Hamilton Private Labels, Pleasse add to the list

[Jerry Treiman]

Here is a grade 974 (#62205) that I used to own and have posted elsewhere --

[Nathan2307]

[QUOTE]

I thought that name was familiar sounding.

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From what I can gather Daniel S. Parks owned a jewlery concern in Denver CO. He sent his then employee Harry Morrison to Roswell to open a branch operation there. I'm kind of foggy as to when all this took place but by the time my watch was made in 1900 Mr. Morrison was a partner. By 1907 Morrison had bought Parks out. It all ends in 1920 when Mr. Morrison's business goes belly up... What year is your watch? Love the dial!!

[Jim Haney]

Nathan,
Thanks for the research on them. I had not checked on the business. My dial was on a 940 in the 990000 range, after the company went out of business and too late for the Ledgers to see who it was sold to.

This is what makes Private Labels so much more interesting than company watches.
Thanks

[doug sinclair]

I bought these Hamiltons at an NAWCC regional in Portland about 20 years ago. I suspect they had been overlooked because of the obscure P/L names on the dials. The 21-jewel 940 is a P/L for G M Rioch in Kenora, Ontario, Canada. The Dingwall Limited is a 19-jewel 944. I like it best because of the safety barrel with the jewel in the barrel bridge. Somewhat showier I would think. Dingwall was located in a major railroad hub 100 years ago or so- Winnipeg, Manitoba, Camada. To this day I wonder how these were passed up.

[Jim Haney]

Doug,
Thanks for posting them,

Did you see who they were sold to in The Hamilton Ledgers.

Most Canadian watch went through the Montreal Watch Case co.

[doug sinclair]

Jim,

The 940 is listed only as Montreal- probably Montreal Watch Case Co., and the case is a Crescent Watch Case Co. The 944 is listed as Montreal Watch Case Co., and it is in a Wadsworth case.

Interesting in that the serial number look up ledger also shows a serial number 479017 which is a grade 926! The Ehrhardt blue book lists S # 479017 as a 944! I wonder how THAT might have happened!

[burt]

I think this watch is a origional combination P.L. that's from my home state. It's a 17 jewel (adj.to temp only) 934 ser #5258 which was finished on 2-10-1896 and sold on 3-23-1896 to a James G.Martin of Wilkes-Barre,Pennsylvania. Martin is listed as a Jeweler in the 1880 and 1890 city directories being located at 118 S.Main St. His home was listed as being located on Lincoln near Northhampton. While I don't collect the non-railroad grade Hamiltons I really liked the"umbrella, hands" on this one.

[crsides]

Moosejaw - busy busy dial

974 Mvt is not PL marked

[doug sinclair]

Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan! Indeed there is such a place! I managed a jewellery store there from '69 to '71. NOT a period in time my wife of 45 years likes to recall. I remember the Chrichton name, but I don't know if the store was still there when we lived there. Moose Jaw was a major railroad hub in the era of your Hamilton.

[Jim Haney]

A cool 978.

This is triple signed. The TASCO threw me for several years until somone smarter than I was figured it out, but we still don't know what the S.C.O. means


TASCO, is, The Albert Samuels Company.

[Buchaneer]

I bought this private-label watch on eBay in February, 2011 it is a Hamilton Grade 940 Serial No. 566416 The Hamilton Ledgers indicate that it was finished October 11, 1907 sold October 11, 1907 to the Montréal Watch Case Co., Double sunk Arabic 24 hour dial GM Rioch, Kenora, Ont. Case Cashier trademark 25 year gold filled from the American Watch Case Co. of Toronto, Ontario

Here is the watch from Doug Sinclair's collection It is a Hamilton Grade 940 Serial No. 567084 and the Hamilton Ledgers indicate it was finished October 11, 1907 sold October 11, 1907 to the Montréal Watch Case Co. Double sunk Arabic 24 hour dial GM Rioch, Kenora, Ont. while both watches were finished and sold on the same day the Serial numbers have a difference of 668 in the serial number run. Where I have a private-label that was finished and sold with sequential serial numbers, this proves that some of these private-label marked dials were far apart in serial number yet they were finished and sold on the same date.

[Jim Haney]

It may be more appropriate to start a new topic on your question, but as a quick answer 600 is not a great deal in the production numbers, when you consider how many watches were be sold in a short time frame and also consider how much longer it would take to make up PL dials vs. the standard Hamilton dial that could be slapped on in a few minutes

[Buchaneer]

That was an interesting 16 size "BC Creighton Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan" private-label he must of done a lot of business as I have this example of dial with a Grade 992 movement, and another with a double sunk 24-hour dial and this example a Hamilton 18S Grade 936 Serial No. 244483 with pivate-label, double sunk, bold Arabic 24-hour dial marked "BC Creighton, Moose Jaw, Sask." it has one Hamilton 24-hour minute hand, but is missing the hour hand according to the Hamilton Ledgers 244483 Date Finished June 27, 1903, Date Sold July 17, 1903 to the Montréal Watch Case Company Montréal, Québec. Doug Sinclair posted about his DR Dingwall Grade 944 I have one a Hamilton 18S 17 jewel, Grade 936 Serial No. 244003 Date Finished June 12, 1903 Date Sold March 13, 1906 to A.N. Anderson of Minneapolis, Minnesota it appears that Mr. Dingwall preferred buying from A.N. Anderson in Minneapolis rather than dealing with the Montréal Watch Case Company As both these watches were on the same run sheet from the Hamilton Ledgers. I Also Have a Grade 940 "BC Creighton Moose Jaw, Sask." that I will post later with the other variation of the 16 size dial.

[Jim Haney]

Larry,

As you may have noted in tracking these Hamilton PL watches ,or just regular watches, from Hamilton sold to A. N. Anderson there was usually a LONG time between the finishing room date to the sold to date.

Anderson was granted very low special prices to buy the OLD remaining stock of watches as much as a 30-40 % discount on these watches.

The most collectable and expensive Hamilton watches today, were deadend models that included the 946's & 947's,with as much as 12 years difference between the finished date and sold to date.

If have NAWCC membership you can access Lowell Halligan's records on the different grades and production numbers and he mentions Anderson, specifically as a Minneapolis dealer who sold mostly to the lumber camps in the Northwest and he must have had a great market to move these Hi-Grade watches that he bought for $20 and the regular price was about $36.

[crsides]

Lambert Bros, NY