Watch Description
What makes the Lancaster 116 unique: Today, we are excited to present this stunning piece from the Hamilton Watch Company — our Lancaster 116. Originally manufactured in 1931 by Hamilton, the Lancaster 116 features a stunning watch face design, sleek, gold-colored numerals, and an open-face back which reveals the intricate, rose gold gears. The Art Deco design on the dial reminds us of the sun — beautiful lines shoot from a golden sphere in a uniform fashion and our PVD Zircon Gold case only illuminates it further. This finish is achieved by vaporizing Zirconium Nitride and attracting it to the case with an electric current. The outcome is gold in color and is an incredibly durable scratch-resistant coating similar to our other PVD options. Powered by 23 ruby/sapphire jewels in gold settings, this 922 grade "Masterpiece" movement is bold and powerful. When we take a look at the back, we see the nickel gears hard at work with the word MASTERPIECE engraved beautifully on the bridge plate. This engraving was only done on a select few watches, and makes this movement astoundingly rare. Lastly, our Stout leather strap brings the whole design together, giving the watch a natural feel. This watch was originally produced in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1931 — the same year that the “Star-Spangled Banner” became the United State’s official national anthem.Movement Manufacturer Information
The movement inside of this watch was made by Hamilton Watch Company. We call this model "The Lancaster" because the company was located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Hamilton is named after famous Pennsylvanian Alexander Hamilton and is the result of multiple re-organizations of attempted watch companies in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1892, Hamilton had a reputation for superior quality and maintained half of the railroad watch market share during some of the most prolific years of American railroad history. During World War II, Hamilton was integral to the production of accurate timepieces for the Military. Deemed "the watch that won the war," the company established an employee-run newsletter so that employees turned soldiers could keep up with life at the factory. While the original factory still stands as luxury apartments, the company stopped producing watches in the US in 1969. Hamilton now produces watches in Switzerland and is owned by the Swatch Group.
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: Hamilton Watch Company
- Serial Number: 3013227
- Manufacture Year: 1931
- Function: Manual Wind
- Jewels: 23 Jewels
- Hands: Original
- Size: 12s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
Let customers speak for us
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.
