Version control coincided with programs being stored on tape as opposed to punched cards (the shift to tape was gradual over the 1960s, and the first VCS around

Version control coincided with programs being stored on tape as opposed to punched cards (the shift to tape was gradual over the 1960s, and the first VCS around 1969). So before version control came along, companies were only running programs small enough to fit on a deck of punched cards.