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Precision and Perfection: The Antique Elgin Pocket Watches

Are you an avid pocket watch collector? Then you must be familiar with the name Elgin. This short time travel would help you understand a few significant details about the legendary watchmaker and the valuable antique Elgin pocket watches.

Elgin, Lord of Watches

Some two hundred years have passed and time has not yet forgotten its mentors, one of them, the Elgin National Watch Company represented by the well-known Father Time logo.

It was originally known as National Watch Company until it was built in Elgin Chicago in August of 1864 with the collaboration of a few investors from Waltham Watch Company and the city government. In 1874, the company acquired the name of the town and became Elgin National Watch Company.

Most 18th century timepieces were manually crafted. These men wanted to form the largest watch manufacturer in Midwest of United States featuring quality pocket watches, which are built on interchangeable machinery. Elgin aims to provide low-cost repair of watches through factory produced parts. This way, mending of broken parts would not need further adjusting of the vitals unlike old models. 

Types of Elgin Pocket watches

Elgin Watch Company boasts of a handsome collection of hunter style, open face and railroad grade pocket watches. They are deemed as the bestsellers during their time and these pocket watches define the Elgin era.

The hunter style pocket watch comes in round shape with a lid that opens in a click. This one is pretty sensitive especially on the catch (the little button down the dial’s base). It needs to be pushed tightly yet gently when closing the lid so it won’t go off. Long time watch collectors are naturally careful in handling their set, but newbies should keep in mind that extra care is a must.

The Open face is the type of pocket watch that has no lid. This means that the glass covering the dial is prone to scratches. A smooth cloth will do when cleaning. But there is a special cleansing fluid to remove scuffs in case the glass gets scraped by accident.

Meanwhile, the railroad grade pocket watch is also open faced and lever-set. Lever-set pocket watches is said to be more accurate and precise as its setting is fixed compared to the stem set. The Elgin first railroad grade watch is the B.W. Raymond model that came out in 1867. 

Successfully, Elgin was able to pull off with high precision timepieces reaching a 1,000-piece production annually. Elgin has survived the test of time. Its legacy remains until now and there are still thousands of Antique Elgin pocket watches that watch collectors’ all over the world rave about.