Watches have been used as valuable treasures dating as far back as the 1571, when Queen Elizabeth I received a small timepiece fastened to a bracelet as a gift. Over the years, clock makers found ways of staying afloat in the most trying of times. They say “Necessity is the mother of all inventions,” and the wristwatch is no exception.

In the height of Geneva’s 1541 Protestant Reformation, Calvin banned many forms of entertainment, dancing, theater and wearing lavish jewelry. However, because portable clocks (aka the pocket watch) were needed for practical use, they were the one item that endured. Jewelry makers slowly collaborated with watchmakers to include jewelry on the pocket time pieces. This longstanding tradition of jewel inclusion would aid in the eventual popularity of the wristwatch for the upper class.

Pocket watches enjoyed continued success throughout the 1800s with the common man, notably railroad workers. After an 1891 accident caused by a railroad operator’s watch stopping and subsequently killing 11 people in Ohio, designs by the Ball Watch Company became the reliable Cadillac of the watch industry. Their accurate ones were so popular the phase “get on the Ball” was coined, referring to using a Ball watch to keep time.

In the 18th Century, the pocket models were as fashionable and distinct as cufflinks for men or necklaces for women. However, during the Boers War in South Africa (1899-1902), British soldiers found that bulky, destructible pocket ones were a hindrance. The wristwatch came to the rescue, freeing up one’s hands for battle and synchronizing troop movement.

More On: The Wristwatch History

Technorati Tags: jewelry, watches, the wristwatch, the wristwatch history

Quickly bookmark The Wristwatch Growth at:                                                

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 13th, 2007 at 7:20 pm and is filed under Watches. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.