The oldest watch in my collection is a gold Lord Elgin manual wind mechanical that belonged to my grandfather.
The Elgin National Watch Company was an American watch producer that manufactured watches in Elgin, Illinois for over 100 years. Watches were produced under the names Elgin, Lord Elgin, and Lady Elgin. When the company ceased manufacturing in 1968, they sold the rights to the name, which has been resold numerous times.
The case back is engraved, “Rena C. Myers, 35 Years Service, Penna. Rfng. Co.” This gold watch was presented to my grandfather on the 35th anniversary of his employment at the Pennsylvania Refining Company. A luncheon was held in his honor. The watch was presented and he returned to work that afternoon. Yes, 35 years of service was not the point at which he retired.
By today’s standards this is a small rectangular watch, measuring 23 mm wide, 38 mm lug-to-lug, and 11 mm thick. The dial features a small second hand on a secondary dial the the 6 o’clock position. The gold dauphine hands point to precisely applied gold arabic numerals. The numerals 1, 5, 7, and 11 are replaced with small gold dots. There are two gold triangles in place of the 12 numeral. The dots are an interesting design element, similar to the tetradic (sets of 4) design of Vaer watches.
My aunt got the watch when my grandfather died and passed it to my father some years later. When he offered it to me I had it mechanically refurbished by a watchmaker friend. He replaced the crown and cleaned the movement. It runs quite reliably now and I typically wear it on Sundays.
The Elgin National Watch Company was an American watch producer that manufactured watches in Elgin, Illinois for over 100 years. Watches were produced under the names Elgin, Lord Elgin, and Lady Elgin. When the company ceased manufacturing in 1968, they sold the rights to the name, which has been resold numerous times.
The case back is engraved, “Rena C. Myers, 35 Years Service, Penna. Rfng. Co.” This gold watch was presented to my grandfather on the 35th anniversary of his employment at the Pennsylvania Refining Company. A luncheon was held in his honor. The watch was presented and he returned to work that afternoon. Yes, 35 years of service was not the point at which he retired.
By today’s standards this is a small rectangular watch, measuring 23 mm wide, 38 mm lug-to-lug, and 11 mm thick. The dial features a small second hand on a secondary dial the the 6 o’clock position. The gold dauphine hands point to precisely applied gold arabic numerals. The numerals 1, 5, 7, and 11 are replaced with small gold dots. There are two gold triangles in place of the 12 numeral. The dots are an interesting design element, similar to the tetradic (sets of 4) design of Vaer watches.
My aunt got the watch when my grandfather died and passed it to my father some years later. When he offered it to me I had it mechanically refurbished by a watchmaker friend. He replaced the crown and cleaned the movement. It runs quite reliably now and I typically wear it on Sundays.