Now You See It, Now You Don't!
TellzAll's subject for December is the Pocket Watch
Today, pocket watches are not very common. Very few people still carry a pocket watch, and these watches are usually viewed as collector's items or unique gifts. That has not always been the case, though. Although most people wear wristwatches today, that phenomenon is only about a hundred years old. For several centuries before that, if people wanted to keep track of the time, they might carry a pocket watch.
A German clockmaker named Peter Henlein usually gets the credit for manufacturing the first pocket watches in the early 1500s. These watches became more and more popular in Europe during the sixteenth century, and many clockmakers became involved in their manufacture. The first watches were too large to fit in pockets but, as the technology improved, the size decreased.
Pocket watches usually come in one of two forms. Some pocket watches have a hinged cover that folds over to protect the face of the watch, but others do not have this cover. Often, a person who carried a pocket watch wore it with a chain attached to a belt loop, belt, or buttonhole so that the watch could not be lost. The face of the watch could display some decoration, but men also could express their personalities through engravings on the watch case or through their choice of watch fobs. A fob was another name for the chain and other decorative attachments that someone could use with a pocket watch.
In the United States, pocket watches became associated with the railroads in the late 1800s. There had been some tragic train accidents resulting from railroad employees who had poor quality timepieces. Railroad companies supported the development of high-quality pocket watches in order to avoid future train crashes.
Although wristwatches began to emerge in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, most men viewed those watches as too feminine. It was not until World War I that men began to wear wristwatches more regularly, as these watches were convenient for soldiers to wear on the battlefield. Still, pocket watches remained a status symbol for many men, and businessmen often wore pocket watches with their suits into the 1950s. Eventually, wristwatches became more and more popular, until almost no one still carried the traditional pocket watch.
Today, old pocket watches are very collectible, and it is not uncommon for these heirlooms to be passed down from one generation to the next. A gold pocket watch is a traditional gift when someone retires from a company after a long period of time as well.
