Carbon Copy Paper
| Field | Office and personal document copying |
| Went Obsolete | Late 1980s |
| Made Obsolete By | Copy Machines and Computer Printers |
| Knowledge Assumed | Manual and electric typewriting |
| When useful | To make up to 3 copies of a typewritten document |
Thin paper coated with a carbon on one side to be placed between two sheets of typewriter paper and inserted in the platen. The impact of the typewriter key on the first piece of paper caused carbon to be transferred to the second piece, creating a copy. Each sheet of carbon paper could be used multiple times before wearing out.
There was a technique to inserting the sheets so that all remained exactly inline with each other and the copy didn’t come out crooked or off-center.
This is where the term "cc" comes from in today's email world. It means "Carbon Copy".