media.

Documents

CMoA has an expansive collection of documentation including: Periodicals, Books, Engineering Drawings, Corporate Memos & Correspondence, and Operating Manuals.

Commerce and Culture

Beyond tech, the collection includes many non-hardware products and logo items produced to motivate engineering teams, marketing campaigns for product launches, and sales promotions. Also on display, with more in the collection, are several pieces of original art depicting the life of tech luminaries, such as Seymour Cray, a leader in the advancement of the supercomputer era, and Alan Turing, who led the decrypting of the WWII-era German Enigma machine. Original artwork by Robert Tinney, who created the early covers for BYTE magazine, is on display. Other pieces are rotated for exhibit periodically.

A Tribute to Apollo

Let your imagination run wild – it’s almost like being there. Start the experience by viewing an animated documentary titled "Getting to the Moon and Back." See the type of computers NASA used from an IBM 3420, a front panel of an IBM 360, modular computer systems and more. Visitors can immerse themselves in a brief history of Rocketry, the Race to Space, and view dioramas of scenes from Apollo missions 11-17.

Supercomputing

A varied collection of supercomputers will illustrate how these machines impact our everyday lives, from the daily weather predictions, to artificial intelligence and cyber security. See more than 70 supercomputers from the iconic Cray 1A, Connection Machine 2 and Pixar Image Computer, Sun Microsystems to a life-size mural of the IBM Summit. The exhibit recognizes Seymour Cray’s contribution as the father of supercomputing.

STEAM Timeline

This exhibit features artifacts from the digital past through the early 2000s.

Beginning with the catalysts of the digital age – an abacus, slide rules, a rotary telephone, and transistor radios, we take you on a journey through the decades. See a Datapoint 2200, Altair 8800, an original Apple-1, the infamous RadioShack TRS80, a rare Apple Lisa 1, the first IBM PC, and an Apple NeXT Machine among many others. More recent artifacts include an Atari 2600, Nintendo Game Boy, a Commodore 64, and so much more. The award-winning timeline tells the stories of people, products, and technologies that advanced Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) in the context of aerospace, transportation, pop culture, heroes and sheroes, and games.

The Enigma Machine

The Enigma exhibit at CMoA features a fully restored machine, used by the Germans during World War II to secure communications between military personnel. Different branches of the German military had differently configured machines with different methods to vary communications. The Enigma machine at CMoA is a 3-rotor model in near-perfect condition. It was purchased on March 7, 1936 by the German army according to the original papers from the company which produced the Enigma, Heimsoeth and Rinke, an encoding machine company in Berlin. A copy of the receipt is part of the exhibit. About 40,000 Enigma machines were produced in total, and less than 300 are believed to remain today in various working conditions.

Hours of Operation
Thursday: 12PM-5PM
Friday: 12PM-5PM
Saturday: 10AM-5PM
Sunday: 12PM-5PM
(Last admission 45 minutes before closing)

Admission
Adult $15
Ages 4-17 $10
Family of 4 (2 Adults 2 Children) $40
Seniors 65+ & Military (with ID) $12
College Student with ID $12
Children under age 4 Free

Computer Museum of America is located at 5000 Commerce Pkwy, Roswell, GA 30076. Visit their website to learn more.

Self-guided visits during open hours are available for groups of 10 or more individuals. Private group visits, during select hours the museum is not open, can be scheduled for groups of 20 or more. A minimum of two-weeks notice is requested, and scheduling is based on availability. A large ballroom, two classrooms and other spaces are available to host corporate, family and other types of events. For pricing, questions, and additional information, please email us at info@computermuseumofamerica.org.