Tuthill Lumber Cash Register
This highly decorative brass cash register was purchased in 1905 by John W. Tuthill (b. 1846–1922 d.) and used in his lumber company in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The Tuthill Lumber company was significant business which was responsible for providing most of the building materials in Sioux Falls and surrounding area.
The lumber company began as a partnership between John and his brother Squire G. Tuthill in 1884. During the next 20 years the lumber company did quite an extensive wholesale and retail business. In 1904 it was reorganized as the John W. Tuthill Lumber Company. Upon the reorganization Tuthill 
purchased this register and had a plate engraved and attached to the front which reads “J.W. Tuthill Lbr. Co”, a statement of pride, new ownership and status. By his death the company had significantly grown and encompassed a total of thirty-two lumber yards in South Dakota, Iowa and Minnesota.
This register has had a long journey beginning with its manufacture in 1904 in Dayton, Ohio, by the National Cash Register Company. It was ordered by J.W. Tuthill through the Kindschy Mercantile Company in Groton, SD. At a later point it turned up at an auction in Colorado where it was purchased by an art boutique dealer. She had used the cash register up until 2012 when she contacted the Siouxland Heritage Museum’s to donate it.
