Watch Description
What makes the Springfield 448 unique: We decided to bring you something that is as truly unique and spectacular as it is spooky and mysterious. We work with watches that are often well over 100 years old, and you can only imagine the number of different skilled craftsmen as well as hobbyists who may have tinkered and fixed watches all throughout their long life. This watch was originally manufactured in 1921, exactly 100 years ago in Springfield Illinois, by the Illinois Watch Company. In the world of watches, when parts from different grades of watches are combined together it is often referred to as a “Frankenwatch”, inspired by the famous Frankenstein’s Monster. The origins of Halloween trace back to a time when the beginning of the year was celebrated on November 1st and marked the end of summer and the beginning of winter and the cold months, which was also typically synonymous with death. Thus many believed that on the last day of October, as the transitioning of seasons began and harvest came to an end, ghosts of the dead returned to earth for one final day. We celebrate this special watch as the bringing of two dead souls of different watches to come back to life together to create this absolutely stunning and rare piece of horology history. The base of the movement actually began as a 23 jewel 410-grade watch, one of the highest grade watches that Illinois made. At some point in time, the barrel bridge and center bridge were replaced with parts from a 406 grade Illinois, which is why if you look closely you may notice the difference in the damaskeening pattern between the different build plates as well as the raised jewels that are on the smaller finger bridges. At the end of the day, what was created is an absolutely stunning piece of history that boasts 21 jewels and an incredible story.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
- Warranty: Full 1-Year Warranty
- Case Dimensions:
- Diameter: 47mm
- Thickness: 12mm
- Lug to Lug: 55mm
- Lug Width: 22mm
- Case Material: DLC Titanium
- Crown/Hardware: Gold Plated
- Water Resistance: 1 ATM
- Crystals: Sapphire
- Case Back: Stainless Steel
- Strap: Leather
Movement
- Manufacturer: Illinois Watch Company
- Serial Number: 3823464
- Manufacture Year: 1921
- 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.
