Watch Description
What makes the Springfield 441 unique: Today we bring you this gorgeous watch originally manufactured by the Illinois Watch Company of Springfield, Illinois. At the time when this watch was originally manufactured, it was commonplace for small companies or individuals to special order dials that represented their brand or had a custom insignia on them. It was also a very common practice for private jewelers to have small runs of watches that were specific to their store or lineage. We assume that this incredibly rare and unique dial fits into one of these categories, as the only information we have found is that it resembles the look of an antique French military flag. Perhaps this dial was an homage to someone’s French heritage, or perhaps this is a design that represents a family or lineage. Either way, we love to search through old catalogs from these companies to try and tell a better story of each and every unique watch that we make. As if the front of this watch wasn’t enough, the movement inside is sure to impress anyone who sets their eyes upon it. A beautiful display of 21 screw-set jewels keeps these gold-plated gears spinning perfectly all these years later. A brass balance wheel and hardware stand out nicely from this nickel-plated build plate that has been carefully machined with Geneva lines all throughout. The original production year for this watch was 1926, a time when technological innovations were thriving with new ideas being produced every day. Among these inventors was John Logie Baird, a Scottish innovator who demonstrated a mechanical television system at his London Laboratory for a reporter from The Times as well as members of the Royal Institution.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
- 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: Illinois Watch Company
- Serial Number: 4820945
- Manufacture Year: 1926
- Function: Manual Wind
- Jewels: 21 Jewels
- Hands: Original
- Size: 12s
- Power Reserve: ~36 Hours
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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.
