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The Encyclopedia of Horology

Movement · Pocket watch movement

Manistee Watch Company movement serial number 31702

Partially verified

This uncased pocket watch movement was produced by the Manistee Watch Company of Manistee, Michigan, and is engraved with serial number 31702. The movement is marked with 17 jewels and exhibits decorated plates with exposed winding wheels and a balance wheel with timing screws. The source references a 1912 Norris, Alister & Co. catalog describing Manistee 16-size movements as thin-model, 3/4-plate nickel designs with exposed pallets, Breguet hairspring, and compensating balance. The company offered movements in open-face and hunting configurations before terminating operations by late 1912.

Top-down view of the uncased Manistee Watch Company movement serial number 31702
Top-down view of the uncased Manistee Watch Company movement serial number 31702 — Nathan Moore. Rights pending — permission not yet requested. Original source

Catalogue identity

Source
blog.pocketwatchdatabase.com
Category
Movement · Pocket watch movement
Maker / attribution
Manistee Watch Company
Reference
Not recorded
Catalogue / lot identifier
Source URL identifies the listing
Source-reported date
circa 1912
Country
United States
Source-reported serial
31702

Source-reported attribution and specifications are not independent authentication. A listing does not establish present ownership, current display, availability or permission to reproduce.

Object description

Object Identity and Markings

This artifact is an uncased pocket watch movement produced by the Manistee Watch Company, a short-lived manufacture based in Manistee, Michigan. As recorded in visible observations, the plate is engraved "MANISTEE WATCH CO. / MANISTEE, MICH." along the upper edge. Additional engraving on the lower plate adjacent to the winding wheels reads "17 JEWELS" and serial number "31702".

The object is documented solely as an uncased movement; dial, hands, and case are missing and not recorded in the source. Source documentation associates this movement serial number with the firm's history, noting that while trade catalogs were circulating in 1912, the enterprise failed by the end of that year.

Evidence for this section
  • “Plate is engraved 'MANISTEE WATCH CO. / MANISTEE, MICH.' along the upper edge”
  • “Engraving on lower plate adjacent to winding wheels reads '17 JEWELS' and serial '31702'”
  • “short-lived Manistee Watch Company based in Manistee, Michigan.”
  • “While this catalog was being distributed in 1912, the Manistee Watch Company was on its last leg, ultimately failing by the end of the year.”

Visible Plate Construction and Regulating Organ

Direct visual observation shows that the movement features wave-pattern damaskeening across nickel-finished plates and winding wheels. The uncased movement displays exposed winding wheels on the plates.

The regulating assembly visible in the record includes a balance wheel featuring timing screws, an overcoil hairspring, and an engraved index on the balance cock.

Evidence for this section
  • “Features wave-pattern damaskeening across nickel-finished plates and winding wheels”
  • “Balance wheel features timing screws, an overcoil hairspring, and an engraved index on the balance cock”

Trade Catalog Context and Movement Specifications

Additional context regarding the company's 16-size production appears in an excerpt from a 1912 Norris, Alister & Co. catalog quoted in the source. That catalog described the Manistee 16-size movement as a "Nickel, Thin Model, 3/4 plate, well finished 17 Jewel movement" featuring "exposed pallets, compensating balance wheel, Breguet hair spring, polished micrometric regulator, double roller escapement, with steel escape wheel, exposed winding wheels."

The 1912 catalog listed the movement in both open-face and hunting configurations for $11.70. It was accompanied by a printed guarantee stating that parts would be furnished free of charge upon request to the company's general offices at the Masonic Temple, Chicago, Illinois. However, these 16-size catalog specifications derive from trade advertising cited in the article rather than a factory ledger specifically linked to serial number 31702.

Evidence for this section
  • “Nickel, Thin Model, 3/4 plate, well finished 17 Jewel movement.”
  • “exposed pallets, compensating balance wheel, Breguet hair spring, polished micrometric regulator, double roller escapement, with steel escape wheel, exposed winding wheels.”
  • “The Manistee movement was listed in both open-face and hunting configurations for $11.70.”
  • “Report all requests for material and complaints of imperfect watches direct to the general offices, Masonic Temple, Chicago, Illinois.”

Open research questions

  • Does movement serial number 31702 measure to standard American 16-size dimensions when gauged directly across the pillar plate?
  • Is movement serial 31702 laid out in an open-face or hunting configuration, as indicated by the stem position relative to the balance and dial pins?
  • Does the uncased movement retain its underlying motion works (hour wheel, cannon pinion, minute wheel) on the dial side?

Source evidence

Recorded claims and source quotations for Manistee Watch Company movement serial number 31702
FieldSource-reported valueSource quotation
Serial number31702“Manistee Watch Company Movement #31702”
Manufacturer locationManistee, Michigan“short-lived Manistee Watch Company based in Manistee, Michigan.”
Jewel count17 jewels“well finished 17 Jewel movement.”
Period of operationThrough 1912“While this catalog was being distributed in 1912, the Manistee Watch Company was on its last leg, ultimately failing by the end of the year.”
Wholesale catalog price (1912)$11.70“The Manistee movement was listed in both open-face and hunting configurations for $11.70.”
General office addressMasonic Temple, Chicago, Illinois“Report all requests for material and complaints of imperfect watches direct to the general offices, Masonic Temple, Chicago, Illinois.”

Visible details

  • Plate is engraved 'MANISTEE WATCH CO. / MANISTEE, MICH.' along the upper edge
  • Engraving on lower plate adjacent to winding wheels reads '17 JEWELS' and serial '31702'
  • Features wave-pattern damaskeening across nickel-finished plates and winding wheels
  • Balance wheel features timing screws, an overcoil hairspring, and an engraved index on the balance cock

Research qualifications

  • Dial, hands, and case are missing; only the uncased movement is documented
  • The 16-size specifications derive from a 1912 trade catalog quoted in the article rather than a specific factory ledger entry for serial 31702

Photograph identity and source facts were screened before import; rights clearance remains pending.

Consulted source

Manistee Watch Company Movements: "Guaranteed by the Factory From Original Defect" - Pocket Watch Database Blog

Reviewed 2026-10-21 · Record 0e65c148a3

Terms in this record

Glossary explanations for terms named in this object’s record.

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