Watch Description
What makes the Springfield 500 unique:Today, we’re pleased to showcase this antique and stunning piece initially manufactured by the Illinois Watch Company in 1925 — the Springfield 500. The original pocket features an elegant yet simple dial with stylish black numerals atop its cream-colored background. Its royal blue hour and minute hands glimmer vividly against the distinct and tasteful background. We encased the Illinois Watch Company’s original pocket watch within a solid bronze case and added a copper crown, which adds to the piece’s highly unique color design. On the back of the watch, you can view its 405-grade open-face movement with a going barrel, and a center bridge plate. This pocket watch was originally adjusted to three positions, however, we have regulated it to our standard of six positions. The watch’s rear also features a stylized “Sterling” engraving along with the “Illinois Watch Co.,” and it boasts bronze-plated gears powered by 17 opulent jewels. Finally, we equipped this sophisticated piece with our hand-crafted Natural leather watch strap along with a solid bronze buckle, tying the final design together perfectly. The Illinois Watch Company originally produced the Springfield 500’s pocket watch in 1925 — the same year that the Louisville-based newspaper The Courier-Journal held the first National Spelling Bee in the United States. Frank Neuhauser won the first national competition with the word “gladiolus.” The National Spelling Bee has taken place every year since its inaugural competition except for 1943-1945 due to World War II and 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the Spelling Bee typically only has one winner, in 2019, the event exhausted its list of challenging words, and the judges declared eight winners.
Movement Manufacturer Information
The movement inside of this watch was made by Illinois Watch Company. We call this model "The Springfield" because the company was located in Springfield, Illinois.
Originally called the Springfield Watch Company, Illinois came to Springfield, Illinois in 1869 while the "modern" watch industry was fairly new but highly promising. City officials felt that the addition of industry to the city of Springfield would be excellent for the city's growth. However, after a series of failures and re-brandings, the company had a slow start until 1903 when they decided to manufacture high-quality watches only. Eventually making some of the most beautiful watches of their time, the company sold to Hamilton in 1927. Hamilton continued producing watches under the Illinois name for some time, but the original Springfield factory no longer stands.
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Watch Specifications
- Manufacturer: Vortic Watch Company
- Warranty: Full 1-Year Warranty
- Case Dimensions:
- Diameter: 47mm
- Thickness: 12mm
- Lug to Lug: 55mm
- Lug Width: 22mm
- Case Material: Machined Bronze
- Crown/Hardware: Copper
- Water Resistance: 1 ATM
- Crystals: Sapphire
- Case Back: Stainless Steel
- Strap: Leather
Movement
- Manufacturer: Illinois Watch Company
- Serial Number: 4633989
- Manufacture Year: 1925
- Function: Manual Wind
- Jewels: 17 Jewels
- Hands: Original
- Size: 12s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
Today, we’re pleased to showcase this antique and stunning piece initially manufactured by the Illinois Watch Company in 1925 — the Springfield 500. The original pocket features an elegant yet simple dial with stylish black numerals atop its cream-colored background. Its royal blue hour and minute hands glimmer vividly against the distinct and tasteful background. We encased the Illinois Watch Company’s original pocket watch within a solid bronze case and added a copper crown, which adds to the piece’s highly unique color design. On the back of the watch, you can view its 405-grade open-face movement with a going barrel, and a center bridge plate. This pocket watch was originally adjusted to three positions, however, we have regulated it to our standard of six positions. The watch’s rear also features a stylized “Sterling” engraving along with the “Illinois Watch Co.,” and it boasts bronze-plated gears powered by 17 opulent jewels. Finally, we equipped this sophisticated piece with our hand-crafted Natural leather watch strap along with a solid bronze buckle, tying the final design together perfectly. The Illinois Watch Company originally produced the Springfield 500’s pocket watch in 1925 — the same year that the Louisville-based newspaper The Courier-Journal held the first National Spelling Bee in the United States. Frank Neuhauser won the first national competition with the word “gladiolus.” The National Spelling Bee has taken place every year since its inaugural competition except for 1943-1945 due to World War II and 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the Spelling Bee typically only has one winner, in 2019, the event exhausted its list of challenging words, and the judges declared eight winners.
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The Movement
The engine that powers this watch is an antique American pocket watch movement. All the gears and springs that make it tell time are roughly 100 years old on average. We call these watches the American Artisan Series because we're celebrating the history and legacy of the artisan watchmakers who built this engineering marvel a century ago in the United States.
The Story
Today most pocket watches are scrapped for the gold or silver of the case (the outside of the antique timepiece), leaving the inside (what we call the "movement") as trash.
We take pride in upcycling these pieces of American history by salvaging as many as we can, then preserving them inside our wristwatches.
Our expert team of watchmakers restores the antique movement and then we manufacture a custom wristwatch case here in Fort Collins, Colorado.
The Strap
We partnered with Worn & Wound to produce a custom set of straps for our American Artisan Series watches. We now have 15 different colors to choose from including our two Horween Shell Cordovan options. These straps are made in the USA and are based on the Windup Model 2 Premium strap that Worn and Wound offers.
