Timing a Century : History of the Waltham Watch Company

THE CHIEF VALUE of a history of the Waltham Watch Company lies in the fact that it is typical of American manufacturing experience. The enterprise was founded in a period that is famous for basic invention and fundamental progress in the mechanization of industry. It had its greatest growth in the era of expansion that followed the Civil War. It suffered, along with other domestic corporations, from increasing competition and sought to escape by a succession of measures, each one popular in its day. It became a part of the structure of financial capitalism, prospered mightily, and fell into deep depression, all in conformity with the general pattern. At the present time the Company is still faced with the problems that are the common concern of American business and industry. Although the problems of the Waltham Company were and are typical, the ways in which they arose and were solved are far from commonplace. The voluminous records, covering a period of approximately a hundred years, disclose a series of oscillations between the extremes of failure and prosperity. The story is featured by a succession of striking and colorful personalities who provide a rich and varied human interest. But most important, from the historian's point of view, is the fact that the events trace the main issues of business development with remarkable clarity and dramatic emphasis. ## # # # This history has been written primarily for the business executive and the student, both of whom demand the greatest amount of useful information in the least possible space. For this reason the text has been devoted to those aspects of policy and action that are the immediate concern of the chief executive. Those details that were of potential interest to the scholar and the critic have been segregated in the footnotes and appendices. This arrangement was dictated in part by necessity-the older records are lacking in detail, the current policies and practice of the Company are not available for publication, and the AUTHOR'S PREFACE xxvii Mr. Dumaine, himself, was particularly helpful in developing background material which was not included in the Company's files. His pungent, off-the-record comments and the measured phrases of his personal correspondence enlivened and clarified the terse reports of the controller and the recording secretary. ## « \* \* This volume was undertaken at the suggestion of Professor N. S. B. Gras and completed under the stimulus of his encouragement and criticism. For this stimulus and for guidance without pressure, I am deeply grateful. From the earliest examination of the Waltham manuscripts down to the final composition, Professor Henrietta M. Larson has been helpful with suggestions and criticisms. I am also indebted to Professors Edmund P. Learned and Stanley F. Teele for criticism of the manuscript. Of the many others who gave freely of their time and interest, there is space here to mention only a few. Waltham executives and employees cooperated in the search for missing records and offered the frank opinions that give the facts perspective and color. Among the members of the Waltham staff who were particularly helpful in collecting data were Mr. CONTENTS ILLUSTRATIONS TABLES EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION AUTHOR’S PREFACE CHRONOLOGY CHAPTER I. SOURCES OF A NEW AMERICAN INDUSTRY 1850 CHAPTER II. SUCCESS AND FAILURE CHAPTER III. SALVAGING DENNISON’S ENTERPRISE CHAPTER IV. THE GOLDEN AGE, 1859-1882 CHAPTER V. COMPETITION IN THE WATCH INDUSTRY 1864-1907 CHAPTER VI. THE DECAY OF MANAGEMENT , 1910-1921 CHAPTER VII. CONTROL BY COMMERCIAL BANKS CHAPTER VIII. REORGANIZATION , 1923 CHAPTER IX. MANAGEMENT ANDINDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER X. THE DUMAINE MANAGEMENT IN ACTION CHAPTER XI. THE STRIKE, 1924 CHAPTER XII. DUMAINE’S BUSINESS POLICIES CHAPTER XIII. DEPRESSION AND RECOVERY, 1929 TO 1935 CHAPTER XIV. PROBLEMS IN PRODUCTION CHAPTER XV. PROBLEMS OF DISTRIBUTION CHAPTER XVI. FINANCE AND MANAGEMENT CHAPTER XVII. A CHANGE IN STRATEGY APPENDIX A. PARTNERS AND OFFICERS OF THE WALTHAM WATCH COMPANY AND ANTECEDENTS APPENDIX B. DIRECTORS OF THE WALTHAM WATCH COMPANY AND ANTECEDENTS APPENDIX C. SOURCES OF CAPITAL OF THE WALTHAM WATCH COMPANY APPENDIX D. TYPES OF STOCKHOLDERS IN THE WALTHAM WATCH COMPANY APPENDIX E. A PARTIAL LIST OF WATCH MANUFACTURERS IN THE UNITED STATES IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER APPENDIX F. FINANCIAL RECORD OF PRESIDENT DUMAINE NOTES AND REFERENCES INDEX