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Re: Key Wind Pocket Watch
That's good advice--I certainly follow it with my 140-year-old watch--and the quote below will demonstrate isn't bogus. However, at the time of the Civil War, most people would seem to have kept their watches under their pillows at night so they could be accessed readily at need. Countless 19th century accounts, novels, etc., refer to gentlemen doing this. The practice was apparently still so widespread by the time that pocket watches were fading out of general use that in 1931 the Hamilton Watch Co., in a guide to "The Care of Your Watch," including the following warning:
Here is the recommendation to keep the watch upright that I referred to above. So while it would behove us to keep our period watches vertical when at home, correct use in the field would probably be to tuck them under whatever we're using as a pillow at night.
A few years ago, the forum had a very nice thread concerning proper storage of old timepieces, and it mentioned they were kept vertical in a stand rather than flat on the back (horizontal). I don't remember if that was bogus advice or not, but such stands do exist and can be found in antique shops from time to time, and I've kept my 154 yr old keywind upright when it is not in use.
At night your pocket watch is best kept in your vest pocket. Do not place it under your pillow [italics mine] or in other places where it is liable to be jarred to the floor or subjected to varying degrees of temperature. If it is inconvenient to keep it in your vest pocket, place it in a position where it is not liable to fall and where it will not be near open windows or hot radiators.
Here is the recommendation to keep the watch upright that I referred to above. So while it would behove us to keep our period watches vertical when at home, correct use in the field would probably be to tuck them under whatever we're using as a pillow at night.
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