Private Label Trade Names on American Pocket Watches: “Santa Fe Special” Part 15
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The beautiful gold-filled cases paired with Santa Fe Special watches from the Santa Fe Watch Company were signed with the company name on the inside cover, creating a “triple-signed” watch on the dial, movement, and case.
The exact inscriptions were changed slightly during production to comply with new laws regarding gold-filled case guarantees. The two most common variants are marked:
“The Santa Fe Watch Co. Guarantees This Case to be Made of Two Plates of Solid Gold Over Composition And To Wear 25 Years” [Before 1924]
and
“The Santa Fe Watch Co. Double Stock Case is Made of Two Plates of Solid Gold Over Composition” [After 1924]
While the markings do not identify the manufacturer of the case, the c.1920 Santa Fe Watch Company catalog draws attention to the Illinois Watch Case Company with an elaborate illustration of the factory, explaining:
“The lower panel shows the Illinois Watch Case Factory, where our beautiful cases for the “Santa Fe Special” are designed and produced. Special new equipment was added to this factory at great expense, in order to create and finish the three-color inlay enamel monogram cases of the “Santa Fe Special.””c.1920 Santa Fe Watch Company Catalog
