Waterbury Clocks

The Waterbury Clock Company was founded in 1857 in Waterbury, Connecticut, for the purpose of making clocks with brass movements. Both the cases and movements were made through this firm, and it became the largest clock manufacturer in America by 1920. This company turned to pocket and wristwatches, eventually becoming Timex Corporation.

Waterbury Company was originally formed in 1857 as a joint stock corporation and was intended to be a major user of the brass being produced by its parent company Benedict & Burnham. Master clock maker Chauncey Jerome was chosen to lead the firm`s case making operation and his brother Noble was hired to set up the movement manufacturing line.

In addition to being a major clock producer, they also manufactured a major line of non-jeweled pocket watches which they supplied to the mail order business of RH Ingersoll & Brother. They continued to operate on a mass scale for the next 20 years and enjoyed ever increasing prosperity thanks to their joint partnership with the mail order company. Waterbury was able to undertake major factory expansions in 1900 and 1915, and they grew to become the largest clock making operation in the USA.

Waterbury acquired the Ingersoll operation in 1922 when that company`s profitability had begun to slide. By the Depression era though, Waterbury`s profits began to suffer as well.

As early as 1932 their major factory began to fall in to disuse and they nearly went bankrupt. They were saved from this fate only by reorganizing their business structure into the Ingersoll-Waterbury Company and the aid of ½ million investor dollars. It was in this fallow period that one of their most popular items came into being. This was the Mickey Mouse character watch. They also later added a line of electric clocks.