Ritty, James (1836-1918), an American restaurant owner, invented the cash register. While traveling to Europe in 1878, he saw a device for counting the revolutions of the ship’s propellers. When he returned home, he devised a similar machine to record business transactions. In 1879, he and his brother John built and patented a gear-operated adding machine. The Rittys sold the business in 1881. James Ritty was born in Dayton, Ohio.
