Watch Description
What makes the Springfield 553 unique: Today, we’re thrilled to showcase this exquisite piece of luxury that was originally manufactured by the Illinois Watch Company in 1916 — the Springfield 533. This antique watch features a breathtaking dial with bold, dark-brown numerals that display handsomely against its aged cream-colored background. The front of the watch also exhibits a subdial that matches its numerals and blued-steel heavy moon watch hands. We encased the original pocket watch within our robust Machined Titanium case and equipped it with a stylish copper crown. Our Machined Titanium case features a transparent back, enabling watch enthusiasts and horologists to look upon the pocket watch’s antique A. Lincoln-grade open-face movement with a fitting “A. Lincoln” engraving. The movement also features a Going barrel, center bridge plate, and 21 jewels among its gold-plated gears. To top it off, we paired the watch with our Natural leather watch strap, matching its copper-plated crown and ultimately making the piece even more eye-catching.The Illinois Watch Company initially produced the antique pocket watch in Springfield, Illinois, in 1916 — the same year that Clarence Saunders founded Piggly Wiggly, the first self-service grocery store. Saunders’ first store was located in Memphis, Tennessee, on Jefferson Avenue, and today, the Memphis Pink Palace Museum and Planetarium features an exact replica of the original store. Some of Piggly Wiggly’s important innovations included checkout stands, shopping carts, and price information displayed for every item.
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.
Legal Disclaimer: All product and company names, logos, brands, and other trademarks featured or referred to within Vortic's products and services are the property of their respective intellectual property rights holders, if any. Those intellectual property rights holders, other than Vortic, LLC, are not affiliated with Vortic, LLC, our products, or our website. They do not sponsor or endorse our materials.
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 Titanium
- Crown/Hardware: Copper
- Water Resistance: 1 ATM
- Crystals: Sapphire
- Case Back: Stainless Steel
- Strap: Leather
Movement
- Manufacturer: Illinois Watch Company
- Serial Number: 2954091
- Manufacture Year: 1916
- Function: Manual Wind
- Jewels: 21 Jewels
- Hands: Original
- Size: 12s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
The Illinois Watch Company initially produced the antique pocket watch in Springfield, Illinois, in 1916 — the same year that Clarence Saunders founded Piggly Wiggly, the first self-service grocery store. Saunders’ first store was located in Memphis, Tennessee, on Jefferson Avenue, and today, the Memphis Pink Palace Museum and Planetarium features an exact replica of the original store. Some of Piggly Wiggly’s important innovations included checkout stands, shopping carts, and price information displayed for every item.
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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.
