Complete History of Watch and Clock Making in America

Charles S. Crossman’s Complete History of Watch and Clock Making in America is widely regarded as the foundational text on early American watch and clock manufacturing. Written in the 1880s, when many pioneers of the industry were still alive, this work offers unmatched firsthand insight into the birth of watchmaking by machinery in the United States.

Crossman, a watch jobber and jeweler with deep industry connections, traveled the country gathering stories and technical descriptions from legendary figures such as Aaron L. Dennison, Edward Howard, W. H. Keith, and Ambrose Webster. He recorded the details of early American watch movements—some of which have not survived except through his descriptions—and chronicled the rise of manufacturing powerhouses like the Elgin National Watch Company and the American Waltham Watch Company.

Though not without its flaws, Crossman’s history remains the most frequently cited reference on 19th-century American horology. It captures a transformative moment in Industrial Revolution-era America, when timekeeping moved from artisan craft to large-scale precision manufacturing.