Hollerith Punch Card Tabulator By Abdulla Jun 1, 1890 Hollerith Punch Card Tabulator Electromechanical tabulator for the 1890 U.S. Census. Text: Herman Hollerith’s punch‑card tabulating system processed the 1890 U.S. Census in months instead of years. It marked the birth of large‑scale data processing and paved the way for IBM.