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Boston Watch Company Exhibit
Ron Price (Natick, MA)

The use of automated machinery turning out interchangeable parts on a large scale in the making of watches was first achieved in America in 1850 by the Boston Watch Company located in Roxbury, Massachusetts. Although not the first people to employ the use of machines in making watches, through Yankee Ingenuity, Aaron L. Dennison, Edward Howard, David P. Davis and Samuel Curtis were the first to put it all together and to start a major watch enterprise. Davis had no active role other than being a business partner with Howard and a co-owner of related real estate. It is not clear how active a role Curtis had other than to provide the major financing, but in effect he became the sole owner of the company by 1857 after investing a personal fortune. Unfortunately, like those who preceded them, their initial efforts were not financially successful. However, they laid the groundwork for the prosperous enterprise that followed.

The Boston Watch Company made and sold approximately 5,000 movements and 4,000 cases before it failed financially. In addition, it had another 1,300 watches in various stages of production in the factory at the time of its failure. The company was not falling apart in the spring of 1857, they just ran out of money and places to get it. Reportedly the company had invested $150,000 and owed $174,000 when they became insolvent on April 15, 1857 (bankruptcy was called insolvency in 1857).

Dennison's first model, completed in the summer of 1851, was equipped with a large barrel in an attempt to achieve an eight day running period. It was not a good timekeeper and development efforts were redirected to 30 hour watches instead. Dennison pursued his idea, however, and although a successful 8-day movement named the Howard, Davis & Dennison eventually was produced (probably serial numbers 1-15 and 16 & 17 signed D.B. Fitts), Dennison had to admit that these watches would have been too expensive to produce for a reasonable market, and the 8-day watch was abandoned.

Production began in the spring of 1853 with 30-hour 15J watches that retailed for $40 in a silver case. The first 80 or so movements were inscribed Warren, in tribute to the famous General Joseph Warren who was born near the site of their factory in Roxbury, Mass (probably serial numbers 18 - 100, although no serial numbers higher than 44 yet have been publicly reported).

These watches were full plate with four pillars and had an English appearance with large, clear aquamarine jewels. The train was slow, 14,400 beats per hour, like contemporary English watches. As an economy measure, these watches had a going barrel, more like contemporary Swiss watches than the typical verge fusee English watches. The going barrel was simpler to manufacture than the fusee and chain. The escape wheels had ratchet teeth. An English-style lever escapement was used with the pallets mounted at right-angle to the lever. Warren No. 44 has stop works under the barrel bridge; perhaps other Warren movements do as well.

After the Warren watches, about 900 more watches were produced in Roxbury. These movements were engraved Samuel Curtis in honor of the man who furnished the bulk of the initial capital (probably serial numbers 101 - 1000). At this time the firm began producing their own cases. Like English cases, BWCo cases for the Samuel Curtis were smaller than the current standard 18S to accommodate the smaller back plate.

Desiring to escape the extremely dusty conditions at the Roxbury factory, and planning for future expansion where employees could have comfortable homes, the company built a modern factory on the Charles River in Waltham, Massachusetts in the fall of 1854, on lands of the Waltham Improvement Company.

All of the watches produced at Waltham by the Boston Watch Co. (BWCo) were engraved Dennison, Howard & Davis (DH&D), except perhaps 100 movements marked Fellows & Schell, in the name of the watch wholesalers who helped finance the new operation (as reported in the literature; however, no such Fellows & Schell examples yet have surfaced publicly). The DH&D serial numbers range from 1001 to 5000 (#5000 is a new design).

The train was geared for 16,200 beats per hour (4.5 per second) on the DH&D, faster than the slow English train of 14,400 beats per hour (4 per second), but still slower than 18,000 beats per hour (5 per second) like contemporary Howard watches which became the standard later. The so-called Model 57, though, that followed by the new company still beat 16,200 beats per hour.

The DH&D incorporated several design improvements compared with the Curtis, and it too evolved over its production lifetime. The back plate is 2/30ths larger for the convenience of a wider opening in the case. The train and pillar arrangements are also different. The ratchet bridge on the DH&D is stronger, and later versions have "peep holes" in the pillar plate so the escapement can be seen in motion. These differences and other details are illustrated in the author's forthcoming monograph "Origins of the Waltham Model 57."

HD&D03 -- Howard, Davis & Dennison serial number 3 (courtesy Don Wing):
This custom-designed model differs in many respects from the following production watches produced by the BWCo. It is oversize, approximately 22 size (49.5mm), to accommodate two large main spring barrels as well as an extra set of wheel and pinion to run them. It is geared to run at 14,400 beats per hour and is probably fitted with stop work barrels. The jewel settings are secured with two screws as opposed to three on the 30-day watches; the center wheel is jeweled on the top plate. The hairspring is undersprung with a solid balance like the later production models, presumably to reduce costs, whereas the original 8-day model was oversprung with an expansion balance. This movement has a gold balance. It is key set from the front. It is housed in an 18K F.D.&Co. hunting case with matching number 3.

SC212 -- Samuel Curtis serial number 212 (courtesy Charles Wallace):
Other than the style of engraving, the Samuel Curtis appears to be essentially the same as the Warren. At least the train, ratchet bridge and potance on this movement (and on serial # 899) are the same as on Warren 44. However, it does not have stop works (no Samuel Curtis yet has been reported to have stop works except for a custom/private label version serial # 170 signed John Warren*). Standard Samuel Curtis movements are fitted with 15 jewels and jewel settings on the top plate. They are also undersprung with a solid steel balance. The porcelain dial with Roman numerals on this example is not signed and the seconds bit is not sunk.

DH&D1016 -- Dennison, Howard & Davis serial number 1016:
This movement is not exactly a forerunner of the Model 57 because it has a different train arrangement in which the 4th, 3rd, and center wheels are stacked above one and another, and the center wheel, which is solid, is buried in the pillar plate. Probably to simplify the manufacture of the pillar plate, the train was rearranged to raise the wheels in later movements. There is evidence to believe that the first few hundred movements were made (or at least began) in the Roxbury plant with the earlier layout. This example DH&D movement is fitted with 15 jewels, has jewel settings on the top plate and is undersprung with a solid steel balance. The porcelain dial is plain with Roman numerals and the seconds bit is not sunk. The silver hunting case is marked F.M 4580.

DH&D4108 -- Dennison, Howard & Davis serial number 4108 (courtesy Don Wing):
The BWCo did experiment with producing lower grade watches, at least they made a small number of 7 jewel DH&D movements like this example with no plate jewels. However, they made no effort to distinguish them and to merchandise them with a separate marketing strategy as their successor the American Watch Company did with subsequent watches.

According to the Tracy Baker & Co Sales Ledger, this exhibited movement went to the new company after the insolvency and was sold without case on June, 1857, for $20 at a 20% discount; it was returned December, 1857, and resold April, 1858, for $18 at a 20% discount.

DH&D4258 -- Dennison, Howard & Davis serial number 4258 (courtesy Don Wing):
Design enhancements were applied to the DH&D over its production lifetime. Note the application of a steel key guard cup protecting the winding square on this exhibited watch. The potance on this movement also is fastened differently than that on serial # 1016 (can be seen, but requires explanation which is given in paper). From observed movements, the steel guard cup was applied to DH&D top plates beginning somewhere between serial numbers 1540 and 1718, and the method of fastening the potance changed between serial numbers 2886 and 2929.

This example DH&D is housed in a BWCo hunting case with eagle hallmark numbered 4171 (highest numbered BWCo case author has seen to date). The dial with Roman numerals is not signed and has gold hands.

* John Warren 170 (Courtesy Steve Maddox)
This watch appears to be a private label watch built on the Samuel Curtis ebauche. It is similar to other Curtis watches except that it has stop works on the barrel like the Warren #44. We have not seen Curtis 170 and it is possible that this watch is Curtis 170 finished especially for John Warren. It is also possible that this watch was left over material from the Warren run since the stop works do not appear on other Samuel Curtis examples. There was an Andrew Warren employed at the Boston Watch Co. and it is possible that the watch was produced for John Warren by Andrew Warren. The watch remains an enigma.