Today we celebrate what it means to be American—a celebration of the diverse people, cultures and landscapes all coming together as the building blocks for our country. At Timex, specifically, we’re reflecting on what it means for us to be American watchmakers and how we celebrate our heritage.
When asked about what this project has meant to him, our watch technician, Leonard Provenzano III, said, “It’s as simple as having a sense of pride. While making this watch, I feel pride in knowing that this is an American-made watch.”
In 1854, we disrupted an industry—taking traditional European clockmaking and layering in American industrial ingenuity. We democratized timekeeping and, over the years, we kept innovating. Our watches went under water as part of our Timex Torture tests on live television, were shot into space, raced across the finish line and also provided a whole new way to tell time in the dark with the introduction of our INDIGLO® backlight.
Always striving to be innovators in the art of timekeeping, we wanted to get back to our roots. When we decided to create our American Documents® Collection, we knew it was important to embrace what it meant to be all-American watchmakers.
This meant sourcing American materials and working with American craftsmen from all over the country. In addition to providing us with the materials needed to create our American Documents Collection, we had the opportunity to learn more about these American workers and the pride that goes into their crafts—from sourcing metals to finishing glass components to creating the leather straps and everything in between.
Each part of our American Documents watch is made in America using American materials and a high-quality Swiss movement. And, perhaps most importantly, everything created starts with talented Americans who shared their craft with us.
We started with a first in modern American watchmaking, creating a drop-forged case to maintain the grain and strength of the American-sourced stainless-steel. It is then complemented by its hand-polished top ring and stainless-steel crown with a brass crown insert that honors our 1854 roots in Waterbury, Connecticut—The Brass City.
The stitched leather strap is made by American craftsmen using American hides from S.B. Foot Tanning Company in Red Wing, Minnesota—a company that has been in near-continuous operation for 147 years. The double-layer strap is carefully stitched around a solid buckle and naturally shapes itself to your wrist.
Traditional watchmaking meets modern technology with our Gorilla® Glass 3 NDR (Native Damage Resistance). The scratch and impact-resistant crystal, sourced from Rhode Island, is cut by a precision optics maker using the same process used to create telescopes!
Completing the watch is our commemorative case back coin. Stamped from US-sourced brass and plated with Aged Waterbury Brass to match the color of our original timepieces, the case back coin is hand-polished before completing the watch and shipping it off in an indigenous solid cherry wood case that has been carefully made by hand.
It’s not enough to create our American Documents watch using American-sourced materials. This collection comes together at our Timex headquarters in Middlebury, Connecticut—just a few miles away from the location of our original factory in Waterbury.
So, again, today we celebrate. We celebrate the freedom to innovate and create and for all of the watchmakers who paved the way. But, mostly, we celebrate all of the people who helped bring us to this moment and our great country built by the innovators and creators who inspire us every day.
Happy 4th of July!
DISCOVER MORE OF THE AMERICA WE LOVE:
As we set out to find the perfect materials for our first American-made watch in decades, we traveled throughout the United States with photographer Bryan Schutmaat to capture some of the incredible landscapes of our country. The diverse landscapes and cultures helped inspire us, and we hope they inspire you too.
Follow along on our journey with Bryan on Instagram. And show us how you wear your American Documents watch by tagging@timex and using#timex or#TimexAmericanDocuments!