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When the mainspring was developed around 1500 this quickly led to the invention of the first watch. These small portable clocks were worn on a cord around the neck and were the predecessor to the antique pocket watch.. The casings were generally of very luxurious and fine style with the main function of these watches being decorative -- they were very inaccurate. Silver, gold, or gilded watches were engraved and from 1630 onwards were also decorated with polychrome enamel. These watches were not very reliable until the development in 1670 of the balance wheel. After this date the watch's function became more important in design. Minute hands were added and dials with the hours marked in figures became more prominent. French watchmakers fitted wholly enameled dials from 1720 on and within a few decades the rest of Europe followed his example.

Nineteenth and twentieth century pocket watches were generally devoid of expensive enamel decoration and their metal cases were plain metal that was sometimes embossed or engraved. Enamel's place was sometimes taken by cheaper painted horn. The invention in 1755 of the anchor escapement was very important to the development of the watch and made them much more accurate. Although this invention was ignored for almost 80 years, it replaced virtually every other type of movement in the period 1830 to 1850 and has been used in virtually every mechanical watch mechanism since.

History of the Hamilton Watch Company Lancaster, PA 1892-Present

The Adams & Perry Watch Manufacturing Company was organized in 1874 by John C. Adams of Chicago, and several local citizens of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. By June, 1876, the company fell into receivership. The Lancaster Pennsylvania Watch Company, was formed out of the remains of Adams & Perry in September, 1877. It closed its doors in October, 1878. Under another re-organizarion the Lancaster Pennsylvania Watch Company was formed. Again in May, 1879, the company was re-organized and the name was changed to the Lancaster Watch Company. It continued to operate until 1886, when it was organized into the Keystone Standard Watch Company. In1890, the company went into bankruptcy. The company's assets were sold to a group of Lancaster citizens in 1893. This group also purchased the Aurora Watch Company, Aurora, Illinois. . In 1893, the first Hamilton watch was completed. Hamilton continued to operate and build both pocket watches and wristwatches in the US until 1969 when the US company ceased operation. Today, under the Hamilton name Swiss quartz watches of good quality are still being offered.

History of the American Waltham Watch Company Waltham, MA. 1851-1957

Also referred to as the Waltham Watch Company, the American Waltham Watch Company was the first watch company to mass produce watches in America and is generally considered to be the most important American watch company. The history of the company is a little complicated, but it all started in 1850 when Edward Howard, David Davis and Aaron Dennison got together in Roxbury, Massachusetts, and decided to start their own watch company. They formed the American Horologue Company in 1851 and 17 prototype watches were produced in 1852 with Howard, Davis & Dennison engraved on the movements. The name of the company was then changed to the Warren Mfg. Co., named after a famous Revolutionary War hero, and the next 26 or so watches produced bore the name Warren on their movements. The name was officially changed to the Boston Watch Company in 1853, and in 1854 a factory was built in Waltham, Massachusetts. The founders of the company certainly knew how to make great watches, but weren't so hot at managing money, and the Boston Watch Company failed in 1857. The story doesn't end there, though! The defunct company was sold at a sheriff's auction to a man named Royal Robbins, and he reorganized the company and renamed it the Appleton, Tracy & Co. In 1859 the Appleton, Tracy & Co. merged with another company called the Waltham Improvement Company, and The American Watch Company was born. Soon after that, the company name was changed to The American Waltham Watch Company, and in later years the watches simply bore the name Waltham. Note that The American Waltham Watch Company bears no relation whatsoever to the similarly named U. S. Watch Co. of Waltham which was founded in 1884. Over 35 million Waltham watches were produced during the company's long history, and many of them still exist today. Although they made many low and medium grade watches to suit the needs of the existing markets, Waltham also produced watches of exceedingly high quality.

They also probably produced more types of watches than any other American company, including railroad watches, chronographs, repeating watches and deck watches. Early Waltham watches with low serial numbers are especially prized by many collectors.

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