Accidentally Preserved: "The House of Wonders" (1931) - the Elgin Watch Company
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- Опубліковано 25 сер 2024
- THE HOUSE OF WONDERS - made about and presumably by the Elgin National Watch Company. A formerly lost silent film. Visit www.accidentall... for film notes and DVD ordering info. Musical score © 2013 by Ben Model; all rights reserved. Industrial film depicting the Elgin Watch Factory in Elgin, Illinois, and showing each step in the making of an Elgin watch. As of this uploading, absolutely no information about this film is known. If you know anything about the film PLEASE post it here! Thanks.
My family started the Elgin Watch Casing Company that supplied Elgin watches with their beautiful cases!
+Lisa Lettieri Wow, what a fantastic connection! I'm so glad I found and posted this lost film. So many people with connections to Elgin have gotten to see the factory ca. 1930
Lisa What a wonderful family history. I can only imagine the facinating family photos and memorabilia you must have. I own and often carry a beautiful Elgin Pocket Watch.
Seriously: My grandfather, Hiram Herman Hershey's cousin was Milton Hershey of the chocolate company
Are you serious? Such history you have. I love pocket watches. Elgin may not be my favorite one but I have a 1910 Swiss made watch which I use to see the hour. Took me back in time with this video. Such history, such legacy!
Oh WOW, I have one of your cases on an 0 sized South Bend 17 jewel ladies pendant watch. The case is truly beautiful, it's 14K three different colors of gold with a diamond center. Congratulations and thank you to your family for making something like this
Thanks so much for posting this! My great grandfather used to work as a repairman here, and it makes me glad to see what went on behind these long closed and torn down doors. A lot of talented men and women created some true marvels of engineering and it would be terrible to see it forgotten.
Thanks so much for sharing your story here! I'm so glad you enjoyed the film.
Thank you for providing this incredible piece.
Several generations of my ancestors--including my father, grandfather, great grandfather, and numerous aunts and uncles--worked at the Watch Factory. My father also graduated from the Watch College.
Although I was rather young, I can vividly remember the throngs of people coming out the front door of the factory at quitting time. Giving my grandfather an occasional ride was easier as he was, inevitably, the last person to exit the building. He wasn't any more dedicated to his work than the others--just didn't waste excess energy rushing to the door.
Finally, in the summer of 1966, a friend and I sneaked into what was left of that dying building to look around, gather a few mementos, and say goodbye to what was, and still should be, the very heart of Elgin.
This is very inspiring to read, and is exactly why I thought it was important to make this film available online and on DVD.
This is an incredibly interesting and priceless historical film. I watched it with total fascination and awe of the precision manufacturing that it shows. We have really lost something in modern, stamped out quartz watches. I still carry some fine old pocket watches and I really enjoy them. I'm glad this film has been preserved for posterity.
+Bill “Wilroy” A - So glad you enjoyed seeing this film. I donated the one and only print of it, seen here, to the Library of Congress.
I have an Elgin pocket watch that I had cleaned and a new mainspring installed. Keeps perfect time. It was made in 1951,year I was born.
What a great film. Heck, I was raised in Elgin and didn't know any of this stuff. . I worked at the drug store close to the factory and many of the employees would stop by after work for a snack or a Bromo Selzer. Never knew what that was good for but then I was only 16 at the time.Wonderful piece of history.
The machines to make the parts are incredible, the people who run the machines are amazing, and the whole process is mesmerizing.
I work less than a block away from the original sight , i live less than 4 blocks away. My house was originally built by a dr. who work at the elgin mental health center in the early 1900's. The history of this town is amazing. Thanks for the great video.
I grew up in the 70's and barely heard of Elgin watches. What happened to this amazing company?
Thank you for posting this! My grandfather was an agent with Southern Railway. He carried the same Elgin pocket watch for fifty years on the job, wearing holes in the original and one replacement case. It was the first watch I ever heard ticking.
A fascinating insight into one of the most famous watch brands....and the way there were manufactured back in the 1930's. Many thanks for helping to preserve this history.
Thank you for uploading this film its a very important piece of history when some really amazing things were manufactured here.
My pleasure! I'm so glad you enjoyed getting to see this. This is precisely why I posted the film on my UA-cam channel.
This film is Absalutely a treasure. I've several elgin pocket watch over 100 yrs. Old that keep time. They are priceless to me. Who could ever imagine the work involved or genius of manufacturing. Beyond belief.
This gives me a wonderful insight as to how Elgin made pocket watches.
Wow, that is really something. I grew up near Elgin and what a plant that must have been. Everything is gone in this country related to he production of engineered consumer products. What an industrial base it was at one time.
I'm wearing a 1841 Lord Elgin that was given as a Christmas gift to a man who lived in Freeport Illinois. I recently cleaned and oiled it and some 73 years later it is keeping perfect time. Thanks for posting this.....I appreciate this Watch even more now!!
Wow, that's amazing! Do you service antique watches regularly, or do you just really know what you're doing?
It's a 1941 Lord Elgin. I started way back collecting in 1984. Had the privilege of knowing two old retired Watchmakers who showed me a lot, It's a fascinating hobby. The last watchmaker I knew graduated from the Elgin Watch Repair School in Elgin Illinois. I was given his diploma that he hung on his wall when he died. Thanks for the compliment.
Beautiful! I own a running 1891 Elgin trench watch and it is a thing of beauty.
Very good film about the place we drove by for so long in Elgin. It was surprising how large the factory really was, and how exacting the machines had to be to be to make SO MANY good watches. So many good factory jobs went away when it moved to FL then stopped.
What an amazing film! I was shocked to see the high end pocket watch priced at $650 in 1931! If the calculation is correct, that watch today would cost $9,549.14!
So glad you enjoyed this rarity. Thanks for looking up the 2016 value of one of the watches!
Holy mackerel!
$650 ... or even $500 ... during the Great Depression, which started in late 1929 and lasted until allied orders for WW2 arms and supplies in 1939 started coming in.
Shame watches made today for "the working class", like most of the Elgin watches won't last 140 plus years like the Elgin's do.
My circa 1885 Elgin 15 jewel grade 79 key wind/set Elgin still "runs like a top".
(of course it has been serviced at least once during the last 138 years ... probably once every 3 to 5 years, before synthetic lubes became available.
How men's styles have changed! Did you notice? All the men working the floor in all the various departments/sections was wearing a tie. That WASN'T because they were filming that day.
They likely had a waistcoat on as well, but could not see it due to the shop aprons.
I'm fascinated by films like this; thank you so much for making it available. And the score is masterful! It must be a real challenge to score a film like this, and the music here is so appropriate and beautiful that it really just "makes" the film.
Glad you enjoyed this! The Elgin watch film is probably the most popular in the Accidentally Preserved series.
What an amazing film! Thanks for sharing it!
I have an Elgin pocket watch made in 1917. It's beautiful!
I work in Elgin Illinois and own several Elgin watches, this was great to see! Thanks again.
Amazing, not just the watches but the machines that were made to make the watches. This film should be in a museum somewhere.
I loved how the Girls get a 3 minute lead on the men.
Thanks for sharing
Elgin is my home town and I used to live 3 blocks away from the Observatory, so seeing this and all of downtown Elgin from the 30's is incredibly cool. The history from this town is amazing.
So glad you enjoyed this rare film!
An AMAZING film ! ! ! Thank you so much for sharing this with all of us. What a treat to be able to see all of this wonderful information and history ! ! !
This is an amazing film! Thank you. I never imagined how many employees worked at Elgin. My first cousin twice removed, William Atkinson Gabriel, was the chief designer for Elgin. I have two of his drawings. The one shown at minute 9:46 is one of the exact drawings that I have. Several years ago the Elgin Historical Society sent me a lot of information about William Gabriel. They were so helpful in doing some research for me. Thank you again for preserving this film.
Thanks! I've been amazed at the number of people who are fans of or who have some connection with Elgin watches who've enjoyed seeing this rare/lost film that I turned up and put here on UA-cam. Thanks for sharing your family connection. My 16mm print is now at the Library of Congress.
@@silentfilmmusic I wondered if there is a way that I can clip the image shown at 9:46 in your film which is the same image of Gabriel's design that I have in a large paper format. I would like to add it to a powerpoint presentation I am giving on the value of searching UA-cam for family history information. I will, of course, add the credits for your film. Is this possible? Thank you.
Fascinating to watch the old craftsmanship. Elgin had the most loyal work force of any of the great American watch companies. Some of their employees had 40 or more years of service with Elgin. I will think of this film every time I wear 1 of my Elgin watches. When doing yard work my 1924 Elgin pocket watch is my constant companion and does not miss a beat. This factory and many others made America great. Sadly this factory and many others have vanished from America's landscape along with countless number of jobs.
Thanks to both major parties in D.C.
Hamilton had 50+ year employees.
Thank you for posting this film, it is a really great insight into how these watches were made...
This is amazing. Being raised in Elgin Il the Watch Company remains close to my heart! A must view!
Interesting. My watch repair career began with Elgin movements that would have been manufactured at that time. The amazing craftsmanship of manufacturing these is never lost on me. Excellent music too, wonderfully performed.
Glad you enjoyed the music. It's an amazing film, and was probably a lost title until I won it on eBay. The print actually came from a collector in Canada!
Thank you so much for preserving what in effect is a significant historic document. The piano score is particularly well-done and appropriate.
Eric, thanks so much. Scoring this one was a bit of a challenge, since it's a long series of steps that take place, almost quite literally mechanically, and there isn't the usual human drama/conflict etc.
Very cool, I live not far from where the old factory once was. Is really neat to see what it looked like and the things that went into making the watches.
Glad you enjoyed this.
Founded August 27th, 1864. Mom... Opened an Elgin watch factory in Blaney, SC in 1968. Year I was born. Renamed the town to Elgin, SC. Been having alot of Earthquake's there recently. I feel them.
I love my railroad watches, especially the Elgins. What a wonderful movie! I would love to go back to that era when quality was in everything that was made.
Yes, and actually made in America before the globalists started their wholesale destruction of American industry. No consumer radios or televisions made here anymore either.
I agree ! ! !
Great film! Thanks for posting it! I have showed it to many.
So glad I finally found the time to watch this!
As I watch this wonderful video with my newly acquired 1904 Elgin 18 in hand, I wonder what kind of mind invents, assembles and coordinates the modes of production required to produce the pocket watch? Absolute genius!
Fantastic industrial video one of he best I have ever seen. BTW reducing the playback speed to 0.75 eliminates the jerky motions and makes the film flow nicely.
I'm so glad you enjoyed this! The fps you see the film at (24) is the frame rate that films were being shown at at the time this was made. But this HD scan is from 8 years ago, before digital stabilization and clean-up software was as available as it is today. That might be a worthwhile effort, given the popularity and number of views this formerly-lost film has now had.
This is amazing and informative. Thank you for the upload. As nice as sound seems, I think this is actually better for this video. I can only imagine how loud all those machines are in that factory.
Very interesting. Thanks.
And thanks, also, for providing the musical accompaniment, without which this would have been rather tedious.
Thanks so much! Glad you enjoyed it.
Thanks for this video, the plate ornamenting machine at 6:08 has the same pattern as the plates on my watch. I thought they were done individually by hand, but this process makes more sense.
How old is your watch? Maybe it was made before they used that machine.
Great Documentary about a Great American watch.
marvelous. thank you from the vintage watch fans here in england.
So glad you enjoyed this! And to think this was a lost film as of 2 years ago!
Just saw this for the first time. MANY THANKS for posting it. Ted, Elgin Illinois.
Ted, so glad you enjoyed this film. One of the main reasons I posted it was that I figured people in Elgin would be interested in seeing this piece of their city's history.
Thanks Ben. A very interesting film indeed. And i superb condition. Nicely accompanied, too. 🙂👍
I am lucky enough to own Some of the tooling in this movie! I have several lathes and the only known sensitive drilling machine that exists, as far as we can investigate. I have a lot of face plates and collets all work BETTER than what is made today. These tools are second time NONE. I own many Swiss offerings and I can tell you that they have nothing on these tools. These tools were made there also all are very heavy using very soild steel, all hold super tolerances even 100 years past. I do have one problem I need to know where I can send them to in my will, like a museum because they need to be seen and preserved for future generations, please I need your suggestions. And no I'm not just giving them away to a private person must be a museum or the like.
Is the sensitive drilling machine in the video? I am doing some research on a tool and for the first time I cant find anything on this thing.
Hey Chris how about contacting someone at the NAWCC? I think that's the best first step there is such a wealth of knowledgeable collectors gathered there. I know this came late but I agree you should ensure those machines are preserved.
Thank you for posting this video.
Glad you've enjoyed this!
Incredible historical film , amazing time when America made manufactured things in America. When social responsibility educating training keeping America strong, keeping Americans employed working was the one of the missions of American corporations .
some of these old elgins are still selling for around $400- $500 on eBay. just the fact that they still run after so many years is testament to the quality of the workers. i have an 18s Elgin made in 1903, 113 years old and its never off by more than a min a week. 9674982 is the serial no. if anyone wants to look it up on pocket watch database
Best 23 minutes I invested in today.
So glad you enjoyed getting to see this. Exactly why I wanted to transfer, score and post it.
Beautifully preserved. Thank you! Who played the soundtrack. Very Ken burns, nice.
Oops, it's you. www.silentfilmmusic.com/
😊
Excellant video! I would love to see how these machines are set up and maintained.
The factory is long gone, unfortunately...
A most wonderful watch to be sure! Thank you +silientfilmmusic!
You're so welcome! This was the whole point of the project. If I have a lost film and no one can see it, it's still lost.
This brings back a lot of memories from when I was a Colman grade school student back in the late 60’s early ‘70-71 and are “star student”! Was none other than Tracy Marbalstone! If my memory serves me correctly and the curator was Dr. Tuttle! I liked going here with the rest of my class mates but what I always hated was stairing up at the star constilations on the ceiling in the observatory a real “pain in the neck”! aaaah the memorys! Anyways from an old Colman grade school student Michael Carlson.
Glad you enjoyed this! The print I have is on yellow and orange tinted film, and the print cuts back and forth. I've no idea why, as there's not much of a mood shift warranting a change in color; but it could be possible that much of the film was made in the 20s, with new footage -- including the product shots -- taken in the early 30s and printed on a different color film stock and then cut in to the print.
I really enjoyed this video, I was able to see some of my tools, I own three of the Elgin factory lathes and what I believe to be the only sensitive drilling press to exist. What a shame that this factory is gone, it produced watches that compair with the most expensive made today. The tools I have are just as accurate, well made and functional as they were a hundred years ago, I am making an arrangement to donate them to a museum in my will.
Wow, great to hear this from such a dedicated Elgin fan (or perhaps you are a watch repair person yourself?).
I continue to repair, and assemble and make watches, only as a hobby, I do not plan to produce for the market. I get a strange feeling every time I repair an Elgin watch with these tools that made these watches. These tools are a treasure, they were all made at the factory in your movie/video, and all and I do mean ALL tooling was made in this factory. I hope that this movie/video will be able to last for the future.
Yes, I have spoken with Tony, I have plans to get him descriptions and photos of these lathes and drill, in addition to I have many dedicated tooling that goes with, such as faceplates headstock's and other really cool collets, all made by Elgin, many of which are in the video. I have to add that the quality level of these tools, even so that they were well used for the better part of 100 years it truly unmatched.
Glad you enjoyed this!
This is ONE of tho's cases where the internet really did something worth while.
I can't thank you enough for posting this film and amazing piece of history.
I have but two points I'd like to make here.
!. One must 1st remember that this was originally "The National Watch Co" est 1864.
And produced pocket watches from 1867 until 1870,and it was, at this time when the company changed its name to :The "Elgin National Watch Co".
2.The film showed the woman putting on the design on the movement and as someone had mentioned previously that the women painting on the uranium on the numbers ( glow in the dark paint) gave no mention.
You would have thought that at the time this would have been like a break through in technology that'd you would have wanted to spread the word,especially in a promotional film like this one.
Its a shame how many of thos women died of cancer because of the exposure to it.
I really wonder if the scientist knew how radio active that material was and just never told anyone.
Frosty
So glad you enjoyed seeing this film. Thanks also for pointing out the information about the uranium and the company's original name.
Amazing. Thank you, Becky.
Glad you enjoyed this. Happy to share and make this super-rare film available.
Glad you enjoyed this! Got more content coming in the next weeks...
Ben, I just posted a link to this video on the Internet Horology Club 185 forum which is probably the most vital worldwide club of its type. We are dedicated to the history and conservation of all kinds of timepieces but our primary interest lies with American made railroad grade pocket watches; an area in which Elgin played a huge role. It is widely known that Elgin produced some of the very finest grades which are today elusive and highly sought after. This film will now be viewed, likely for the first time, by many whose interests are directly in line with its content. The few of your other silent shorts I've seen are fantastic and the transfers are very sharp! It's an amazing body of work you've accomplished and I will buy both DVD's. Kickstarter is a great resource! Way to go Ben! I'd like to mention as well that your piano and organ playing is beautiful!
William White IHC 185 life member.
William, thanks so much! I really appreciate your comments about the music. The main impetus behind the project was that if I had these rare/lost films and no one could see them, they were still lost, in a way. I knew when I put this film on vol 1 that silent comedy fans might not be crazy about it, but I knew there were watch enthusiasts who would love it.
This is so cool! I've been to elgin so many times!
this is awesome! thanks for uploading.
In 1964 Elgin watch company relocated most manufacturing operations to a new plant in Blaney, a town near Columbia, South Carolina which renamed itself Elgin, South Carolina. A leased building in Elgin that housed offices as well as casing, fitting, shipping, service, and trade material departments was maintained until about 1970. There has been over the years campaigns to change the Town name back to Blaney since many there feel that Elgin took advantage of them.
This is great, Thanks for sharing!
You're very welcome!
A valuable historical treasure.
This is gold!!
So glad you enjoyed this film!
The view of DD 332 USS Farenholt at the end must have been file footage since it was sold for scrap by 1931. Great film!
Sooooo glad they were assembled by hand other wise they would be no love left in them.
This was awesome!
bloozer666 Happy I could make this available to pocket-watch enthusiasts et al after turning up this one-of-a-kind print a couple years ago.
fascinating look into the history of the Elgin watch-making process and the industrial factory scene of early 20th century. Interestingly, they did not include anything about the women painting the glow-in-the-dark numbers.
Fun vid. Fine timepieces
I've restored several Elgins. Besides Hamilton, these are among my favorite. Wonder where the tooling went to?
Thanks for this fascinating!
So pleased you've enjoyed this lost film.
To all who have enjoyed this video and love watches please note that the Elgin History Museum located at 360 Park Street in Elgin, IL has an extensive historical exhibit dedicated to the Elgin National Watch Factory with many fine watches on display. To learn more about the museum please visit www.elginhistory.org
Thanks,
Hannah Walters,
Public Services Coordinator - Elgin History Museum
Hannah Walters Thanks for posting the info, Hannah!
The amount of equipment is mind boggling and the maintenance crew had to be huge to keep everything running. . I wonder who could afford those watches back then with those astronomical prices.
It's a shame the Elgin Watch Co. couldn't have survived with a more limited production like some of the Swiss companies. Too bad since companies like Elgin, Hamilton, and Illinois could still be giving the Swiss competition.
I would date the film to the late 20's rather than the early 30's. There is insufficient detail to be completely sure but the models do not look like 30's models. And none of the cars seem to be as recent as the 30's.
FANTASTIC FIND! I know of no other such insight into the making of watches of this era... notice all the power to machines is supplied by belt takeoffs :-)
A marvel in engineering
They go to all that trouble to ornament the watch movements, when the inside is only seen occasionally!
Incredible machinery!
It sure is! The observatory still stands today, and is a museum.
Mechanical geniuses of time,enjoyed.
Where are those watches now.?
5000 watches a day. Must be so many of them.
I wish I could own one of them.
I always fascinated with mechanical watches.
Elgin is my favorite vintage watch. I have many of them. I tried to purchase a copy of the film but it said error. Is it still available? Thank you, Sheila
Glad you enjoyed this rare/lost film! Sorry you got an error msg. Go to Amazon and search for "Accidentally Preserved" under Movies. You want volume 1. Thanks!
Ben Model - silent film accompanist/historian Wooo Hoooo! Thank you SO much! I will go there now. Bless, Sheila
Ben Model - silent film accompanist/historian Oops, no volume 1 listed!!! only 2 & 3 and one that has no Volume listed, and not Elgin. Any suggestions?
volume 1 is just listed as "Accidentally Preserved". Here's a link. amzn.com/B00D2CRP42
Ben Model - silent film accompanist/historian I can't believe I read the entire list and missed the one for Elgin! I just purchased it!! Thank you so much. Sheila
Amazing video. The destruction of America's industries started happening a long time ago. Elgin was required to make parts for the war and not allowed to make watches for market. This allowed Swiss imports to come in and take over the market. (what else is new, right?). After the war much of Elgin's equipment was worn out and they had to now compete with the Swiss to regain their marketshare. Required to do their duty while the Swiss did nothing. Did the "government for the people in the land of the free and home of the brave" do anything to help Americans? Nope. Same story as today.
sorry I meant "1941" Lord Elgin.
3:45. Even more true today. Mechanical, Quartz, or a combination of the two, almost no one thinks of the engineering and skill reqiured to produce their watch. (and in the case of sub $10 watches, be it a Quartz analog or digital, or a mechanical, how something that keeps accurate within +/- a couple seconds a month or longer can be made at a profit so inexpensively.
One of my digital stop watches is +/- under 1 second in the month I've had it. It has time/date/12/24 hour time dispay, alarm, and a chronograph accurate to 1/100th of a second.
It is even water resistant to at least 50 meters!
Cost? Under $6.00 with tax AND shipping! Not sure how they can produce it at a profit. Quartz watches are less costly to make than a mechanical manul or self-winding/automatic watch, but still ...
Admittedly, the battery included is not the highest quality or longest lastng ... but for under $3 I got 5 name brand batteries of the correct sze. Te battery is easy enough to replace; don't need a watchmaker to do it.
Contact Stan at LFR antique watches. He wrote a fantastic new book on Elgin. He is a wealth of Elgin information.www.lrfantiquewatches.com/
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