In 1902, three of the Studebaker brothers, a branch of the family not involved in the wagon and automobile company, purchased the Columbus Watch Company. They re-named it the South Bend Watch Company and moved the firm to South Bend, Indiana. Over the next twenty-five years or so of its existence, the firm produced a little less than 900 thousand watches, about 80,000 of which met railroad time service requirements. Originally, South Bend marketed its watches directly to (and only to) retail dealers. Then, in the mid-1920’s, it formed the Studebaker Watch Co. to sell watches by mail order directly to the customers. These watches had dials labeled “Studebaker.” South Bend was a victim of the depression, closing its doors on January 1, 1930. Mr. W.C. Shelton, formerly in charge of South Bend’s production, was hired by the creditors to finish watches from material on hand. He completed 38,000 movements by 1933. (According to “Jesse Elwood Coleman and the South Bend Story,” by O.B. Frye, NAWCC Bulletin, February 1988, pg. 33).

Basic information about a South Bend watch may be obtained online using NAWCC Chapter 149 Members and Henry Burgell's Interactive South Bend Serial Number Lookup Table. Since some of these serial numbers are based upon a "recreated serial number list," there may be occasional errors. Also, Frank Kusumoto's excellent South Bend Website has a large amount of good documentation on the company's watches. Additionally, a wealth of information on South Bend watches is available in the book The South Bend Watch Co. - South Bend, Indiana - A Complete Listing of Serial / Grade Numbers from Beginning to End, Lyle & Donna Stratton, Longmont, CO, 1999. It contains detailed production data, serial number vs. grade lists and date information. This book is currently out of print, but a new edition is hopefully on its way!

The best known South Bend watches were "The Studebaker" grade, the open-face, 18-size of which (grades Nos. 323 and 329) were cataloged in 1909 and introduced by ads in 1910. These were railroad grade watches, advertised to pass any newly introduced railroad requirement for five years from the date of purchase, or the watch would be upgraded to pass or replaced with one that would pass. This was clearly shown in a 1912 Erie Railroad Magazine Ad posted on the South Bend Website.

Online Information

Frank Kusumoto's excellent South Bend Website

NAWCC Chapter 149 Members and Henry Burgell's Special Interactive South Bend Serial Number Lookup Table


Books
The following books and back issues of the NAWCC Bulletin are available to members on loan by mail from the NAWCC Lending Library, using the Lending Library Form.

The South Bend Watch Co. - South Bend, Indiana - A Complete Listing of Serial / Grade Numbers from Beginning to End, Lyle & Donna Stratton, Longmont, CO, 1999.

How and Why Own a South Bend Watch, South Bend Watch Co., South Bend, IN, 1914, reprinted by Arlington Horology & Book Co., Arlington, VA, undated, but probably early 1980s.


Articles
Back issues of the NAWCC Bulletin are available online to NAWCC members who are currently logged in at http://nawcc.org/index.php/nawcc-bulletin/past-issues-.

“The Studebakers and the South Bend Watch Co.,” by Paul Berg, NAWCC Bulletin, No. 153, August 1971, pp. 1184-1193.

“South Bend Watches,” by O.B. Frye, NAWCC Bulletin, No. 239, December1985, pp. 643-655.

“Jesse Elwood Coleman and the South Bend Story,” by O.B. Frye, NAWCC Bulletin, No. 252, February 1988, pp. 16-36.

"Railroaders' Corner - South Bend's Standard Watches Part 1," Ed Ueberall and Kent Singer, NAWCC Bulletin No. 329, December 2000, pp. 813-821.
"Railroaders' Corner - South Bend's Standard Watches Part 2," Ed Ueberall and Kent Singer, NAWCC Bulletin No. 330, February 2001, pp. 89-96.