Elgin Calendar Automatic - Full Month Dial - Circa 1968-1972

In Elgin, Illinois, the watch company kept its own observatory two blocks from the factory gates. On clear nights an astronomer there watched a star cross the wires of a telescope and marked the instant it passed. The observatory's clocks were held to those instants, correct to a hundredth of a second, and the watches at the factory were set from them. For years the company's advertisements said that Elgin took its time from the stars.

The Elgin here was made circa 1968 to 1972, and its dial carries the whole month. The dates run one to thirty-one in rows of small white boxes, a framed column of days stands beside them, and Sunday is printed in red. The column of days sets the way a date sets, all seven jumping together, and one setting holds for the whole month: every date lines up with its day. The window at three shows the thirtieth. Find the thirty in its row, and the day beside it reads Tuesday. At the time of this listing, not one other example of this watch appears for sale anywhere online.

The dial beneath the calendar is grey, ringed by fine white lines that radiate toward its edge. Polished markers stand at the hours, their lume gone a deep butterscotch, and the hands hold the same aged fill. A slim seconds hand sweeps past the boxes once a minute. A few light age spots sit on the field, and the printing is sharp throughout.

The movement is the UT-52, self-winding, with twenty-five jewels. A weight across its back swings with the arm and keeps the mainspring wound.

The case is stainless steel, cushion shaped, its brushed top cut with polished sides. The strap enters under hooded lugs, and a ribbed crown sits low at the four. The screwed back is stamped Water Resistant, UT-50, All Stainless Steel, Automatic. Light scratches run through the brushing, and the polished center of the back is scratched from years against the wrist.  It comes on a grey leather strap. The watch runs, and its service history is unknown.

Terms: Please review all photos carefully as they are a part of the listing. This is a vintage timepiece. Accuracy, power reserve, and water resistance are not guaranteed. Vintage watches may require periodic service. Performance can vary with wear, temperature, and position.

All sales final.