Watch Description
What makes the Springfield 493 unique: Today, we’re pleased to present you this luxurious piece originally manufactured by the Illinois Watch Company in Springfield, Illinois — the Springfield 493. The watch boasts a splendid, gold-colored dial with an intricate center pattern and dark numerals. The piece also sports a matching subdial with dark-gray minute and hour hands. We enclosed the original pocket watch within our PVD Zircon Gold case, and we paired it with a gold-plated crown. The crown and case make the final piece exude even more grandeur. On the back of the watch, you can view its robust gold-plated gears powered by 17 splendid jewels atop its center bridge plate. The piece also features a 405-grade open-face movement with a nickel finish and pendant setting. Finally, we matched the pocket watch with our comfortable, artisan-designed Cordovan Black leather watch strap, which looks stunningly bold with the watch’s golden colors. The Illinois Watch Company initially produced the pocket watch in Springfield, Illinois, in 1926 — the same year that the precursor to Black History Month came into being. Historian Carter G. Woodson and the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH) — now called the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) — proposed that the United States celebrate “Negro History Week.” They chose to celebrate in the second week of February because of Abraham Lincoln’s birthday on February 12th and Frederick Douglass’ birthday on February 14th. Woodson and the ASNLH’s efforts inspired others to study and celebrate Black history, and in 1969, the Black United Students organization and educators at Kent State University created Black History Month. Seven years later, the United States officially began observing Black History Month.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: 4767535
- Manufacture Year: 1926
- Function: Manual Wind
- Jewels: 17 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.
