Early Elgin Export Watches, 1870-1888

Early Elgin Export
Watches, 1870-1888
Luis Casillas
NAWCC Chapter 5 (San Francisco)
September 13, 2015

Exercise: Identify the watch
(Pretend you don’t know the subject of this talk!)

English Sterling
Silver HallmarksNo signature on dial

Sterling
Silver
Birmingham
Assay Ofﬁce
1876
Aaron Lufkin
Dennison
English gold and silver hallmarks can be
looked up in many books and websites.
(E.g., Philip, Priestley, Watch Case
Makers of England, NAWCC Bulletin
Supplement 20, Spring 1994.)

Aaron Lufkin Dennison
• Legendary founder of the American Waltham
Watch Company.
• Often called the “father of the American watch
industry.”

• After leaving Waltham, was involved in a few
failed watch companies in the USA, Switzerland
and the UK:
• Tremont Watch Co. (Boston, 1864)
• Zurich Watch Company (supplier to Tremont)
• Anglo-American Watch Company (1871-1874)

• After all his watchmaking enterprises failed, he started
a very successful watch case company in the United
Kingdom (c. 1874-76).
• The Dennison Watch Case Company was wildly
successful, well into the 20th century
• They also made cases for many English market
Waltham watches.
• Priestley (1994, 2009) thinks Waltham may have
been a silent partner in Dennison’s case business.

“Swiss Make”
No signature on movement Is this a Swiss watch?

Surprise! It’s an Elgin!
• 17 size, anonymous, grade 14
• 7 jewels, solid balance
• Made c. 1876
• Exported to the UK

The most obscure Elgins?
• This is one of a group of Elgin watches that are
very obscure because:
• They often don’t say “Elgin” anywhere visible;
• They were exported abroad;
• The plates are often not the same as USA Elgins;
• Most are fairly low grade and thus don’t draw
much attention to themselves.

The story
• Around 1875, Elgin designed and began
manufacture of a special line of movements for
export to the British Commonwealth.
• These movements were not made in large
numbers, and nearly all were soon discontinued
(sources say in 1876).
• But some were made as late as c. 1887, and
exported as well.

The movements
• A broad product line was planned in 18, 17, 14,
12 and 10 sizes.
• Planned. Not all necessarily made.
• Even when made, not always clear if they were
actually exported.

The watchcases
• Much more so than with domestic American
watches, the cases of these export Elgins are very
important to note!
• The cases have the potential to illuminate Elgin’s
export and distribution channels to 1870s UK.
• The majority seen so far are from a very small
number of casemakers.
• Aaron Dennison ﬁgures very prominently.

Warning: Work in Progess!
• I have very little information on this topic!
• Some of this information is contradictory!
• My thoughts could change next week!

Major sources
• Jacques David’s report to the Swiss watch
industry on American watches (early 1877).
• Crossman and Abbott’s books (mid-late 1880s)
• Elgin’s grade ledgers (at the NAWCC Library).
• Observation of watches and eBay listings.

Jacques David
• One of the key persons in the development of
the Longines company in Switzerland.
• Was Technical Director, partner in the ﬁrm, and
later general manager.

Jacques David in the USA
• Jacques David came to the USA in 1876 in two roles:
• Part of the ofﬁcial Swiss delegation to the 1876
Philadelphia Exposition
• To investigate (i.e., snoop on) the American watch
industry, and write a report to the Swiss watch industry.
• David visited the city of Elgin during his trip; not clear if
he actually got into the factory.

Jacques David
• Jacques David (1877, p. 17):
• “Elgin has agencies in New York, Chicago,
London and St. Petersburg. These agencies
are extremely luxuriously organised and must
signiﬁcantly increase the price of the products
so that it would not be correct to ignore them.”

Charles Crossman
• Wrote a book on the history of American
watches, published as a serial between 1885
and 1887.

Crossman’s book
• Crossman (1885-87, p. 96):
• “Between September 29, 1875 and December
29th of the following year, ﬁve grades of 14-size
three quarter plate, key wind movements were
produced. They ranged in quality from full-
jeweled expansion balance adjusted to plain
jeweled with steel balances. These were more
especially designed for sale in the English market,
the company having opened an ofﬁce in London,
but they were sold to some extent in this country.”

“More especially designed for sale in
the English market”
Elgin #450,380, grade 53
10 size, 3/4 plate
“English” style (but sold in the USA?)
Elgin #189,594 (Gail Borden)
10 size, split plate
Domestic style

Crossman’s book
(continued)
• Crossman (1885-87, p. 96, my emphasis):
• “After the adoption of popular prices by this
company in 1876, their manufacturing
resources were so heavily taxed to supply the
home market they deemed it best to withdraw
entirely from a foreign one, and in
consequence of that decision, this entire line
just mentioned was discontinued and the
London ofﬁce closed.”

“Popular prices”
• Crossman’s uses the term “popular prices”
without explaining it, but this is clariﬁed by other
sources.
• “In May [of 1876], the ‘popular price policy’ was
announced which slashed the cost of high end
watches. The list price of the top of the line
B.W. Raymond movement was reduced from
$67.50 to $39.75. Other models underwent
drastic price cuts.” (Alft & Briska, 2003, p. 22).

Crossman’s info (continued)
• Crossman (1885-87, p. 101):
• “It was during [Thomas Baxter’s] management
[early 1876 to 1879] that the company made
their great reduction of sixty to seventy percent
in the prices of their movements. […] The
company made a rapid stride forward, the home
demand for their watches becoming so great
that they decided it was best to discontinue the
English trade as already noted.”

More on “popular prices”
• Ed. Favre-Perret’s 1877 report on the 1876
Philadelphia Exhibition:
• “[B]eneﬁtting from the opening of the
exhibition, all the American companies gave
their products a reduction in price from 40 to
50%.” (p. 3)
• Favre-Perret was part of the Swiss delegation
that Jacques David went on.

Henry G. Abbott
• Wrote another early (1888) book on the history of
American pocket watches.

Abbot’s book
• Abbott (1888, p. 61):
• “Seven new grades of 10 size, six grades of 12
size and ﬁve grades of 14 size, three-quarter
plate, key wind movements, were made by the
company between Sept. 29, 1875, and Dec.
29, 1876. Most of these new patterns were
made for the foreign markets, which demanded
movements differing in some respects from
those made for home consumption.”

Abbot’s book (continued)
• Abbott (1888, p. 61):
• “So large was the demand for Elgin movements
during the year 1876, that the factory, although
running over time, and turning out movements
as fast as the capacity would admit of, yet the
orders were far behind, and dealers were
beginning to complain. The London ofﬁce of
the company was closed, the forces increased,
and everything possible was done to meet the
enormous demand.”

The Elgin grade books
• The NAWCC Library and Research Center has a
set of ledgers from the Elgin company, recording
numbered movements (“grades”) and data about
their parts.
• Some people (e.g., Wayne Schlitt) have called
these the Elgin “Master Records.”
• These ledgers appear to have been started in the
1890s, and have only rudimentary information
about many of the earliest watches.

Elgin grade book, example page

Closeup on “English”
A number of the movements on the ﬁrst (earliest)
ledger have the word “English” pencilled in. These
seem to partially correspond to the ones that
Crossman and Abbott mention in their books.

Grade Book Notes
The grade books also have blank pages with handwritten
notes about the movements in the opposite page. Many of
these notes are descriptions of the movement’s features.
Grade 83
(not “English”)

Novel information from the
grade books
• Which movements were recorded as “English”
• Details that the standard reference books and
online databases do not have.
• Most interestingly, the variety of solid balance
wheels. Some are listed as steel, some
sterling, some as gold.

“English Relatives”
• A number of grades are not marked “English,” but are close
relatives, either because:
• They are a size, model or style overwhelmingly found in
the “English” movements;
• They have features that are typical of English
movements, like gold balance wheel;
• They occur in small serial number blocks in very close
proximity to “English” movements;
• They have actually been spotted in UK hallmarked cases.

Number of “English” and
“relative” grades
• Even if we exclude the
English relatives, this
was a very extensive
and ambitious lineup.
• However:
• Were all of these
actually made?
• Were all of these
actually exported?
Size “English”
“English”
+ relatives
18 5 6
17½ 3 6
14 5 9
12 6 6
10 5 7
All 24 34

17½ size watches
• In the 1870s Elgin made a series of movements
variously labeled as “17½ size” or “17 size.”
• These movements required non-standard cases.

17½ Size English grades
Grade # Balance Jewels Winding Serials
Description
(verbatim from grade book)
11
Solid,
sterling
7 Stem 10,000
Not Jeweled. No Dust Band. Sterling
Balance with straight pivots
14 Solid, steel 7 Key 8,900
Avery Style. Finished material. Not
Jeweled. Steel Balance. Straight
Pivots.
15 Solid, gold 11 Key 4,100
Avery Style. Finished material. Fourth,
Escape Jeweled both ends, solid
uppers. Gold Balance. Straight Pivots

17½ Size English grades
Description
My notes
51
Solid,
steel
7 Key 1,000
Not Jeweled. Finished Avery
material. Steel Balance with
straight pivots.
English Relative
52
Solid,
gold
11 Key 1,000
Jeweled Fourth and Escape,
both ends, solid uppers.
Finished Avery Material. Gold
Balance with straight pivots.
English Relative
59
Solid,
sterling
7 Key 45,000
Not Jeweled. Avery Train,
Escapement and Sterling
Balance, Blue Regulator. Soft
Screws. No Dust Band. Front
Setting. “Leader” on Bridge.
Straight Pivots to Bal. Staff.
English Relative. This
grade number also
includes domestic “T.M.
Avery.” The Price Guide
claims that “Leader”
were made for export.

Jacques David on standard
movement sizes
“This uniformity [of movement size], which we can
say is absolute in the most common 18 size,
constitutes a very great advantage for case making.
It allows the case manufacturer to be completely
equipped to make cases intended for American
movements by machine, and consequently these
cases are cheaper than those for any foreign
movement. It also makes it possible for the watch
merchant to have a set of uncased movements and
to buy cases only when he has a need for
them.” (p. 29)

Jacques David on 17 size
“It appears that Elgin was tempted to produce a
different size, but these watches were so
inconvenient that they had to bring this movement
back to a standard size to be able to sell it as
easily as the others.” (p. 29)
It appears Elgin disposed of a lot of the 17 size
material by exporting it to England, where case
and movement sizes were less standardized.

Elgin Anonymous Watch
Grade #14 (English)
#428,226, c. 1875
17 size KWKS, 7 jewels
“A.W” hunting case

Grade #14 (English)
#428,226, c. 1875
“A.W” hunting case
Sterling
Silver
London
Assay Ofﬁce
1875
Alfred Wigley

Alfred Wigley
“It is most fortunate that a letter from Edward
Bonham Dennison to his father Aaron exists,
indicating that in 1874, Aaron was established as a
watchcase maker. […] Since Aaron did not have
an assay punch mark until 1876, he could only use
base metal such as nickel […]. It is more likely that
Aaron used a contemporary goldsmith between
1874 and 1876, and a strong candidate is Alfred
Wigley, Aaron’s eventual partner[.]”
— Priestley (2009), p. 23

Elgin Nameless Watch
Grade #52 (English)
#425,245, c. 1878
17s, key wind/key set
11 jewels (2 pair)
≤1,000 made

Sterling
Silver
Birmingham
Assay Ofﬁce
1878
Aaron Lufkin
Dennison
Grade #52 (English)
#425,245, c. 1878
11 jewels (2 pair)
≤1,000 made

Gold
Balance
11 jewels
Grade #52 (English)
#425,245, c. 1875-78
11 jewels (2 pair)
≤ 1,000 made
Gold balance wheels
were a popular feature
in English watches.
Also, nearly all 17 size
Elgins were 7 jewel
watches. That makes
this 11 jewel version
more unusual.

Grade #15 (English)
#418,356, c. 1876
17 size KWKS
Gold balance wheel
11 jewels (2 pair)
“A.L.D” open face case
Similar to grade 51,
but anonymous.

Grade #15 (English)
#418,356, c. 1876
17 size KWKS
Gold balance wheel
11 jewels (2 pair)
Sterling
Silver
Birmingham
Assay Ofﬁce 1876
Aaron Lufkin
Dennison

Grade #14 (English)
#428,469, c. 1877
“J.W” pair case

Grade #14 (English)
#428,469, c. 1877
“J.W” p
air case

Grade #14 (English)
#428,469, c. 1877
“J.W” pair case
Sterling
Silver
London
Assay Ofﬁce
1877
Joseph Walton

Joseph Walton & Co.
• See Priestley (1994, pp.47-48)
• One of a family of interrelated casemaking
companies dating back to at least 1818.
• J.W. & Co. existed from 1867 to 1940.

Anonymous Elgin
Grade #14 (English)
#438,998, c. 1878
“F&S” open face case
Sterling
Silver
Chester
1878
Fattorini
& Sons
Movement not shown;
completely standard
anonymous grade 14.

Fattorini & Sons
“Fattorini & Sons was a jewellery business
established by a family of Italian immigrants who
arrived in the British city of Leeds, in Yorkshire,
England in the early 19th century. Antonio Fattorini
opened a shop in Harrogate to take advantage of
seasonal trade in Harrogate in 1831, this business
is today owned and run by descendants of the
founders.”
— https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fattorini_and_Sons

Fattorini & Sons
• They are known to have been a signiﬁcant
retailer of Waltham watches in the 19th century.

Elgin Private Label
Grade #14 (English)
#438,048, c. 1876
Expansion balance
Movement has been
upgraded with an
expansion balance!

Elgin Private Label
Grade #14 (English)
#438,048, c. 1876
Expansion balance
Sterling
Silver
Birmingham
Assay Ofﬁce
1876
Aaron Lufkin
Dennison

Grade #59 (English)
#485,422, c. 1877
“USA” on barrel bridge

Grade #59 (English)
#485,422, c. 1877
Sterling
Silver
Birmingham
Assay Ofﬁce
1877
Aaron Lufkin
Dennison

Grade #59 (English)
#485,422, c. 1877
“USA”
Signed movement

Grade #59 (English)
#489,199, c. 1877
Pair case (incomplete)

Grade #59 (English)
#489,199, c. 1877
Sterling
Silver
London
Assay Ofﬁce
1877
Joseph Walton
We saw a complete
example of this case earlier.

Grade #59 (English)
#489,199, c. 1877
Hand-engraved signature?

12 size, 3/4 plate, key wind/set
• Serial number lists suggest no more than 7,000
of these were made, in 6 variants.
• The variety of case marks is very similar to the
17 size watches we’ve already seen.

12 Size English grades
Description
24 Solid, steel 7 Key 2,800
Not Jeweled. Gail Borden grade of
material. Steel Balance.
25 Solid, gold 11 Key 1,600
Jeweled in Fourth and Escape, both
ends. Top Jewels screwed in. Gail
Borden grade of material. Gold
Balance.
26 Expansion 15 Key 1,000
Full Jeweled in Ruby, Top Jewels
screwed in. Extra ﬁnished
Escapement. Lady Elgin grade of
material. Expansion Balance.
Adjusted.

Description
30 Solid, gold 7 Key 700
material. Gold Balance.
31 Expansion 7 Key 500
material. Expansion Balance with
Oreide Screws.
Borden grade of material. Expansion
Balance (with Oreide Screws).

Elgin Private Label
Grade #26 (English)
#363,069 (1870s?)
12 size, key wind/key set
15 jewels; adjusted?
Signed:
“Tho. Russell & Son.,
Anglo American Lever”
The top-of-the line
12 size KWKS

Elgin Private Label
Grade #26 (English)
#363,069 (1870s?)
15 jewels; adjusted?
Signed:
“Tho. Russell & Son.,
Anglo American Lever”
Unusual double-
sunk dial with blue
arabic ﬁgures

Anonymous Elgin
Grade #25 (English)
#364,406, c. 1875
12 size, KWKS
13 jewels, gold balance

Anonymous Elgin
Grade #25 (English)
#364,406, c. 1875
12 size, KWKS
13 jewels, gold balance
Sterling
Silver
London
Assay
Ofﬁce
1875
Joseph Walton

Anonymous Elgin
Grade #30 (English)
#365,333, c. 1876
12 size, KWKS, 7j
Gold balance

Sterling
Silver
London
Assay
Ofﬁce
1876
Joseph Walton
Anonymous Elgin
Grade #30 (English)
#365,333, c. 1876
12 size, KWKS, 7j
Gold balance

Grade #32 (English)
#364,694, c. 1875-81
13 jewels (3 pair)
No more than 7,000 Elgin
12 size key wind/key set
watches made

Grade #32 (English)
#364,694, c. 1875-81
13 jewels (3 pair)
No more than 400
made of grade 32.

Sterling
Silver
London
Assay
Ofﬁce
1881
Grade #32 (English)
#364,694, c. 1875-81
Key wind/key set
13 jewels (3 pair)
Joseph Walton

“000025”
• eBay item #300902697197, sold by patj2173
(Horan and Jones) in June 2013.
• A 7 jewel, 12 size 3/4 plate keywind watch, fake
expansion balance, marked with the digits
“000025” on the top plate.
• Pre-1874 monogram dial, looks undersize (10
size?)
• Was this a prototype?

“000025”
“000025”
Photo courtesy of Jones & Horan Auction Team

“000025”
Dial typical of Elgin’s pre-1874 ladies’ 10 size KWKS
watches. Looks undersized—might actually be a 10 size dial.
Photo courtesy of Jones & Horan Auction Team

10 size, 3/4 plate,
key wind/set
• I’ve only spotted “English relatives” so far
• Only one is a deﬁnitive export
• The 10 size anonymous export watches, if they
exist, might be the most elusive ones.

Description
21 Solid, steel 7 Key 600
material. Steel Balance.
Jeweled in Fourth and Escape, both ends.
Top Jewels screwed in. Gail Borden grade
of material. Gold Balance.
Full Jeweled in Ruby, Top Jewels screwed
in. Extra ﬁnished Escapement. Lady Elgin
grade of material. Expansion Balance.
Adjusted.
material. Expansion Balance (with Oreide
Screws).
Jeweled in Fourth and Escape, both ends.
Top Jewels screwed in. Gail Borden grade
of material. Expansion Balance with
Oreide Screws.

Grade
#
Balance Jewels Winding Serials
Description
(verbatim from grade
book)
My notes
Not Jeweled. Gail Borden
grade of material.
Expansion Balance. Cone
pivoted.
English Relative
Jeweled in Fourth, Escape
and Pallet, both ends. Top
Jewels screwed in. Gail
Borden grade of material.
English Relative

Elgin Nameless Export Watch
#453,753, Grade #53 (“English Relative”)
10 size, 7 jewels, key wind/key set
≤ 4,000 made

Sterling
Silver
Birmingham
Assay Ofﬁce
1879
Aaron Lufkin
Dennison
Elgin Nameless Export Watch
#453,753, Grade #53 (“English Relative”)
10 size, 7 jewels, key wind/key set
≤ 4,000 made

#453,753, Grade #53
(“English Relative”)
10 size, 7 jewels, KWKS
≤ 4,000 made

Elgin Nameless
#450,380
Grade #53 (“Relative”)
10 size, 7 jewels
Key wind/key set
≤ 4,000 made

Elgin Nameless
#450,380
10 size, 7 jewels
Key wind/key set
≤ 4,000 made
This “ENWCo” monogram
dial is typical of Elgin’s
domestic 10 size keywind
women’s watches of the
time (Lady Elgin, Frances
Rubie, Gail Borden, Dexter
St.). Grade 53 does not
say “English” in the grade
book, so there’s a good
chance this was sold
domestically.

#451,321, 13 jewels
10 size, key wind/set
≤ 4,000 made
Higher grade 13 jewel
counterpart to the
previous watch. Also has
the “ENWCo” dial.

Names vs. numbers
• Modern Elgin reference materials (1950 and
later) classify all Elgin watches by a grade
number.
• Earlier ofﬁcial materials (1915 and earlier) do not
apply grade numbers to most of the earliest
watches.

Modern Elgin materials say
these are the same
Grade Name = Grade Number
Frances Rubie = Grade 23
Lady Elgin = Grade 29
Gail Borden = Grade 22
Dexter St. = Grade 28

My hypothesis:  
They’re not the same!
• The named ones are domestic watches
• The numbered ones are export watches

My hypothesis: these grades got
mixed up in the 20th century
Named grades ≠ Numbered grades
— Grade 21: 7 jewels; steel balance
Gail Borden: 11 jewels (3rd, 4th escape
and pallet, top plate); expansion balance ≠ Grade 22: 11 jewels (4th and escape, 
both ends); gold balance
Frances Rubie: 15 jewels (pressed);
expansion balance; adjusted ≠ Grade 23: 15 jewels (screwed in); 
expansion balance; adjusted.
Dexter St.: 7 jewels; expansion balance
≠ Grade 28: 7 jewels; expansion balance
Lady Elgin: 15 jewels; expansion balance
≠ Grade 29: 11 jewels (4th and escape,  
both ends); expansion balance
Numbered grade descriptions based on NAWCC Library grade ledgers

Something like this…
Frances Rubie (10s, domestic) Grade 26 (12s, export; similar to #23?)

But I can’t prove it yet!
• The true test is to ﬁnd nameless or anonymous
watches of grades 21, 22, 23, 28 or 29.
• So far I have no reports of any such watches.

Challenges
• The watches might be anonymous.
• They might not exist in the USA.
• They might have been made in much smaller
volumes than the serial number blocks’ sizes.

Elgin hairspring stud
(but not on 17 size)
How do you
recognize an
anonymous
Elgin?
Serial number
Elgin had a distinctive
patented hairspring
stud. (This however
was not used in the
17 size models.)
Nearly all early export
Elgins have serial
numbers between
340,001 and 500,000.
(But most Elgins with
these numbers are
not exports!)

Ehrhardt’s Elgin Watch Company:
Identiﬁcation and Price Guide (1976)
• Ehrhardt reproduces the 1950 Elgin serial
number list.
• This list assigns grade numbers to all serial #
blocks, and never names.
• Ehrhardt also reproduces the movement custs
from the 1874 Elgin Almanac, and annotates
these with grade numbers

Ehrhardt (1976), p. 100
The page is originally from the 1875 Elgin Almanac.
I’ve highlighted Ehrhardt’s annotations.

Ehrhardt (1976)
“Another thing you will notice—these named
movements—some fall in the same grade, like
Grade 55. The only thing we could tell from the
serial number list was how many Grade 55s were
made, not how many of each name.” [p. 99]
Ehrhardt was clearly working with a late serial
number list; probably the one from 1950.

Ehrhardt (1976)
“The larger movements at the bottom of the page and on the next
page are what we call named grade movements. Elgin at first
gave the grades names and then later began to assign numbers. I
have a parts list that, instead of showing the Mat. Laflin Grade 55,
it shows only as Mat. Laflin. There is no way to know how many of
these named movements were made of each name and there has
not been enough attention given to them in the past by collectors
to really get any seat-of-the-pants feeling about how scarce they
are.” [p. 100]
The parts list Ehrhardt mentions here is likely from the 1915
Material Catalog, whose illustrations the book reproduces earlier.
But it doesn’t sound like he had the corresponding 1915 serial
number list, which can be used to estimate production for each of
the named grades.

Wayne Schlitt’s
elginwatches.org website
• “The Frances Rubie and Lady Elgin Puzzle”
• http://elginwatches.org/technical/
Frances_Rubie_puzzle.html
• Essay documenting his struggle to reconcile
the inconsistencies he perceives in Elgin’s
materials about the 10 size KWKS watches.

Wayne Schlitt’s
elginwatches.org website
• The serial number database in the site also
equates the 10 size KWKS grade names and
numbers.
• Although it does retain which blocks were
labeled “Frances Rubie” in earlier serial
number lists and which weren’t.

elginwatches.org:  
Search results for “g=23”

elginwatches.org:  
Search results for “g=23”
Block Count Name Grade #
50,001 1,000
Frances
Rubie
23
360,001 1,000 None 23
375,001 1,000
Frances
Rubie
23
The database records both the grade numbers from the 1950 list, as well
as the grade names from earlier serial # lists.

PocketWatchDatabase.com
Also assumes they’re the same.

Lesson: parts catalogs were
for replacement parts!
• The people who wrote Elgin’s parts catalogs had
this in mind:
• Manufacture an assortment of repair parts that
worked on a wide range of Elgin watches.
• Make it easy for customer to order these parts.

Lesson: parts catalogs were
for replacement parts!
• The people who wrote Elgin’s parts catalogs did
not have any of these in mind:
• Originality
• Writing an ofﬁcial history of Elgin watches
• 21st century watch collectors with databases
of thousands of watches they saw on eBay.

14 size key wind/set
• Serial number lists suggest ≤ 21,000 made, in 9
grades (5 “English,” 4 “relatives).
• These do turn up frequently in eBay.
• I’ve seen no anonymous ones so far
• I’ve seen none in 1870s English cases (1880s only)
• Most I’ve seen were loose movements or USA cases
• Open question: were some made in 16 size?

Description
My notes
material. Gold Balance.
material. Expansion Balance with
Oreide Screws.
English Relative
Borden grade of material. Expansion
Balance (with Oreide Screws).
Full Jeweled in Ruby, Top Jewels
screwed in. Extra ﬁnished
Escapement. Lady Elgin grade of
material. Expansion Balance.
Adjusted.
English Relative
Jeweled in Fourth, Escape and Pallet,
both ends. Top Jewels screwed in.
Expansion Balance. Gail Borden grade
of material.
English Relative

Grade
#
Balance
Jewel
s
Winding Serials
Description
My notes
40 Expansion 11 Key 4,000 Not Jeweled.
Ledger says the balance is “14-16 Int.
F”; this seems to mean that it’s the
same balance as a 16-size convertible
(Interchangeable). The “F” relates to
the temperature screw assortment.
Jeweled 4th Esc. + Pallet
both ends. Top screwed in.
D”; this seems to mean that it’s the
(Interchangeable). The “D” relates to
Full Jeweled - Top Screwed
in.
D”; this seems to mean that it’s the
(Interchangeable). The “D” relates to
Full Jeweled in Ruby, in Oreide
Settings. Top Jewels screwed
in. Oreide Arbor and Centre
Cup. Polished Centre Wheel.
Expansion Balance.
English Relative. This is a candidate
for Elgin’s ﬁrst nickel movement.

14s balance wheel sizes
Early 14s have small diameter balance (same as 10 size?).
Later ones have large diameter balance (same as 16 size).
#389,451 #474,458

14s balance wheel sizes
• Every Elgin parts catalog I have, from c. 1888 to
1950, tells you to put the 16 size balance on all
of these 14 size watches.
• Lesson: The catalog authors didn’t care if parts
were identical to the original. They cared about:
• Does the replacement part work?
• Does its ﬁnish match the movement?

14 size,16 size or both?
• The parts catalogs say that some of the early “16
size” watches were also made in 14 size.
• I also have an old handwritten Elgin parts
catalog that has a handful of opaque references
to “16s Key” watches.
• When I look up the parts numbers in the
printed catalogs, they come up as 14s Key.

Measure your movements!
• I have measured a handful each of 16 size
convertible and 14 size KWKS Elgins.
• None of mine were oversized or undersized.
• But there might be some out there…

Grade #41 (English)
#2,136,134, c. 1887
13 jewels (4 pair)
Bought from Australia
No more than 21,000
Elgin 14 size key wind/
key set made.

Grade #41 (English)
#2,136,134, c. 1887
13 jewels (4 pair)
English
Hallmarks

Grade #41 (English)
#2,136,134, c. 1887
13 jewels (4 pair)
Two serial # blocks at
393,001-394,000 and
2,136,001-2,137,000.

Sterling
Silver
Birmingham
Assay Ofﬁce
1888
Grade #41 (English)
#2,136,134, c. 1887
13 jewels (4 pair)
Even though Crossman and
Abbott say that Elgin closed
the London ofﬁce in 1876, the
movement serial number and
case hallmarks on this watch
show that it was made and
exported 10+ years later.

Grade #42 (English)
#2,137,109, c. 1886
15 jewels (4 pair)

Grade #42 (English)
#2,137,109, c. 1886
15 jewels (4 pair)
Bezel is missing

Grade #42 (English)
#2,137,109, c. 1886
15 jewels (4 pair)
Two serial # blocks at
394,001-395,000 and
2,137,001-2,138,000.

Grade #42 (English)
#2,137,109, c. 1886
15 jewels (4 pair)
Which Wallingford? The one in England?
There’s also one in Connecticut,
Pennsylvania and Washington.

#474,458, c. 1877
15 jewels, nickel
≤ 1,000 made
This one is not marked
“English” in the ledger,
but is a high grade
nickel version of the 14
size export model.
These might have been
Elgin’s very ﬁrst nickel
movements. They may
have been sold only
domestically.

#474,458, c. 1877
15 jewels, nickel
≤ 1,000 made

#388,667, 14 size
Key wind/set, 13 jewels
≤ 3,600 made
Missing
winding
square

#389,451, 14 size
Key wind/set, 15 jewels
≤ 3,000 made

18 size
• I’ve so far only found two watches in 18 size
“English” grades.
• But I have no independent evidence that either
was exported.

Description
My notes
16 Solid, steel 7 Key 400
Not Jeweled. Slow Train.
Ryerson Style throughout. Steel
Balance. Cone Pivots
Slow Train. Ferry Style. Jeweled
in Fourth and Escape - both
ends. Top Jewels screwed in.
Gold Balance. Cone pivots.
Ogden Style. Jeweled in Fourth and
Escape both ends. Exp. Balance.
Cone pivoted and cut. Bevel head
Screws throughout. Top Jewels
screwed in. Slow Train.
The notes page also has a
line that says “Advance” at
the top by itself. Is this a true
expansion balance, or a fake
one (as in actual Ogdens)?

Description
My notes
19 Expansion 11 Stem 600
Ogden Style. Stem Winding.
Jeweled in Fourth and Escape
both ends. Expansion Balance.
Cone pivoted and cut. Bevel
head Screws throughout. Top
Jewels screwed in. Slow Train.
The notes page also has a
line that says “Advance” at
the top by itself. The
balance is true expansion
(unlike actual Ogdens).
Taylor Style - Full jeweled in Ruby
(?). Small settings. Gold Screws
in Balance. Adjusted. Jewels
screwed in - in Top Plate. Slow
train.
Ledger has the description
in ink, with a “(?)” written in
pencil after “Ruby.” So the
jewels might not be ruby,
and Elgin’s folk weren’t sure!
Jeweled Fourth and Escape, both
ends. (Garnet) Top Jewels
screwed in. Expansion Balance.
Ryerson material. Slow train.
English Relative

Elgin W.H. Ferry
Grade #17 (English)
#340,466, c. 1875-80
18 size, KWKS
11 jewels
Gold balance
≤ 500 made
Base metal case with no
trademark. Grade # is
“English” and watch has
gold balance, but no
independent evidence this
watch was exported.

Gold Balance
11 jewels
W.H. Ferry normally had
15 jewels, steel balance.
Elgin W.H. Ferry
Grade #17 (English)
#340,466, c. 1875-80
18 size, KWKS
11 jewels
Gold balance
≤ 500 made

Grade #19 (English)
#340,466, c. 1874-77
18 size, slide lever set
13 jewels; ≤ 400 made
Recased in a Silveride
case. “English” grade, but
no independent evidence
of actual export.

Grade #19 (English)
#340,466, c. 1874-77
Slide lever set;
1874-1877?
See my slideshow “Early Elgin Stem Wind Watches” for details of this setting mechanism.

Grade #19 (English)
#340,466, c. 1874-77
Recasing mark
Recasing mark
Nice watch, although
kind of unremarkable.

Thanks to…
• Greg Frauenhoff for telling me about the Elgin ledgers at the
NAWCC Library, and the Library staff for their kind help.
• Nigel Harrison for information about Elgin #438,048 (17 size, private
label, “W.J. Woolston, London”).
• Jerry Treiman for sharing various details and observations about 12
size Elgins and Walthams.
• Various other people at the NAWCC message board for discussion
and encouragement.
• Chapters 5 and 94 for all the encouragement they’ve given me!
• Any errors in here are mine, not theirs…

Bibliography
Abbott, Henry G. 1888. The Watch Factories of America,
Past and Present. A complete history of watchmaking in
America, from 1809 to 1888 inclusive, with sketches of the
lives of celebrated American watchmakers and organizers.
Chicago: Geo. K. Hazlitt & Co.
Alft, E.C. & William Briska. 2003. Elgin Time: A History of
the Elgin National Watch Company, 1864-1968. Elgin, IL:
Elgin Historical Society.
Casillas, Luis D. 2014. “The Watches of the Elgin Almanac
(1871-1876).” Slide show at http://www.slideshare.net/
LuisCasillas4/watches-of-the-elgin-almanac-18711876
Crossman, Charles S. 1885-1887. The Complete History of
Watch Making in America. Reprinted from the Jeweler’s
Circular and Horological Review. Exeter, NH: Adams Brown
Company.
David, Jacques. 1877. “Report to the Intercantonal
Committee of Jura Industries on the manufacture of watches
in the United States.” Translated and reprinted in Richard
Watkins, 2003, American and Swiss Watchmaking in 1876.
Ehrhardt, Roy. 1976. Elgin Watch Company: Identiﬁcation
and Price Guide. Kansas City, MO: Heart of America Press.
Elgin National Watch Co. 1915. Net Price List of Materials
Manufactured by the Elgin National Watch Co. Chicago:
The Lakeside Press.
Favre-Perret, E. 1877. “Philadelphia Exhibition 1876.
Switzerland. Report presented to the Federal High Council
on The Horology Industry. By E. Favre-Perret, Member of
the International Jury. (GROUP XXV).” Translated by
Richard Watkins, 2004.
Gilbert, Richard E., Tom Engle and Cooksey Shugart. 2012.
Complete Price Guide to Watches. Mt. Pleasant, SC:
Tinderbox Press.
Otto Young & Co. 1892. Tool and Material Catalogue.
Reprinted in July 1998 by the Mid-West Tool Collectors
Association, Special Publications Committee.
Priestley, Philip T. 1994. Watch Case Makers of England: A
History and Register of Gold & Silver Watch Case Makers of
England: 1720-1920. NAWCC Bulletin Supplement 20,
Spring 1994.
Priestley, Philip T. 2009. Aaron Lufkin Dennison: An
Industrial Pioneer and his Legacy. Columbia, PA: National
Association of Watch and Clock Collectors.
Schlitt, Wayne. 2004. Elgin Watch Collectors Site.
Accessed September 2015; site lists modiﬁcation date of
7/24/2004. http://elginwatches.org
Watkins, Richard. 2004. “Jacques David—and a Summary
of American and Swiss Watchmaking in 1876 with Emphasis
on Interchangeability in Manufacturing.” NAWCC Bulletin,
No. 350 (June 2004).

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