Watch Description
The Rockford 036 is the 36th one-of-a-kind piece in Vortic's "Rockford" line of the American Artisan Series. This watch contains the original movement (timepiece), dial (face), and hands from a vintage (1880’s – 1950’s) pocket watch. The American Artisan Series is a line of fully American Made wristwatches powered by restored, U.S. made pocket watch movements.
What makes the Rockford 036 Unique: Where do we start with this watch? We have seen very few of these pocket watches as there were only 600 of them produced by The Rockford Watch Company and even more rare, only 100 made in this specific run. A very classic looking white dial with slightly accented black numerals and red five-minute markings, this dial is quite clean! You will notice the dial has two fractures and even still, it's one of the more perfect ones we've ever seen. The Rockford Watch Company began operation in 1878 with equipment from the Cornell Watch Company as well as two of Cornell's former employees. 400 local businesses and individuals pledged $150,000 of support to stimulate the growth of their town. Rockford watches are especially collectible due to their high-quality designs and low production quantities. Rockford (1873- 1915) produced only 1 million movements as compared to Elgin who is 2 hours away, who made 55 million. The movement is nothing to overlook as well, the crosshatch or checkerboard pattern engraved on the back of the movement is very elaborate. Rockford specialized in these beautiful, high-end, collectors movements with decorations that many watch companies didn't even attempt. To say this movement is rare is an understatement.
1908
772834
Movement Manufacturer Information
The movement inside of this watch was made by Rockford Watch Company. We call this model "The Rockford" because the company was located in Rockford Illinois.
The Rockford Watch Company began operation in 1873 with equipment purchased from the Cornell Watch Company. Four hundred local businesses and individuals pledged $150,000 (over $3mil with inflation) of support to stimulate the growth of their town. The company struggled to keep up with demand early on, and eventually went bankrupt. Rockford was rejuvenated in 1901, but a major fire and lightning strike slowed the company further in 1903. By 1915 the company closed its doors, though the building still stands vacant.
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
- Model Year: 2021
- Warranty: Full 1-Year Warranty
- Case Dimensions:
- Diameter: 47mm
- Thickness: 12mm
- Lug to Lug: 55mm
- Lug Width: 22mm
- Case Material: 3D Blackened Titanium
- Crown/Hardware: See Description
- Water Resistance: 1 ATM
- Crystals: Sapphire
- Case Back: Stainless Steel
- Strap: Leather
Movement
- Manufacturer: Rockford Watch Company
- Serial Number:
- Manufacture Year:
- Function: Manual Wind
- Jewels: 21 Jewels
- Hands: Original
- Size: 12s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
The Rockford 036 is the 36th one-of-a-kind piece in Vortic's "Rockford" line of the American Artisan Series. This watch contains the original movement (timepiece), dial (face), and hands from a vintage (1880’s – 1950’s) pocket watch. The American Artisan Series is a line of fully American Made wristwatches powered by restored, U.S. made pocket watch movements.
What makes the Rockford 036 Unique: Where do we start with this watch? We have seen very few of these pocket watches as there were only 600 of them produced by The Rockford Watch Company and even more rare, only 100 made in this specific run. A very classic looking white dial with slightly accented black numerals and red five-minute markings, this dial is quite clean! You will notice the dial has two fractures and even still, it's one of the more perfect ones we've ever seen. The Rockford Watch Company began operation in 1878 with equipment from the Cornell Watch Company as well as two of Cornell's former employees. 400 local businesses and individuals pledged $150,000 of support to stimulate the growth of their town. Rockford watches are especially collectible due to their high-quality designs and low production quantities. Rockford (1873- 1915) produced only 1 million movements as compared to Elgin who is 2 hours away, who made 55 million. The movement is nothing to overlook as well, the crosshatch or checkerboard pattern engraved on the back of the movement is very elaborate. Rockford specialized in these beautiful, high-end, collectors movements with decorations that many watch companies didn't even attempt. To say this movement is rare is an understatement.
1908
772834
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.
