Elgin National Watch Company Observatory
|
Elgin National Watch Company Observatory
|
|
 |
|
 
|
|
| Location | 312 Watch St., Elgin, Illinois, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 42°1′48″N 88°16′24″W / 42.03000°N 88.27333°WCoordinates: 42°1′48″N 88°16′24″W / 42.03000°N 88.27333°W |
| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1910 |
| Architect | George Hunter |
| Architectural style | Classical Revival |
| NRHP Reference # | 94000976 |
| Added to NRHP | August 16, 1994 |
The Elgin National Watch Company Observatory is a historic building in Elgin, in the U.S. state of Illinois. It was built in 1910 to serve the Elgin National Watch Company two blocks to the west. The two-story observatory provided data on time that was scientifically accurate to a tenth of a second. Manufacturers could then produce a more accurate watch. The observatory was an important part of the company's legacy, and they even changed their motto to reflect this. By 1950, the Elgin National Watch Company could no longer compete with wristwatch companies. The observatory was donated to a local school district and became known as the School District U-46 Planetarium/Observatory. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1994.
Elgin was first settled in 1834. In 1850, the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad connected to the city, bolstering the economy. Fourteen years later, two employees at the American Watch Company decided to build their own watch factory with Chicago watchmaker John C. Adams. The National Watch Company was incorporated on August 18, 1864 with $100,000 in capital. Former Chicago mayor Benjamin Wright Raymond suggested Elgin as a location for the factory. The first watch model, named after Raymond, first reached retailers on April 1, 1867. Watches were a burgeoning industry, as the American industrial age demanded efficient timing. The watches were an instant success, and became so synonymous with its hometown that the company re-branded itself the Elgin National Watch Company in 1874. By 1907, the company sold over 600,000 watches—almost one-third of the market share—and employed 3,200 people.
Prior to the creation of time zones, cities had substantial differences in the standards of time—in Wisconsin alone, over thirty-eight times were used at a given moment. In 1908, Theodore Roosevelt finally demanded that the United States Bureau of Standards encourage precise timing across the nation. In 1910, the Elgin National Watch Company decided to respond by building its own observatory so that the timing in its watches would be scientifically accurate. Dr. William W. Payne of the Goodsell Observatory was named the first director. Sidereal time was determined on Riefler Clock No. 220 by measuring the position of the stars in the night sky based on the position of the telescope (which could only move north-south along a meridian line). Eleven vertical wires were inside the telescope eyepiece. An astronomer would press a button every time a star appeared to cross one of the wires, which would send an impulse to the clock. This was compared with the solar time observed on the Riefler Clock No. 224 and results published by the American Ephemeris and Nautical Almanac. The result was a clock that was accurate to the hundredth of a second. In the factory, the sounder audibly ticked off the seconds so that workers could set the watches accurately. After the opening of the observatory, the Elgin National Watch Company adopted the slogan: "Elgin Takes The Time From The Stars And Puts It In Your Pocket". The Illinois government also equipped the observatory with thermometers, a thermograph, barometer, barograph, rain gauge, and weather vane. This was intended to provide data on weather to Springfield, but was also reproduced in local newspapers. The company was watchful of humidity, as this could affect delicate processes.
...
Wikipedia