Watch Description
What makes the Lancaster 159 unique: Today, we’re excited to showcase this antique beauty originally manufactured by the Hamilton Watch Company in 1933 — the Lancaster 159. This historic piece features an aged dial with gold-brown numerals against its light-tan background, and the watch boasts blued steel gothic hands that shine vividly. We paired this one-of-a-kind watch with our Machined Titanium case and nickel-plated crown, adding even more style to the final product. Our Titanium case comes with a transparent back, allowing you to see its original 912-grade open-face movement with a ¾ plate and reed regulator. You can also see the pocket watch’s sumptuous gold-plated and 17 screw-set jewels. To top it off, we equipped the piece with our handcrafted and elegant Cordovan Black leather watch strap, making the final watch even more special and eye-catching.The Hamilton Watch Company initially produced the pocket watch in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in 1933 — the same year that the Lone Ranger debuted on WXYZ in Detroit. The program — created by radio station owner George W. Trendle and writer Fran Striker — became an immediate success, leading to multiple television series, films, novels, and comic books based on the radio program. The original Lone Ranger radio show ran for almost 3,000 episodes, and its popularity also led to the spinoff show The Green Hornet. Although The Green Hornet centers around the Lone Ranger’s grand nephew, Britt Reid, separate companies eventually obtained the rights to the different franchises, meaning it’s unlikely that the Lone Ranger will receive a mention in future adaptations of The Green Hornet franchise.
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.
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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 Titanium
- Crown/Hardware: Nickel Plated
- Water Resistance: 1 ATM
- Crystals: Sapphire
- Case Back: Stainless Steel
- Strap: Leather
Movement
- Manufacturer: Hamilton Watch Company
- Serial Number: 3376565
- Manufacture Year: 1933
- Function: Manual Wind
- Jewels: 17 Jewels
- Hands: Original
- Size: 12s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
The Hamilton Watch Company initially produced the pocket watch in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in 1933 — the same year that the Lone Ranger debuted on WXYZ in Detroit. The program — created by radio station owner George W. Trendle and writer Fran Striker — became an immediate success, leading to multiple television series, films, novels, and comic books based on the radio program. The original Lone Ranger radio show ran for almost 3,000 episodes, and its popularity also led to the spinoff show The Green Hornet. Although The Green Hornet centers around the Lone Ranger’s grand nephew, Britt Reid, separate companies eventually obtained the rights to the different franchises, meaning it’s unlikely that the Lone Ranger will receive a mention in future adaptations of The Green Hornet franchise.
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.
