Illinois Watch Company

The Rado Watch Company is more than 100 years old. Brothers Ernst, Fritz and Werner Schlup founded the company as Schlup & Co. in Lengnau, Switzerland, in 1917. During the 1950s, the brothers introduced the Rado watch brand and subsequently changed the name of their company to correspond with their successful collection. Find a range of Rado watches on 1stDibs.

Here are some of the oldest British watch companies: Founded in 1846, the Fears Watch Company of Bristol operated continuously until the 1970s, when the quartz crisis led to financial difficulties. The founder's great-great-great grandson relaunched the brand in 2016. Other British brands with long histories include Smiths Watches, established in 1851, and the Rochester Watch Company, which opened in 1900. Shop a wide range of watches on 1stDibs.

No. The USA-based Elgin Watch Company sadly closed its doors in 1968. The rights to the Elgin name were purchased by MZ Berger Inc., which manufactures watches in China and distributes them outside of conventional watch shops. On 1stDibs, find a collection of authentic Elgin watches from some of the world’s top sellers.

Yes, Vacheron Constantin is the oldest watch company in the world that remains in operation today. It was founded in 1755 by Jean-Marc Vacheron, the son of a master weaver in Geneva who instilled in his children his belief that working with one’s hands is a noble endeavor. Vacheron took his father’s convictions to heart and opened his watchmaking workshop at the age of 24. The watchmaker made custom watches for royalty and was an innovator in its field. Since becoming known as Vacheron & Constantin in 1819 — and later, Vacheron Constantin — the company has enjoyed international acclaim for everything from jewelry watches to provocatively shaped designs. On 1stDibs, explore a wide range of Vacheron Constantin watches.

The history of the American Waltham Watch Company started in 1854, when Aaron Lufkin Dennison founded the company in Waltham, Massachusetts. There, it began to manufacture watches with interchangeable parts, a new approach to production that allowed the company to prepare watches much more quickly than its competitors. Still, the company experienced economic hardships during its early years, and Dennison was forced to sell his company to Royal E. Robbins in 1857. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, Robbins and his business partners, Henry Asher Robbins and Daniel F. Appleton, capitalized on the military's need for reliable watches by introducing an inexpensive $13 timepiece called the William Ellery. Following the war, the company became a supplier to major railways. After a period of sluggish sales as a result of the Panic of 1907, the American Waltham Watch Company revived the business by expanding its manufacturing into fuses and other essential materials for World War I. By the 1920s, the company was producing wristwatches and continued to do so despite changes in ownership during the 1950s and ’60s. By the 1970s, the company was no longer manufacturing watches but had licensed its name to other watchmakers, a practice that continues to this day. On 1stDibs, find a range of American Waltham Watch Company watches.

No, the Waltham Watch Company does not still exist. The watchmaker went out of business in 1981. However, a subsidiary of the original company, Waltham, SA, does continue to manufacture timepieces. Shop a range of Waltham Watch Company watches on 1stDibs.