Watch Description
What makes the Springfield 052 unique: Perry was a famous US Navy Commodore during the War of 1812. He was made famous for winning the battle of Lake Erie against the British. This pocket watch was originally made in 1917 by the Illinois Watch Company under a private label contract with Otto Young & Co. Otto Young & Co., similarly to Sears Robuck, operated a catalog-based company from 1865-1928 and they sold watchmakers' tools and materials as well as pocket watches. This movement is what we call "double-signed" meaning it says "Commodore Perry" on both the dial and the movement. Double-signed movements like this are extremely rare, especially in this condition. We put it in a DLC-coated black steel case because we thought that would accentuate the black numerals while not detracting from the beauty of the textured dial.
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.
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Watch Specifications
- Manufacturer: Vortic Watch Company
- Model Year: 2023
- Warranty: Full 1-Year Warranty
- Case Dimensions:
- Diameter: 45mm
- Thickness: 12mm
- Lug to Lug: 55mm
- Lug Width: 22mm
- Case Material: DLC Black Coated Stainless Steel
- Crown/Hardware: Stainless Steel
- Water Resistance: 1 ATM
- Crystals: Sapphire
- Case Back: Stainless Steel
- Strap: Leather
Movement
- Manufacturer: Illinois Watch Company
- Serial Number: 3169343
- Manufacture Year: 1917
- Function: Manual Wind
- Jewels: 17 Jewels
- Hands: Original
- Size: 12s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
What makes the Springfield 052 unique: Perry was a famous US Navy Commodore during the War of 1812. He was made famous for winning the battle of Lake Erie against the British. This pocket watch was originally made in 1917 by the Illinois Watch Company under a private label contract with Otto Young & Co. Otto Young & Co., similarly to Sears Robuck, operated a catalog-based company from 1865-1928 and they sold watchmakers' tools and materials as well as pocket watches. This movement is what we call "double-signed" meaning it says "Commodore Perry" on both the dial and the movement. Double-signed movements like this are extremely rare, especially in this condition. We put it in a DLC-coated black steel case because we thought that would accentuate the black numerals while not detracting from the beauty of the textured dial.
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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.
