24 hour canadian dials

[lperzy]

what is the earliest year for a Canadian dial on a Waltham pocket watch and are all 24 hour dials Canadian??

[lperzy]

what is the earliest year for a Canadian dial on a Waltham pocket watch and are all 24 hour dials Canadian??

[Kent]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">... are all 24 hour dials Canadian?? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>No!

[Greg Frauenhoff]

From what I've read in the literature of the period, 24 hour dials on American watches began appearing in 1884 (or perhaps a year earlier) in response to the idea of 1-24 hour timekeeping. This method didn't catch on in the US, but it was taken up by our friends to the north in Canada.

Early mentions of 24 hour American production movements include a Waltham with 1-24 hour dial (hour hand goes around the dial just once in a day) from either 1883 or '84 (I'd have to dig out the reference to confirm the date), and the famous Illinois Railroader, introduced in 1884, with a dual track 24 hour dial (1-12 and 13-24). Lancaster and Rockford also sold 1-24 hour watches about this time.

Watches with dual track 24 hour dials were also used in Mexico.

Anyway, I'd guess that early (1883-1886 or so) 24 hour dials (either dual track or single track) were just as likely to have been sold for use in the US as in Canada, but that later ones were generally intended for use Canada. But then, the Union Pacific (as I recall) sometime in the 20th century considered requiring dual track 24 hour dials on their employees' watches.

Then there are sidereal timepieces.

Like lots of things about old watches, it's a bit complicated.

[mch]

Roughly in line with Greg's dates, Manhattan Watch Co. advertised 24 hour dials in early 1887, where the hand rotates once a day, reporting tht they sold well in the west.

Mike

[Greg Frauenhoff]

From late 1883:

"...the American Watch Co. announcing their readiness to supply the trade with their new watch dial, which marks the hours from one to twelve or one to twenty-four consequtively. This has been brought out to conform to the new twenty-four hour system of marking time adopted by some of the railroads."

[peg leg]

Model 83 from 1888...........

Keith R...

[J. Tell]

If I'm not wrong, the military Hamilton 4992B have also a 24-hours dial, single track. Nice watches with this black dial (I have eard also of some with white dials too).

[lperzy]

Thanks guys it sure pays off here to get questions answered