A typewriter is a mechanical device that functions for the transfer or printing of characters on paper.

The typewriter evolved from the 16^th century, but the first typewriter to be listed was in the year 1829, by William Austin Burt. By the mid 1800s, due to the increased path of business communication, there was a need for greater and more effective means of writing.  Stenographers and telegraphers could write upto 130 words per minute in comparison to writing with a pen which limited it to about 30 words per minute. Although many typing machines were patented during this period, commercial production of said machines was yet to be initiated.

The earlier composition of the typewriter was standardized by the 1900s, as each of the key was located in a typebar which had the alphabet in reverse so that it appeared in the correct order when typed.  Ribbons were the main inking devices in a typewriter.  The ribbons were dyed of many colours.  Typewriters produce a characteristic sound when used, due to the contact of the key to the typebar, but conventional typewriters were progressively development to reduce even this feature. 

The first electric typewriter was produced by the Blickensderfer Manufacturing Company, of Stamford, Connecticut, in 1902. An electrical typewriter is designed to remove the mechanical connection between the keys. The electric typewriter made use of mechanical links to direct power from the motor into the typebar.

The typewriters have laid the foundation for the keyboard layouts and particularly the QWERTY layout that is still in use in our modern day laptops and computers. The QWERTY layout was introduced by Sholes & Glidden, in the year 1874. The QWERTY arrangement was designed to avoid or reduce the possibility of internal jamming of the keys by placing commonly used keys farther apart from each other.  Another layout type was the DHIATENSOR type by the Blickensderfer typewriter.

One of the earliest adopters for the use of typewriters was Mark Twain, who was the first author to submit a typed manuscript for Adventures of Tom Sawyer to his publisher. The philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche explored the usage of a typewriter to have curative properties as he apparently used it to reduce his migraine headaches.  Ernest Hemingway had the peculiar habit of writing in his typewriter in a standing position.  So, it was appropriately placed at a height suitable for him, and is still in existence at his house, which has been converted into a museum.

Each typewriter has a particular fingerprint or signature, so that a certain letter or note could be traced back to it. This signature is due to the presence of the mechanical parts of the keys and the slight variations in them allowing the alignment of the letters to be characteristically different for each. An analysis of the ribbon ink could also be used in such forensic identification.  An award winning film, The Lives of Others, made use of this particular feature of the typewriter to unearth the plot of revolution in the Soviet Union.