The Illinois Watch Company was born during the great era of entrepreneurship, when so many of today’s greatest empires were formed. Seven men, among them a lawyer, a merchant, and a grocery store owner, founded the Illinois Springfield Watch Company in 1870 with stars in their eyes and a dream in their hearts.
A century later, Illinois Pocket Watches continue to inspire and fascinate watch lovers from all walks of life. Whether you collect the original key-wound variety, or the Railroad Quality ‘Bunn Special,’ or the original Illinois Pocket Watch, the ‘Stuart,’ you will know that there is no other watch quite like an Illinois Pocket Watch.
Despite numerous name changes over the years, the company never lost the ‘Illinois,’ and, more importantly, never lost the beauty and quality that Illinois Watch lovers recognize above all else. However, in the late 1920s, the company was sold to Hamilton Watch Company, marking the end of an era. Despite the sad ending of a great watch-making empire, the Hamilton Company continued production at the Illinois factory right up until 1932, the year that the last true Illinois Watch rolled through the Illinois Watch Company factory. Watches continued to be manufactured under the Illinois name for some years more, but the quality, the craftsmanship, and the love that went into every Illinois watch wasn’t there, and eventually production ceased altogether.
Today, Illinois Watches remain among the most sought-after collectible watches, and watch enthusiasts and historians alike scour antique shops, websites, and their grandfather’s trunks seeking their favourite model from the beloved Illinois Watch Company.