Waltham U.S. 1917-H Ordnance Miliatry Issue - Korean War Field Watch - Cream Lume Dial - Circa 1946

Every collector knows the A-11, the black-dialed hacking watch that Elgin, Waltham, and Bulova built by the tens of thousands for the airmen of the Second World War, the one the trade still calls the watch that won the war. Alongside it, the Ordnance Department issued the man on the ground a general-service field watch, cream-dialed, without the hacking, its seconds running in a small register at six. When the war ended the Army kept the design in service, the wartime ORD DEPT stamp giving way to the Ordnance number 1917-H, which first appeared around 1946. This Waltham is one of those early examples, built by the same firm that had turned out the A-11 all through the war.

The Waltham is the one you cannot find. The 1917-H turns up now and then with a Bulova or Hamilton movement inside, but this version is genuinely scarce, and right now there is not a single example for sale anywhere on the open market. This one has survived the better part of eighty years in exceptional condition, its case never polished, the original brushed finish and the sharp, full lugs exactly as Star left them.

The dial has gone a warm aged ivory. The hours are boxed Arabic numerals filled with tan radium and edged in black, with a small black dot at each minute around the rim. The seconds run in a sunken register at six, and the hour and minute hands are an ornate syringe and cathedral style, their radium aged to the same soft tone as the numbers. It carries no maker's name, which is what you would expect on a watch whose identity was stamped into the case, not printed on the dial. Built to be read at a glance and in poor light, it still reads that way.

The case is stainless steel, made by the Star Watch Case Company of Ludington, Michigan, the firm that cased most of the American military watches of the period. It was built for the field, a screw back sealing a deep dust cover over the movement. The back carries the case ordnance number 7197108 and the case style 2-39561-6, and the body is stamped U.S. 1917-H. Those are issue marks, the Army's record of a watch it owned and put on a serviceman's wrist, and the line between a genuine service watch and a civilian one made to look the part.

Inside is the Waltham U.S.A. 6/0-D caliber, seventeen jewels, serial Q49380, adjusted to four positions, the sign of a well-made movement. It does not hack, in keeping with the Ordnance pattern rather than the airman's A-11.

The strap is a genuine new old stock military webbing band in tan, five-eighths of an inch wide, made in two pieces by the American Strap Company, with a steel buckle and marked Extra Long. It is correct in type and period for the watch.

The watch is running and keeping good time.

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.

I am happy to service any unserviced watch listed on the site, please inquire about service charges when purchasing.

All sales final.