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The Encyclopedia of Horology

Serial-number guide

Rockford Watch Company Serial Numbers

Estimated

What a Rockford Watch Company serial number can establish, what it cannot, and how to record a date estimate another researcher could check.

Diagram

maker or gradeserialcase hallmarksimport and assay marks
Schematic: where markings are found. An outline schematic drawn to show the arrangement of the parts discussed here. It is not a dimensioned working drawing and does not depict a particular maker's calibre.

Method

Reading the number, step by step

  1. 1. Find the movement number

    As with the other American factories in this list, the movement serial is unrelated to any case number, since Rockford movements were commonly sold to be cased by the retailer or an independent casemaker.

  2. 2. Understand what it encodes

    Movement serial numbers are broadly sequential across Rockford's relatively short production run and can suggest an approximate era via published reconstructed tables; the grade name/number on the movement is a separate specification identifier.

  3. 3. Judge how precise the date can be

    Estimated: acknowledged gaps exist in the surviving record, and Rockford's comparatively short and sometimes financially troubled production history makes reconstructed ranges less consistently documented than for larger factories.

  4. 4. Check the records behind the tables

    Rockford Watch Company records survive only in part; researchers affiliated with the NAWCC have compiled approximate serial-number ranges from surviving catalogues, advertising material and cross-checked examples rather than from a complete factory ledger.

Quick facts

Manufacturer
Rockford Watch Company
Dating confidence
Estimate only — see notes
Editorial status
Estimated

Sources & references

  1. NAWCC published Rockford Watch Company resources
  2. Community-maintained Rockford serial lookup tables (secondary reconstructions)

Where sources disagree, the disagreement is stated rather than resolved silently.

Limits

What the number does not prove

Questions

Frequently asked

Where is the serial number on a Rockford Watch Company watch?
As with the other American factories in this list, the movement serial is unrelated to any case number, since Rockford movements were commonly sold to be cased by the retailer or an independent casemaker.
What do Rockford Watch Company serial numbers mean?
Movement serial numbers are broadly sequential across Rockford's relatively short production run and can suggest an approximate era via published reconstructed tables; the grade name/number on the movement is a separate specification identifier.
How accurate is dating a Rockford Watch Company watch by serial number?
Estimated: acknowledged gaps exist in the surviving record, and Rockford's comparatively short and sometimes financially troubled production history makes reconstructed ranges less consistently documented than for larger factories.
Where are Rockford Watch Company production records held?
Rockford Watch Company records survive only in part; researchers affiliated with the NAWCC have compiled approximate serial-number ranges from surviving catalogues, advertising material and cross-checked examples rather than from a complete factory ledger.

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