Watch Description
What makes the Burlington 021 unique: Today, we are thrilled to present this masterpiece from the Illinois Watch Company — the Burlington 021. Originally manufactured in 1923 by the Illinois Watch Company, the Burlington 021 features a speckled dial design, Roman bold-type numbers, and a clear display case that reveals the intricate stainless steel gears with bronze details. The etched and faded type numbers bring out the vibrant blue hands of the timepiece. Our Machined Titanium case complements the bright blue hands magnificently, giving them a brilliant shine. Powered by 21 jewels, this 275-grade timepiece has an incredibly durable and scratch-resistant coating. Lastly, our Natural leather strap brings this exceptional timepiece together, accentuating the bold numbers and blue hands even further. This watch was originally produced in Springfield, Illinois, in 1923 — the same year that Ethyl gasoline was 1st marketed in Dayton, Ohio. The introduction of Ethanol as an additive in gasoline helped to oxygenate the gas, burning the fuel completely when driving. The use of this gasoline led to cleaner emissions and ultimately led to better air quality.Movement Manufacturer Information
The movement inside of this watch was made by Burlington Watch Company. We call this model "The Burlington" because the company was located in Burlington, Illinois.
The Burlington Watch Company is unique in the sense that it did not manufacture its own watches. Only operating from 1908-1925, the Illinois Watch Company actually produced the vast majority of Burlington brand watches. The company sold watches by mail order on credit with payment plans. The called themselves the anti-trust watch saying that other companies fixed prices and forced consumers to pay extra because of the middleman. Their goal was to make high-quality watches available to those who couldn't normally afford them.
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: Nickel Plated
- Water Resistance: 1 ATM
- Crystals: Sapphire
- Case Back: Stainless Steel
- Strap: Leather
Movement
- Manufacturer: Burlington Watch Company
- Serial Number: 4330282
- Manufacture Year: 1923
- Function: Manual Wind
- Jewels: 21 Jewels
- Hands: Original
- Size: 12s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
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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.