Seth Thomas Coach & Carriage Timepieces
Coach and Carriage Timepieces are a unique category of movements that includes sometimes difficult to recognize special purpose pocket watches. Coach and carriage pocket watches initially appear to be ordinary private label pocket watches to many collectors. Beyond the advertising function of a private label pocket watch coach and carriage pocket watches filled a special role in personal and small group timekeeping while traveling on a privately used wheeled conveyance. They held this role in common with their contemporary bicycle mounted pocket watches and with their descendants, automobile pocket watches and automobile clocks.
Because the methods of mounting or encasing each movement have seldom survived with, or seldom accompany, the coach and carriage pocket watches it is difficult to quickly make the connection between the movement, its remaining characteristics, and its original function. Two characteristics that provide an immediate clue are the heavy railroad dials and the heavy railroad hands on movements that are not railroad grade. Because the coach and carriage pocket watches’ role is not played out by being hand-held the heavy dials and railroad hands enable the watch to be read at a longer distance than a standard dial and standard hands would permit.
The most obvious characteristic of a surviving coach and carriage pocket watch is the signature of the coach builder or carriage maker on the dial. Having a timepiece displayed in the coach or carriage was a luxury feature of the time; so there was no better place to attach advertising than to a component in the vehicle that the passengers were already admiring.
Two coach/carriage pocket watches from the Seth Thomas Fan Collection are shown and described below. Two non-Seth Thomas movements are also shown and described. Together, these specimens provide evidence that specialized pocket watches intended for travel or transportation use existed within the specific retail and manufacturing product lines that are the subjects of this exploration.
Healey and Co. Coach Builders NEW YORK is a private label pocket watch in Seth Thomas 18-size Model 3 on the dial only.
Healey and Co. Coach Builders NEW YORK:
William Mansfield Healey was born in Massachusetts in the 1840s to Samuel & Mary Thayer (Mansfield) Healy. In 1861 Healey enlisted in the Army of the North and attained the rank of Colonel before being sidelined in 1863.
Healey attended engineering school in France and following apprenticeships at a number of New York coachbuilders, he became associated with the celebrated New York firm of Loos & Williams, which was founded in 1849 as Williams & Dingel. At New York’s 1850 American Institute Fair the firm was awarded a Gold Medal for their carriage display. About 1860 C. Loos bought out the interest of Dingel, and the firm became known as Loos & Williams. The firm operated from a large factory at 223-225 West 96th St. and this is where Colonel Healey became involved in the business of carriage building.
Loos and Williams parted company in 1881, and Colonel Healey joined Williams in the new firm of Healey, Williams & Co. The firm maintained a repository at 1658 Broadway (between 51st and 52nd Sts) and built a new 6-story factory on West 43rd St.
Healey was one of five metropolitan New York firms who built bodies for the luxurious Simplex & Crane Simplex automobiles of 1907-1919. They also built bodies for Christie, Cadillac, Falcon, Locomobile, Packard, Singer and Stevens-Duryea.
Healey’s 1915 listing in “Who’s Who in New York” noted the following accomplishments:
"Brig.-general. N. G. N. Y. 1897-1899; president of Healey & Co., Director of Hudson Trust Co., Hudson Safe Deposit Co., Chevalier Legion d’Honneur of France; member Sons of Revolution, G. A. R., N. Y. Historical Society, New England Society, New York Chamber of Commerce. Clubs: Army and Navy, Union League."
Healey & Co. Coach Builders NEW YORK
This advertisement appeared in the New York Herald on Sunday, December 1, 1889.
This 1895 Seth Thomas open-face 18-size Model 3 pocket watch was manufactured with a gilt finished 3/4 plate, 11 jewels, and it is non-adjusted. The movement is stem wound and lever set, with a flat hair spring and micrometric regulator. Its serial number is 95257, and its grade is Seth Thomas numbered grade 55. The movement is signed “Seth Thomas Thomaston, Conn.”.
The movement presents with an 18-size private label "Healey & Co. Coach Builders New York" Heavy Roman dial with a ring minute track and no marginals; fitted with Seth Thomas #1282 Heavy Spade & Whip Railroad blued hands 18-size.
The movement is cased in an 18-size Fahys Watch Case Company open-face Oresilver No 1 (nickel) pocket watch case with screw back and bezel, serial number 4996401.
This 1914 Seth Thomas open-face 18-size Model 8 pocket watch was manufactured with a nickel finished 3/4 plate, 7 jewels, and it is non-adjusted. The movement is stem wound and pendant set, with a Breguet hair spring, and plain/simple regulator. Its serial number is 2567940, and its grade is Seth Thomas numbered grade 36. The movement is signed “Seth Thomas Thomaston, Conn.”.
The movement presents with an 18-size “C. Cowles & Co. - New Haven, CT.” private label Arabic dial with a ring minute track and no marginals, fitted with Seth Thomas #1282 blued spade railroad hands 18-size.
“C. Cowles & Co. - New Haven, CT.” is a private label in Seth Thomas Model 8 on the dial only. C. Cowles & Company was established in 1838 as a manufacturer of lanterns, and hardware for horse-drawn carriages in New Haven Connecticut. Over the years they made various types of horse-drawn carriages, bicycles, tricycles, and baby carriages. They are presently a major manufacturer located in North Haven Connecticut. C. Cowles & Company is now split into three divisions: Carlin Combustion Technologies, Hydrolevel Company, and Cowles Products.
The movement is cased in an 18-size Illinois Watch Case Company open-face nickel pocket watch case with screw back and bezel, serial number 684639.
The postcard photographs below show downtown New Haven Connecticut just after the turn of the 20th century.
All advertisements and articles appeared in The Morning Journal-Courier.
Top left on Friday September 17, 1886, on page 4. Top second from left on Thursday July 22, 1886, on page 4. Top second from right on Friday June 17, 1887, on page 2. Top right on Saturday April 13, 1889, on page 1.
Bottom article on Thursday June 14, 1888, on page 2.
C. Cowles & Co. - New Haven, CT.
This 1911 New England Watch Company open-face 16-size Alden Series Y pocket watch was manufactured with a nickel finished 3/4 plate, 7 jewels, and it is non-adjusted. The movement is stem wound and pendant set, with a plain/simple regulator. Its STFS Research Identifier is SerY-Alden-001, and its grade is unknown. The movement is signed “New England Watch Co”.
The movement presents with a 16-size “C. Cowles & Co. - New Haven, CT.” private label Arabic dial with a hashmarks minute track and no marginals, fitted with New England Watch Company blued spade railroad hands 16-size.
“C. Cowles & Co. - New Haven, CT.” is a private label in New England Watch Company Alden Series Y on the dial only. C. Cowles & Company was established in 1838 as a manufacturer of lanterns, and hardware for horse-drawn carriages in New Haven Connecticut. The orientation of the pendant implies that the movement was used as some sort of travel or transportation related timepiece. Over the years C. Cowles & Company made various types of horse-drawn carriages, bicycles, tricycles, and baby carriages. They are presently a major manufacturer located in North Haven Connecticut. C. Cowles & Company is now split into three divisions: Carlin Combustion Technologies, Hydrolevel Company, and Cowles Products.
The movement is cased in a 16-size open-face nickel pocket watch case with screw back and bezel, with no manufacturer’s signature or serial number.
C. Cowles & Co. - New Haven, CT. by New England Watch Co.
EA 595 – C. Cowles & Co. - New Haven, CT. – 16-size – Series Y – STFS Research Identifier: SerY-Alden-001 – 7 Jewels - Grade Unknown
This 1908 New England Watch Company open-face 16-size Alden Series B pocket watch was manufactured with a nickel finished 3/4 plate, 7 jewels, and it is non-adjusted. The movement is stem wound and pendant set, with a plain/simple regulator. Its STFS Research Identifier is SerB-Alden-001, and its grade is unknown. The movement is signed “New England Watch Co”.
The movement presents with a 16-size “New England” Arabic dial with a ring minute track and no marginals, fitted with New England Watch Company blued spade railroad hands 16-size. The orientation of the pendant implies that the movement was used as some sort of travel or transportation related timepiece.
The movement is cased in a 16-size open-face nickel pocket watch case with flanged mounting back, with no known manufacturer’s signature or serial number.
New England Watch Co. - Unknown Travel Timepiece Application
EA 594 – New England Watch Company – 16-size – Series B – STFS Research Identifier: SerB-Alden-001 – 7 Jewels - Grade Unknown
Beyond the advertising function of a private label pocket watch coach and carriage pocket watches filled a special role in personal and small group timekeeping while traveling on a privately used wheeled conveyance. They held this role in common with their contemporary bicycle mounted pocket watches and with their descendants, automobile pocket watches and automobile clocks.
The methods of mounting or encasing each movement on each of those types of conveyances have seldom survived with, or seldom accompany, the bicycle, coach and carriage, or automobile pocket watches, and in some cases clocks, found in today’s marketplace. Descriptions and illustrations of several variations are included below.
The variety of surviving C. Cowles & Co. watches suggests that the company may have experimented with, or offered, multiple methods of adapting watch movements for carriage or vehicle use. The surviving evidence does not yet establish whether these were prototypes, successive designs, or concurrently available mounting systems.
The top-left advertisement appeared in The Chicago Chronicle on Sunday April 25, 1897, on page 41. The top-right advertisement appeared in The Times Tribune on Thursday June 20, 1895, on page 3. The bottom-right advertisement appeared in The Minneapolis Journal on Friday April 10, 1896, on page 6.
The top set of advertisements appeared in The Graphic: An Illustrated Weekly Newspaper on Saturday December 14, 1895, on page 2. The bottom set of advertisements appeared in The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News on Saturday October 18, 1902, on page 37.
The advertisement on the left appeared in The Rochester Herald on Thursday January 25, 1912, on page 12.
The advertisement on the right appeared in a 1911 edition of Cycle and Automobile Journal.
Immediately below you can see the internal and external features of a 1911 Phinney-Walker Keyless Automobile Clock manufactured by Seth Thomas.
Shown above are woodcut images of all of the Seth Thomas travel timepieces that are known to have used a Seth Thomas pocket watch movement as their time keeping mechanism. On the left you have the 1896 Companion that contained a Seth Thomas Model 6 movement. In the center we have the 1906 Companion that contained a Seth Thomas Model 8 movement. On the top right we have the Tourist No. 16 that contained a 16-size Pendant Set Model 21, and below that we have the Tourist No. 12 that contained the 12-size Pendant Set Model 22.
The Model 6 and Model 8 movements contained in the Companion are the only documented Seth Thomas pocket watch movements that are pin set. A cut (woodcut engraving) of the Companion’s image is displayed, and all of its unique components, along with its uncasing procedure, are described in the 1904 Seth Thomas Watch Material Catalog. The same cut of the Companion’s image is accompanied by a description of its unique features in the 1913 Seth Thomas Watch Movements Illustrated Price List. The same cut of the Companion’s image is also used by author Tran Duy Ly in his two-volume book, Seth Thomas Clocks & Movements. Publicly available photographic documentation of the Companion and its component parts is very limited. Available period advertising related to the Companion only depicts a front exterior aspect of it. Likewise, comprehensive photographic documentation of the Seth Thomas Tourist is scarce in the public domain. I am extremely grateful to be in a position to provide a more complete complement of photographic documentation for these two special, unique Seth Thomas timepieces, the Companion and the Tourist, to the horological community.
Serial Number 1306649 - 7 Jewels - Factory Named Grade Centennial - Tourist Travel Timepiece
This 1913 Seth Thomas 16-size open-face Model 21 pocket watch was manufactured with a nickel finished 3/4 plate, 7 jewels, and it is non-adjusted. The movement is stem wound and pendant set, with a Breguet hair spring, and plain/simple regulator. Its serial number is 1306649, and its grade is Seth Thomas named grade Centennial. The movement is signed “Seth Thomas Centennial Thomaston, Conn.”.
The movement presents with a special Tourist 16-size Seth Thomas Arabic conversion dial with a hash marks minute track and no marginals, fitted with Seth Thomas blued spade hands 16-size. This dial converts the appearance of the movement to look like an up-side-down open-face movement with the winding stem at the 6:00 o’clock position for use in the Seth Thomas Tourist travel timepiece. Dial feet are placed at approximately 5 minutes, 16 minutes, and 43 minutes; placing the pendant at 6:00 instead of 12:00.
The movement is cased in a 16-size Illinois Watch Case Company Nickel Silver (nickel) pocket watch case with a snap back cover and special screw bezel made specifically for the Seth Thomas Tourist 16 with a special stem to be mounted into a leather case; and special bezel to screw down over and onto the leather carrying case. The serial number is O64671.
Not only did this specimen have its leather case/stand intact; but it arrived with its original box with advertising printed on the lid. I was unable to mechanically remove most of the graffiti that had been placed on the lid; but it was possible through the magic of photo editing to scrub most of it off of the image to reveal what the lid looked like without the graffiti.
Tourist Travel Timepiece
Seth Thomas Coach & Carriage Timepieces