Edwin A. Battison 
The Auburndale Watch Company 
First American attempt toward the Dollar Watch

THE AUBURNDALE WATCH COMPANY – First American attempt toward the Dollar Watch

An interesting part of the watchmaking industry – a well-intentioned endeavor gone wrong. Nevertheless, or exactly because of that, those rare timepieces still around on the market today fetch high prices amongst collectors.

Completely re-typed, clearly readable text – no photographic reproduction. Re-arranged layout; all original black-and-white images have been kept.

The life of the pioneer has always been arduous. Not all succeeded, and many disappeared, leaving no trace on the pages of history. Here, a painstaking search has uncovered enough of the record to permit us to review the errors of design and manufacture that brought failure to the first attempt to produce a really cheap pocket watch.

Published in: CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE MUSEUMOF HISTORY AND TECHOLOGY, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM, Bulletin 218, paper 4, pages 49-68, from 1959, SMITHONIAN INSTITUTION, Washington, D.C., by Edwin A. Battison, associate curator of mechanical and civil engineering, Museum of History and Technology, at the Smithsonian Institution’s United States National Museum