Watch Description
The Springfield 197 is the 197th one-of-a-kind piece in Vortic's "Springfield" 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.
We are proud to introduce to you the beautiful Springfield 197, another wonderful timepiece from the Illinois Watch Company. This double-sunk dial stands out nicely in our machined titanium case, with these unique dark numerals and kite-shaped hands. We think the dial is complemented nicely with our coal strap and copper crown. The whimsical shape of the numerals is something we haven’t seen all that often and adds another enchanting detail to this already exquisite watch. The rarity continues as we turn this watch over and reveal this very special Victor grade 405 from the Illinois Watch Company. They took extra care while machining the build plate of this watch, with a great deal of different spiral patterns and intricacies all throughout. Rose-gold gears and a brass balance wheel show off beneath the bridge, with 17 screw-set jewels and stainless steel hardware throughout. The separate “finger” bridges holding the 3rd and 4th escapement wheels is always a nice touch, bringing visual interest to the radial design of this build plate. This watch was originally manufactured in Springfield, Illinois by the Illinois Watch Company in 1923. This same year, Warner Brothers Studios was established in Burbank, California by four brothers Harry, Albert, Sam, and Jack Warner. The brothers started out small with a theater, eventually growing and distributing films as well. Sam and Jack began producing films, with their first picture released My Four Years In Germany and eventually taking out a loan to open up their own studio.
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.
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: Machined Titanium
- Crown/Hardware: Copper
- Water Resistance: 1 ATM
- Crystals: Sapphire
- Case Back: Stainless Steel
- Strap: Leather
Movement
- Manufacturer: Illinois Watch Company
- Serial Number:
- Manufacture Year:
- Function: Manual Wind
- Jewels: 17 Jewels
- Hands: Original
- Size: 12s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
The Springfield 197 is the 197th one-of-a-kind piece in Vortic's "Springfield" 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.
We are proud to introduce to you the beautiful Springfield 197, another wonderful timepiece from the Illinois Watch Company. This double-sunk dial stands out nicely in our machined titanium case, with these unique dark numerals and kite-shaped hands. We think the dial is complemented nicely with our coal strap and copper crown. The whimsical shape of the numerals is something we haven’t seen all that often and adds another enchanting detail to this already exquisite watch. The rarity continues as we turn this watch over and reveal this very special Victor grade 405 from the Illinois Watch Company. They took extra care while machining the build plate of this watch, with a great deal of different spiral patterns and intricacies all throughout. Rose-gold gears and a brass balance wheel show off beneath the bridge, with 17 screw-set jewels and stainless steel hardware throughout. The separate “finger” bridges holding the 3rd and 4th escapement wheels is always a nice touch, bringing visual interest to the radial design of this build plate. This watch was originally manufactured in Springfield, Illinois by the Illinois Watch Company in 1923. This same year, Warner Brothers Studios was established in Burbank, California by four brothers Harry, Albert, Sam, and Jack Warner. The brothers started out small with a theater, eventually growing and distributing films as well. Sam and Jack began producing films, with their first picture released My Four Years In Germany and eventually taking out a loan to open up their own studio.
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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.
