Waltham 15-jewel M57 Appleton, Tracy & Co

After the failure of the Boston Watch Co, the venture would be renamed twice more before merging with the real-estate-holding Waltham Improvement Co to form the American Watch Co in 1859. One of those early incarnations was the Appleton, Tracy & Co, named for one-time owner James Appleton and Philadelphia creditor Elias Tracy, and it's for that pairing that this Model 1857 was marked. Running at the "slow" gear train speed of 16,200 beats-per-hour, this delightfully untouched example carries the full jewel count of fifteen and was just thoroughly restored with a new alloy mainspring to power it through the next half-century. It fronts a correct American Watch dial and matching blued hands, and is housed in a gold-filled G W Ladd case with tight hinges and very little wear. Simply owning this piece makes you time traveler, harkening back to the days of President Ulysses S Grant's second term in office nearly 150 years ago. Imagine all of the history contained in this piece as you carry it, occasionally pulling it out to show envious friends and family. Period key included!