Havingtraced out the history of the clock and watch mechanism all the way from De Vick's first clock and the clumsy old Nuremberg Egg down to the perfect time-keeping device which we have today, it may be interesting to look a little more closely at the result of so many years and so many inventions—to see what its parts are, and how they are put together, and to observe how the wonderful little machine does its work.
Modern clocks and watches are nearly enough alike in their structure and way of working, so that if we understand the one, we shall easily understand the other also. The differences between them are few and slight and easy to explain. So let us take for our example a typical modern watch movement, which is easily the more beautiful and interesting mechanism of the two.
First of all, as we saw in the days of De Vick and Henlein, a watch, or a clock, is amachine for keeping time. So it must have three essential parts: first, the power to make it go; second, the regulator to make it keep time; and third, the hands and face to show plainly the time it keeps. Each of these three parts is itself made up of several others.
The power or energy which runs the watch is put in to it by the winding which coils up the mainspring. The outer end of this spring is attached to the rim of the main wheel (1) and after the spring is wound this wheel would whirl round and let the spring run down instantly if there was nothing to stop it. The teeth on this wheel, however, are geared into the second or center pinion (as shown in illustration at "A") which makes it run the entire movement while running down slowly instead of flying round and uncoiling at once.
As we will see later, the spring-power is transmitted through the train of wheels and the lever (7) to the balance wheel (8) which lets the escape wheel (5) turn a little each time it swings, while it simultaneously receives, by means of the lever from the escape wheel, the "impulse" or power which keeps it running. Thus the swinging of the balance lets the mainspring down gradually while drawing its powerfrom it. The spring is made as thin as it can be and still have power enough to make the watch go. For a modern watch, this is about one flea-power. One horse power, which is only a small fraction of the power of the average automobile, would be enough to drive all the millions of watches in the world.
The center pinion into which the mainspring is geared is attached to its staff to which is also fastened the large center-wheel (2) so that the spring cannot turn this pinion without also turning the center wheel. But the center wheel is, itself, geared into the third pinion, which is attached to the third wheel (3), and this again is geared into the fourth pinion attached to the fourth wheel (4). The fourth wheel gears into the escape pinion which revolves with the escape wheel (5), so that none of these wheels or pinions can turn except when the escape wheel does. But there is a constant pressure from the spring on all of these wheels, which together constitute what is called the train.
The escape wheel, therefore, wants to turn continually and if it was not restrained it would revolve rapidly, letting the movement run down. But it is retarded and can only turn from one tooth to the next, each time the balance (8) turns. This action is secured by connecting the balance and the escape-wheel by means of the lever (7), one end of which forms an anchor shaped like a rocking-beam, called the pallet (6). In the pallet are two jewelled projections called the pallet-jewels which intercept the escape-wheel by being thrust between its teeth, letting it turn a distance of only one tooth at each swing of the balance as the pallet rocks back and forth.
The other end of the lever is fork-shaped, having two prongs. On the staff with the balance instead of a pinion as all the other wheels have, is a plain, toothless disc called the roller, from the lower side of which projects a pin or rod made of garnet. This is called the jewel-pin or the roller-jewel. The roller being fastened to the balance-staff, of course, turns just as the balance turns and with it the jewel-pin. And the lever is just long enough and is so placed that every time the balance turns, the jewel-pin fits into the slot between the prongs of the lever-fork carrying it first one way, and then, as the balance comes back, the other way. Thus the lever is kept oscillating back and forth, rocking the pallet and withdrawing one pallet-jewel, releasing the escape-wheel just long enough to let it run to its nexttooth before the other pallet-jewel is thrust in to stop it. It is a beautiful thing, to watch, like the beating of a tiny heart, or the breathing of a small quick creature. The hairspring (9) almost seems to be alive. And indeed, it is in a way, the very pulse of the machine.
A Modern Watch MovementA Modern Watch Movement
A Modern Watch Movement
A Modern Watch Movement
There is only one more important point to understand. You know how the power gets as far as the escape wheel from the mainspring, and how the motion of the balance lets the escape-wheel revolve a tooth at a time, but you have still to learn how the power which keeps the balance rotating reaches it from the escape-wheel through the lever. Here is the most interesting feature of a watch movement.
After the balance has been started, its momentum at each turn starts the lever when the jewel-pin strikes it, but unless the balance was constantly supplied with new power it would soon stop, and the watch would not run. It will be noticed, however, from the illustration, that the teeth of the escape-wheel are peculiar in shape and verydifferent from those of the other wheels. The ends of the pallet-jewels are also cut at a peculiar angle.
Now, each time just before the jewel-pin starts to shift the lever from one side to the other, the latter is in such a position that one of the pallet-jewels is thrust in so that its side is against that of one of the teeth of the escape-wheel, keeping it from turning. But the instant the lever commences to move it begins to draw this pallet-jewel outward from the tooth until the corner of the jewel passes the corner of the tooth. Then the escape-wheel is released and the power that is behind it makes it turn quickly, and on account of the shape of the tooth, it gives the pallet-jewel a sharp push outward, swinging the lever, causing it at the other end to impart a quick thrust to the jewel-pin, thereby accelerating the speed of the balance and renewing its momentum.
Thus the balance receives the power to keep it in motion, swinging it as far as the hairspring allows. The hairspring then reverses it and swings it until the jewel-pin again starts the lever in the other direction, releasing the escape-wheel from which it receives another "impulse" and so on as long as the mainspring is kept wound. A watch in perfect time ticks five times to the second. That means 18,000 swings of the balance every hour, or 432,000 in a day. And in that time, the rim of the balance travels about ten miles.
A clock is essentially only a larger and stronger watch, just as a watch is a clock made small enough and light enough to be carried about conveniently. But the working of the two is practically the same. They are but different members of the same family, varying types of one time-keeping machine which is among the most ingenious and valuable things that man has made.
One interesting thing to know about a watch is that if it is keeping good time, it will serve for a fairly accurate compass. So if you are ever lost in the woods, your watch may help you out again. Lay it flat face upward, and point the hour hand toward the sun. Then South will be in the direction half way between the hour hand and the figure 12, counting forward as the hands turn in the morning hours, and backward in the afternoon. This is because the hour hand moves around the dial just twice as fast as the sun moves around the sky, making a full circle in twelve hours while the sun makes its half circle from horizon to horizon.
Now, the sun is always to the southward of you as you are anywhere north of the equator. At noon, the sun is practically due South. At that hour, both hands of your watch are together on the figure 12 and the hour hand pointing at the sun points in that direction. At 6 a.m. the sun is nearly East, so if the hour hand, now on the figure 6 is pointed eastward toward the sun, then South would be in a line just over the figure 9. At 6 p.m., the sun being in the west and the hour hand pointed at it, South would be half-way back toward the figure 12, or just over the figure 3. For other morning or afternoon hours, the same reasoning holds true.
Judgedby the number of failures which have marked the development of the American watch industry, watch manufacturing might well be characterized as a perilous business. While it has proved profitable for a few, it also has swallowed many fortunes.
There were no watch companies in America until 1850, although a few attempts were made to manufacture watches in the United States prior to that time—by Luther Goddard, who established the first American watch factory at Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, in 1809 and made several hundred watches from 1809 to 1815, when he finally abandoned the business; by Henry and James F. Pitkin at East Hartford, Connecticut, from 1838 to about 1845 and by Jacob D. Custer at Norristown, Pennsylvania, from 1840 to 1845.
Except for a few companies whose organization and speedy dissolution had small, if any, effect upon the industry as a whole, the following briefly outlines the history of American watch manufacturing companies from the real beginning in 1850 to the present day:
1850
The American Horologe Company of Roxbury, Massachusetts, organized; name changed same year to The Warren Manufacturing Company; in 1853 name was again changed to The Boston Watch Company, the principal stockholders of which organized The Waltham Improvement Company to buy land and buildings for The Boston Watch Company at Waltham, Massachusetts; moved into the new factory at Waltham in 1854; failed in 1857 and company's business was bought in by Royal E. Robbins, watch importer of New York City and Tracy & Baker, watch case manufacturers of Philadelphia; in 1858 The Waltham Improvement Company increased its capital and purchased the business and property of The Boston Watch Company and re-incorporated under the name of The American WatchCompany; in 1885 the name was changed to The American Waltham Watch Company and in 1906 the name was again changed to The Waltham Watch Company, its present name; in 1913 the Company purchased the business of the Waltham Clock Company.
1857
E. Howard & Company of Roxbury, Massachusetts, was organized by Edward Howard; in 1861 the name was changed to The Howard Clock & Watch Company; in 1863 the company practically failed and was reorganized under the name of The E. Howard Watch & Clock Company; in 1881 the Company again practically failed and was again reorganized under the name of The E. Howard Watch & Clock Company, with Edward Howard as President, as he had been in the preceding organizations; in 1882 Howard withdrew as President and severed his connection with the Company. From that time forward the Company gave increasingly greater attention to the manufacture of clocks, although it continued to manufacture the Howard watch until about 1903 when it entered into a contract with The Keystone Watch Case Company of Philadelphia, under which The E. Howard Watch & Clock Company transferred to The Keystone Company all rights to the use of the name "E. Howard" in connection with the manufacture of watches and also changed its own corporate name to The E. Howard Clock Company. Later the company failed and was operated by receivers until 1910 when a new company of the same name was organized and purchased the property of the old concern. The Keystone Company purchased the factory of The United States Watch Company at Waltham, Massachusetts, and began the manufacture of watches under the name of The Howard Watch Company.
1859
The Nashua Watch Company of Nashua, New Hampshire, was organized; it failed in 1862 and was bought in by the American Watch Company—now The Waltham Watch Company.
1863
The Newark Watch Company of Newark, New Jersey, was organized; it sold out to The Cornell Watch Company of Chicago in 1870.
The United States Watch Company of Marion, New Jersey, was organized; it failed in 1872 and was operated by creditors for a short time under the name of The Marion Watch Company, but again failed; machinery of the company was sold to E. F. Bowman of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, who manufactured a few watches and then sold the business to The J. P. Stevens Watch Company of Atlanta, Georgia.
1864
The National Watch Company was organized and erected a factory at Elgin, Illinois; in 1874 the name was changed to its present name of The Elgin National Watch Company.
The Tremont Watch Company of Boston was organized, with Aaron L. Dennison, one of the founders of the original Waltham Watch Company as superintendent; it ceased business in 1868 because of lack of capital; machinery of the company was sold to an English syndicate which organized in England The Anglo-American Watch Company, the name of which was later changed to The English Watch Company.
The New York Watch Company of Springfield, Massachusetts, was organized by Don J. Mozart and others; it practically failed in 1866 and was reorganized under the same name; again failed in 1870 and the business was taken over by a new company known as The New York Watch Manufacturing Company. This Company survived only a few months and the property and business were taken over by a new group in January 1877 under the name of The Hampden Watch Company, which company, in turn, was later purchased by John C. Deuber and associates in control of The Deuber Watch Case Manufacturing Company of Canton, Ohio, which was originally organized at Cincinnati about 1888.
1867
The Mozart Watch Company of Ann Arbor, Michigan, was organized by Don J. Mozart after leaving The New York Watch Company; in 1871 the property and business were sold to The Rock Island Watch Company of Rock Island, Illinois.
1869
The Illinois Springfield Watch Company was organized; in 1875 itwas reorganized under the same name; in 1879 it was again reorganized and the name was changed to The Springfield Illinois Watch Company, which was later changed to The Illinois Watch Company, under which name it now operates.
1870
The Cornell Watch Company of Chicago was organized and took over the business of The Newark Watch Company of Newark, New Jersey; in 1874 it sold its business and property to The Cornell Watch Company of San Francisco, California.
1871
The Rock Island Watch Company of Rock Island, Illinois, was organized and purchased the business of The Mozart Watch Company of Ann Arbor, Michigan; it failed the same year without producing any watches and passed out of existence.
1872
The Washington Watch Company of Washington, D. C., was organized, but failed after two years.
1873
The Rockford Watch Company of Rockford, Illinois, was organized; in 1896 the company failed and the business was operated by assignee until 1901 when it was sold and reorganized under the name of The Rockford Watch Company, Ltd.; it discontinued business in 1915, since which time the remaining stock has been marketed by The Illinois Watch Case Company of Elgin, Illinois.
1874
The Adams & Perry Watch Manufacturing Company of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, was organized; it failed in 1876 without producing any watches; the property was purchased by a syndicate in 1877 which organized under the name of The Lancaster Pennsylvania Watch Company; in 1878 it was reorganized under the name of The Lancaster Pennsylvania Watch Company, Limited; in 1878 it was again reorganized under the name of The Lancaster Watch Company. In 1884 control of the company passed to Abram Bitzner, who, withOppenheimer Bros. & Vieth, selling agents of New York City, began to operate the company and assumed the name of "Keystone Watch Company" as a trade mark; they failed in 1890 and in 1892 the property was purchased by The Hamilton Watch Company.
The Freeport Watch Manufacturing Company of Freeport, Illinois, was organized, but before producing any watches the company's factory burned and the business was discontinued in 1875.
1874
The Cornell Watch Company of San Francisco, California, was organized and took over the business of the Cornell Watch Company of Chicago; in 1875 the company was reorganized under the name of The California Watch Company and in 1877 the business was sold to the Independent Watch Company of Fredonia, New York.
1875
Fitchburg Watch Company of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, was organized, but discontinued, for lack of funds, a few years later without producing any watches.
1877
The Hampden Watch Company, now of Canton, Ohio, was organized at Springfield, Massachusetts and took over the business of the New York Watch Company; later, the Company's business and property were purchased by the interests in control of the Deuber Watch Case Manufacturing Company of Canton, Ohio.
The Independent Watch Company of Fredonia, New York, was organized and purchased the business and property of the California Watch Company of San Francisco; in 1885 the business was sold to the Peoria Watch Company of Peoria, Illinois.
1879
The Auburndale Watch Company, of Auburndale, Massachusetts, was organized and purchased the machinery of the United States Watch Company of Marion, New Jersey. In 1883 the company made a voluntary assignment.
1880
The Waterbury Watch Company of Waterbury, Connecticut, wasincorporated; in 1898 the name of the company was changed to the New England Watch Company; in 1912 the company failed, and in 1914 the property was sold to and is now operated as one of the factories ofRobt.H. Ingersoll &Brothers.of New York City.
The E. Ingraham Company of Bristol, Connecticut, founded by E. Ingraham in 1835 for the manufacture of clocks, was incorporated; in 1912 the company purchased the business of The Bannatyne Watch Company of Waterbury, Connecticut.
The Western Watch Company of Chicago was organized but failed the same year without producing any watches, the machinery being sold to The Illinois Watch Company.
1882
The Columbus Watch Company was organized at Columbus, Ohio; it was the outgrowth of a private enterprise started in 1876 by D. Gruen and W. J. Savage, who imported watch movements from Switzerland and sold them in American-made cases. In 1903 the business of the company was purchased by The South Bend Watch Company of South Bend, Indiana.
The J. P. Stevens Watch Company of Atlanta, Georgia, was organized and failed in 1887.
1883
The New Haven Watch Company of New Haven, Connecticut, was organized; in 1886 the company moved to Chambersburg, New Jersey, then a suburb of Trenton; in the same year the name of the company was changed to The Trenton Watch Company; in 1907 the company failed and in 1908 the business and property were acquired byRobt.H. Ingersoll &Brothers.of New York City. The factory at Trenton has since been operated as one of the plants of the Ingersolls.
The Manhattan Watch Company of New York City was organized but did not long continue.
The Cheshire Watch Company of Cheshire, Connecticut, was organized and continued in operation for about ten years.
The Aurora Watch Company of Aurora, Illinois, was incorporated but did not begin operations until 1885; failed in 1886; machinery sold in 1892 to The Hamilton Watch Company of Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
1884
The Seth Thomas Clock Company of Thomastown, Connecticut, founded by Seth Thomas in 1813 and incorporated in 1853, began the manufacturing of watches in 1884, but discontinued their manufacture in 1914. Seth E. Thomas, Jr., great-grandson of the founder, is now president of the company.
The United States Watch Company of Waltham, Massachusetts, was organized as an outgrowth of The Waltham Watch Tool Company. Later it failed and its plant was purchased by The Keystone Watch Case Company, which operates the factory under the name of The Howard Watch Company.
1885
The New York Standard Watch Company of Jersey City, New Jersey, was organized; in 1902 it was purchased by The Keystone Watch Case Company, which continues to operate it under the original name.
The Peoria Watch Company of Peoria, Illinois, was organized and took over the business of The Independent Watch Company of Fredonia, New York, but did not long survive.
1887
The Wichita Watch Company of Wichita, Kansas, was organized, but continued in operation only a few years.
1888
The Western Clock Manufacturing Company was incorporated with factory at Peru, Illinois, and general offices at La Salle, Illinois; began manufacturing watches in 1895; in 1895 the name of the company was changed to Western Clock Company; manufacturers of "Big Ben" alarm clock and low-priced nickel watches.
1890
D. Gruen Sons & Co., of Cincinnati, originally incorporated under laws of West Virginia; in 1898 re-incorporated under laws of Ohio. Prior to original incorporation the business was operated as a partnership under the name of D. Gruen & Sons. Present company also operates under the trade name of Gruen Watch Case Co. Thecompany manufactures its watch movements in Switzerland, assembling and casing them in the United States.
1892
The Hamilton Watch Company of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, was organized; made only movements until 1909, but since then, both cases and movements.
1893
Robt.H. Ingersoll &Bro., of New York City, first introduced the original Ingersoll watch to the public at the World's Columbian Exposition; in 1892 the Ingersolls had contracted with the Waterbury Clock Company of Waterbury, Connecticut for the manufacture of the low-priced watch, which was first sold for $1.50 and later for $1.00; in 1908 the Ingersolls purchased the factory and business of the Trenton Watch Company of Trenton, New Jersey, and began watch manufacturing on their own account; in 1914 they purchased the plant of The New England Watch Company, formerly The Waterbury Watch Company of Waterbury, Connecticut.
1894
The Webb C. Ball Company of Cleveland, Ohio, founded in 1879 and incorporated in 1891, began the manufacture of watches.
1899
The Keystone Watch Case Company of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was organized. It controls The Howard Watch Company of Waltham, Massachusetts, The New York Standard Watch Company of Jersey City, New Jersey, The Crescent Watch Case Company, Inc., of Newark, New Jersey, and The Philadelphia Watch Case Company of Riverside, New Jersey.
1902
The South Bend Watch Company of South Bend, Indiana, was incorporated in New Jersey under the name of The American National Watch Company, but immediately thereafter changed to its present name; in 1903 it purchased the business of The Columbus Watch Company of Columbus, Ohio; in 1913 it was re-incorporated under Indiana laws.
1904
The Ansonia Clock Company of Brooklyn, New York, incorporated in 1873, began the manufacture of low-priced nickel watches; its principal business, however, is that of clock manufacture.
1911
The Leonard Watch Company of Boston, Massachusetts, was incorporated for the purpose of selling and distributing watches.
(From list compiled by Major Paul M. Chamberlain, of Chicago in 1915.)
Abrasion—Wearing away by rubbing or friction.
Adams, J. C.—A promoter instrumental in organizing the Elgin, Illinois, Cornell, and Peoria Watch Companies, and the Adams & Perry Manufacturing Company. He invented and patented the "Adams System" of time records in use on most of the railroads in the West. He last appeared in prominent connection with the watch and clock business as the organizer of the Swiss horological exhibit at the World's Columbian Exposition.
Addenda—Tips of the teeth of a wheel beyond the pitch circle. Sometimes of circular outline; sometimes ogive—that is, of a shape patterned after the pointed arch. The addendum is also known as the "face" of the tooth.
Adjustment—The manipulation of the balance with its spring and staff to secure the most accurate time-keeping possible. Three adjustments are usually made, viz.: for isochronism, temperature and position. Much of the difference in value and cost of watches depends on this operation.
Adjustment to Isochronism—Strictly speaking this would cover all adjustment; but it is technically understood to mean an adjustment of the balance spring so that the time of vibration through the long and short arcs of the balance is the same.
Adjustment to Positions—The manipulation of the balance and its spring so that a watch keeps time in different positions. Good watches are usually adjusted to five positions. They are pendant up;IIIup;IXup; dial up; and dial down.
Adjustment to Temperature or Compensation—The adjustment of the balance and spring so that the time-keeping qualities are affected as little as possible by changes in temperature. SeeCompensation.
Ahaz—King of Judea, 742-727 B. C. SeeDial of Ahaz.
Alarm—Sometimes spelled "alarum." A mechanism attached to a clock whereby at any desired time a bell is struck rapidly by a hammer.
Aluminum-Bronze—An alloy of aluminum and pure copper, usually in the proportion of 10 parts of the former and 90 of the latter. It is considerably lighter than brass and highly resistant to wear.
Anaximander—Greek astronomer to whom the Greeks ascribed the invention of the sun-dial in the sixth century B. C.
Arbor—The axle or axis on which a wheel of a watch or clock turns. Also applied to a spindle used by watchmakers.
Arc—Any section of the circumference of a circle.
Archimedes—A famous Greek philosopher and scientist sometimes credited with the invention of the clock. About 200 B. C. he made a machine with wheel work and a maintaining power but having no regulator it was no better as a time teller than a planetarium turned by a handle. It may have furnished the suggestion for later time-keeping machines.
Arnold, John—Born 1736. An English watchmaker of note. He invented the helical form of the balance spring and a form of chronometer escapement much like Earnshaw's. Died 1799. Arnold's devices have been most useful and permanent.
Assembling—The putting together of the finished parts of a watch. In a three-quarter plate watch this is done on the lower plate. In a full plate movement it is easier and more satisfactory to assemble on the top plate.
Astrolabe—1. An instrument of various forms formerly used especially in navigation to measure the altitudes of planets and stars. 2. A projection of a sphere upon any of its great circles.
Astronomical Time—Means solar time, as computed from observing the passage of the sun across the meridian from noon of one day to noon of the following day. It is counted continuously up to 24—not in two 12-hour divisions.
Astronomy—The science which treats of the motions, real and apparent, of the heavenly bodies. Upon this science, through its determination of the length of the year, is founded the science of horology—or time-keeping.
Automata—for Striking—Very common on old clocks and very complicated, such as: Indian King hunting with elephants, Adam and Eve, Christ's flagellation, and many others. SeeClocks, Interesting Old.
Automatic Machinery—The second great contribution of America to watchmaking after the establishment of the principle of interchangeability of parts, and making possible the effective execution of that principle.
Auxiliary—A device attached to a compensation balance to reduce what is known as the "middle temperature error." Some are constructed to act in high temperatures only—as Molyneux's; and some in low temperatures only—as Poole's.
Balance—The vibrating wheel in a watch or chronometer which with the aid of the balance spring (hair-spring) regulates the rate of travel of the hands. The balance is kept in vibration by means of the escape wheel. SeeCompensation Balance.
Balance Arc—In detached escapements, that part of the vibration of the balance in which it is connected with the train. The remainder is called the drop.
Balance-Clock—A form of clock built before the pendulum came into use. The regulating medium was a balance on the top of the clock made with a verge escapement. SeeFoliot.