illinois kanawha special ????

[garygbcb]

Hi, I have a 16s hc illinois kanawha special sn#3614757,It is a 17 jewel bridge model with double roller gold screw down setting and is pendant wind and pendant set. I am a engineer on the kanawha sub with csx and i would like to find out any info.THANKS GARY

[garygbcb]

Hi, I have a 16s hc illinois kanawha special sn#3614757,It is a 17 jewel bridge model with double roller gold screw down setting and is pendant wind and pendant set. I am a engineer on the kanawha sub with csx and i would like to find out any info.THANKS GARY

[Fred Hansen]

Hi Gary -

I have been following Illinois private-labels for a few years now and wish I could tell you more, but of the over 4000 watches I have noted yours is the only one with these markings I had seen. In my notes when I had seen this watch I recorded it as having an "Illinois" signed dial ... is this correct?

The watch itself is from a run of grade 304 movements made in 1920, and the production of the grade 304 in this pendent-set hunting case model is a little over 20,000. Of course most of these will have just the regular Illinois Watch Co. factory markings, but the "Illinois Central" is also seen fairly often in this grade and model. But as you can imagine the number that were marked "Kanawha Special" is likely very small.

Fred

[garygbcb]

yes fred, that is correct on the illinois signed dial not a private label dial.would you think this is for the rail line or the ship,because it is 17j pendant set HC doesn't sound like railroad???? Thanks Gary

[Fred Hansen]

Hard to say but just because the watch itself isn't railroad grade that does not mean the marking isn't a reference to the RR line.

Illinois had some other 16 size RR marked watches that were from middle grade movements such as the "C&O Special" in the grade 305 or the "B&M Special" in the grade 706.

Fred

[Jerry Freedman]

Kanawha is a river in W.Virginia. I believe there was a jeweler that used that for a private label. The name of the jeweler escapes me. I think it is near Charleston.

[garygbcb]

I would love to know the jeweler that used this label,to do some more research on this private label. ANY INFO WOULD BE A HELP!!! THANKS EVERYONE

[Jerry Freedman]

Another thread on this board suggests that the jeweler was named Polan. He was supposed to be a time inspector for the Kanawah & Ohio RR, later called Kanawah & Michigan.