Mimeograph

A mimeograph is an old-fashioned machine that was commonly used to make copies of papers, worksheets, or tests. Think of it like a big, clunky printer that doesn't use electricity!

So, first, you'd need a special kind of paper that could take ink from the mimeograph's ink drum. This was usually a thin, translucent paper. You'd then need to create a master copy of whatever you wanted to copy. This was usually done by typing or writing onto a special, waxy piece of paper called a stencil.

Once you had your stencil ready, you'd attach it to the ink drum in the mimeograph. The ink drum would rotate as you cranked a handle, spreading ink over the stencil. The ink would then go through the stencil and onto the paper you wanted a copy of. You'd keep cranking the handle to make as many copies as you needed.

The resulting copies had a very distinct, recognizable smell and could sometimes be a bit blurry or smeared, but they were a lot cheaper and faster to make than making multiple handwritten copies. Nowadays, most people use digital printers or photocopiers instead of mimeographs, but they still hold a special place in history!