Watch

Object Name:

Watch

Object ID:

1922.024

Creator:

Arnold, JohnWatchmaker; Savage, John Y.; Woodruff & AddisonJeweler

Place of Origin:

San Francisco, CA / New York, NY

Date:

1849

Description:

Watch and Chain. Gold, steel, porcelain and glass. Presented to Daniel Webster in 1850 by a group of New York businessmen. Watch and chain are both massive. Watch case is 22 karat gold; chain is 18 karat. Back of watch opens to permit key winding. A second back opens to reveal the movement. Delicate scrolled hands and separate dial for second hand. Machine turning on back of case with shield in center. Adjustable shield-shaped sliding piece on chain which is inscribed on both sides: side 1 - " To / Hon. Daniel Webster / The advocate of / the Union & / defender of its / Constitution." Side 2 - "From / Geo. W. Egleston / Manufactured by / Woodruff & Addison / San Francisco / Sept. 29, 1849." Inside back of case stamped "JOHN Y. SAVAGE"; eagle and "18" within elongated octagon; and "42/72". Inside second back stamped "42/72". Back of movement engraved "John Arnold / London". Stem stamped "18".

Material:

Metal
Gold
Porcelain
Steel
Grass

Dimensions:

H-3.5 D-0.75 Dia-2.5 inches

Provenance:

The watch and chain were gifts to Daniel Webster in 1850. The watch was given by a group of New York businessmen who were originally from New England. The chain, made of 1849 California gold, was presented by George W. Egleston of San Francisco. They were given at the same time. They ultimately were acquired by Otho Wiecker, an antique dealer in Harvard Square, Cambridge. They had been sold to a Boston jewelry store for the metal content by a family member. Mr. Wiecker first offered the watch and chain to the State of Massachusetts and then to the New Hampshire Historical Society, which bought them in 1922.

Credit Line:

New Hampshire Historical Society Purchase

People:

Webster, Daniel (1782-1852), Vose, Charles, Griswold, George, Grinnell, Moses, Barstow, Caleb, Thomas, John, Benson, Alfred G., Hoxie, Joseph, Spofford, Paul, Tileston, Thomas, Alsop, J. W., Jr., Chauncey, Henry, Warren, George, Beals, S. J., Arnold, John, Savage, John Y. (1788-c. 1865), Addison, Jonathan S., Woodruff, William A. ( -1850)

Subjects:

Gold rushes, Gold, Business people, Businessmen, Gifts, Memento, U.S. Constitution, Union