On September 2, 1969, America’s first automatic teller machine
(ATM) made its public debut, dispensing cash to customers at
Chemical Bank in Rockville Centre, New York. ATMs went on
to revolutionize the banking industry, eliminating the need to
visit a bank to conduct basic financial transactions.

By the 1980s, these money machines had become widely
popular and handled many of the functions previously
performed by human tellers, such as check deposits and
money transfers between accounts. Today, ATMs are as
indispensable to most people as cell phones and e-mail.

Sir Thomas Bland (center) unveiled the first ATM by
drawing back a curtain, and actor Reg Varney (center) 
made the first cash withdrawal.