Elgin Watches

[connorsa]

My grandfather's Elgin watch (s/n 3012772) was given to me and I am interested in finding out some additional information on the company/store that may have sold it to him. The trade mark on the inside reads "C.W.C. Co" over Planet Trade Mark. The number below is 483243. I checked the serial number and found out the watch was made in 1888. I also know my grandfather lived in the Glens Falls area of New York State if that is of any help.

[connorsa]

My grandfather's Elgin watch (s/n 3012772) was given to me and I am interested in finding out some additional information on the company/store that may have sold it to him. The trade mark on the inside reads "C.W.C. Co" over Planet Trade Mark. The number below is 483243. I checked the serial number and found out the watch was made in 1888. I also know my grandfather lived in the Glens Falls area of New York State if that is of any help.

[Kent]

connorsa:

If you've checked out the serial number (3,012,772) and found out the date, then perhaps you've also learned that it is a grade No. 74. Did you check out The 1887 S. F. Myers & Co. Catalog (http://www.midwestcs.com/elgin/pictures/sales_catalogs/1887_S_F_Myers/index.html) at Wayne Schlitt's great Elgin Website (http://www.midwestcs.com/elgin/)? Its got a listing for the Elgin grade No. 74.

Only a small percentage of American watches were cased at the factories prior to the mid-1920's. Most watch companies just made movements in industry standard sizes. The case companies made cases in those same sizes. The practice at that time was to go to a jeweler, select the quality of the movement and then pick out the desired style and quality of case. The jeweler would then fit the movement to the case in a matter of moments.

Or, watches were sold by mail-order. Large outfits such as Sears, Roebuck & Co., Montgomery Ward, or T. Eaton, would offer the movements in a variety of cases of different design and quality in their catalogs. Smaller mail-order retailers would case the watches, typically in a 20-year gold filled case and offer it only that way, with the buyer not having a choice of cases.

The "C.W.C. Co" over Planet indicates that the case was made by the Crescent Watch Case Co. and that "Planet" is the grade (quality) of the case.

I don't believe that there are any surviving Elgin records that would show who actually retailed the watch. The best that could be hoped for would be a record of which distributor Elgin sold the watch to, and I don't believe that these have survived.

You might be able to trace it working backwards, searching through the Glens Falls records of businesses of 1887-1894 looking for jewelery stores. Newspaper files might have ads from those jewelers who sold Elgin watches. All told, I don't think you'll come much closer than an uncertain maybe of where your grandfather could have bought the watch.

Good luck,
Kent

[connorsa]

Thank you for the information on the case. As you said this search may not turn up the actual answer but I am enjoying the search anyways. You also have a nice web-site and pocket watches are of an interest to me as well.