If you look you will find that there are a lot of watches that were given as gifts on Christmas. Most have fairly simple inscriptions. This one invited a little more research. A few years ago I bought a Waltham Colonial A "Maximus" in a very fine 14K case. The following inscription had me wondering who this recipient was to warrant such a gift:

"Presented to W.S. Miller on the Fiftieth Anniversary of his Wedding by the Directors of Standard Oil Company (California) as a tribute of their friendship during years of association in the upbuilding of the Company. Christmas - 1915"

It turns out that William S. Miller was, at the time of presentation, a Director and Vice-President of Standard Oil of California. He started in the oil business in 1875 and ultimately became Chairman of the Board. The picture of him comes from a corporate history of the company.

Hi Jerry!

What a great story and research! How remarkable you have a picture of the original owner from 1915 time period of a watch now in your collection! Wow!