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1947 Underwood Champion Serial # G1692825 1947 Underwood Champion typewriter, Serial # G1692825 Mark Schrad's 1947 Underwood Champion typewriter. 2025-11-19 From the Virtual Typewriter Collection of Mark Schrad: 1947 Underwood Champion Serial # G1692825 Some people collect typewriters based on rarity, or usability, or particular typeface. Some people collect them based on the stories they tell of the people they once belonged to. I guess this 1947 Underwood Champion would belong to the last of those categories.

Typewriters are incredibly personal items, that often bear the imprint of the people who used them, time and again, for decades. That's especially apparent with this 1947 Underwood Champion, which tells a lot about its original owner. In servicing this machine, one thing became readily clear: whoever originally owned it was probably a woman with long fingernails, who likely used it a LOT. Just look at the wear on the most commonly-used letters: A, S, E, R and T. Not only do they have divots from finger wear that have worn off the key legends... they're downright trenches from the scraping of the fingernails. It reminds me of when you go to an old building, where the staircase steps are bowed in the middle from millions of footsteps over the decades.

Well, it didn't take long to track down the original owner, as the rear of the paper table is stenciled with the name WILLIA E. DOUGHERTY. She was a pioneering Professor of Music at Hampton University, who passed in 2023.

https://www.ronaldcperkinsfh.com/obituary/williia-daughtry

As her obituary notes, she was an accomplished pianist, organist, choir director, accompanist, writer, lecturer, panelist, adjudicator and consultant.... which certainly explains both the heavy use and undeniable finger strength on these keys!

Acquired from a fellow typewriter enthusiast in New Hope, PA in August of 2025.

1947 Underwood Champion #G1692825

Status: My Collection
Hunter: Mark Schrad (MLSchrad)
Created: 11-19-2025 at 03:38PM
Last Edit: 11-19-2025 at 03:39PM

Description Hunter 18 Photos 0 Likes  Find on Ebay #AD  Find on Etsy #AD

Description:

Some people collect typewriters based on rarity, or usability, or particular typeface. Some people collect them based on the stories they tell of the people they once belonged to. I guess this 1947 Underwood Champion would belong to the last of those categories.

Typewriters are incredibly personal items, that often bear the imprint of the people who used them, time and again, for decades. That's especially apparent with this 1947 Underwood Champion, which tells a lot about its original owner. In servicing this machine, one thing became readily clear: whoever originally owned it was probably a woman with long fingernails, who likely used it a LOT. Just look at the wear on the most commonly-used letters: A, S, E, R and T. Not only do they have divots from finger wear that have worn off the key legends... they're downright trenches from the scraping of the fingernails. It reminds me of when you go to an old building, where the staircase steps are bowed in the middle from millions of footsteps over the decades.

Well, it didn't take long to track down the original owner, as the rear of the paper table is stenciled with the name WILLIA E. DOUGHERTY. She was a pioneering Professor of Music at Hampton University, who passed in 2023.

https://www.ronaldcperkinsfh.com/obituary/williia-daughtry

As her obituary notes, she was an accomplished pianist, organist, choir director, accompanist, writer, lecturer, panelist, adjudicator and consultant.... which certainly explains both the heavy use and undeniable finger strength on these keys!

Acquired from a fellow typewriter enthusiast in New Hope, PA in August of 2025.

Typeface Specimen:

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Hunter: Mark Schrad (MLSchrad)

Mark Schrad's Typewriter Galleries [ My Collection ] [ My Sightings ]

Status: Typewriter Hunter
Points: 44967

Professor of Political Science and Director of Russian Area Studies at Villanova University. Writes about alcohol politics, Russia, and international law when not refurbishing old typewriters.


RESEARCH NOTE: When researching the Underwood Champion on a computer with lots of screen real estate, you may find that launching the Underwood Serial Number page and the Underwood Champion By Model/Year/Serial page in new browser windows can give you interesting perspectives on changes throughout the model series.

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