Hi All, I've just unearthed a real Gem of a movement, and I'm trying to find out more about it.

Has anyone heard of, or seen any info that might throw more light on Hanson's Patent Chronometers?
Or even a pointer to the actual patent applied for?

I've a chronometer movement here, inscribed 'Hanson's patent Chronometer No 24.

I've developed a goodly sized headache wading through all the keyword spammers on Google, and only come up with one reference to a single example which is in the British museum - but their example is No 28.

The museum entry states the following:

Movement:
Ebauche marks J.W. 16, 2, 28.
Front plate diam. 43.9 mm; back plate diam. 40.0 mm; frame h. 6.3 mm

Frame: Full plate construction, the back plate retained by screws, turned pillars, detachable barrel bridge. The movement hinge and case catch lodged on the recessed front plate under the dial. No dial plate, the dial feet passing through holes in the front plate and retained by pins. The back plate recessed for the balance, fitting flush with the plate, and having an engraved shaped balance cock. A separate bridge for the upper escapement bearings screwed to the under side of the back plate. All the brass parts gilded.

Fusee: Keywind fusee of the usual construction, with maintaining power having a steel ratchet wheel.

Going train: Usual construction and layout.

Jewelling: The balance staff and lower escape arbor pivots in pierced jewels with endstones. The upper escape arbor pivot in a pierced jewel. No other jewelling.

Escapement: A type of pivoted detent without the usual passing spring.
The escape wheel teeth are locked on a hollow crescent resembling the cylinder of a cylinder escapement.
On the impulse swing of the balance, a steel pin below the impulse roller contacts the nose of the detent. This turns the crescent, releasing a tooth of the escape wheel to give impulse. A light spring acting on a flat on the detent arbor returns the detent ready to lock the escape wheel.
On the return of the balance, the detent is moved so that the escape tooth is locked deeper on the edge of the crescent.

Balance: Plain steel three-armed balance, flat spiral balance spring of 10 full turns, with an index on the balance cock. No compensation. Diam. 16.0 mm, h. 0.76 mm.
____________________________________

The movement I have is virtually identical, except it has a cut Bi-metallic Compensation balance and timing screws, plus a diamond endstone.
The finish on the escape wheel and other components is quite incredible, even more so when considering this was made probably the mid 1800's.


John.

Movement:

Pillar Plate.

Working on some photo's of the balance and escapement.

John

Hi John

Nice movement, I wish I would run across things like that. Not much luck finding stuff like that in a town that wasn't settled until the 1880's!

I wonder if it could be related to what I found here? This is from 1859 London.

In case this isn't readable, it states Hanson 27th August 1859 1950 Charles Hanson, of Huddersfield, in the County of York. Watch Maker for an invention for - "An improvement in the chronometer escapement of a watch" Letters Patent Sealed.

I will see if I can find further.

Tom

This is from 1858

John

Does the description match your watch?

Tom

Last part

There is another patent of his from about 1846 I think I read, you can check it out here on page 258

http://books.google.com/books?...age&q=hanson&f=false

This is the drawing that goes with the description.

Tom

John

If this turns out to be the right guy, according to the 1871 England Census district 2, Huddersfield, Huddersfield, Yorkshire. There was a Charles Hanson born about 1801 in Huddersfield listed as a watchmaker, he was married to Mary Ann born about 1818 in Huddersfield & there was a son Fred Hanson born about 1844 in Huddersfield also a watchmaker.

If I am reading the census right, they had their shop at # 17&19 Stables St.

Tom

Tom, you're an absolute Marvel, Thanks a Million, looks like the right guy and patent.
Great to know he's a fellow Yorkshireman too, and only just down the road from my Birthplace! .......

One advantage of being a 'bottom feeder' and buying boxes full of junk, is you sometimes get real lucky and turn up stuff like this.
I used to pass by all the pricey fancy stuff (still do) and just buy boxes full of watchmaker's junk movements and clutter at antique fairs such as Newark and Swinderby international, just looking for stuff to practice on.
I've had this box sitting around for Lord knows how long, and only unearthed it because I'm having a major clearout.

I'm a bit older and wiser now, and knew instinctively this was something different when I hooked it out the box - I'm not often wrong these days.
American watches and makers are easy to identify and document compared to those of English and Swiss manufacture, and it's often plain old gut feeling when seeing some of this stuff, that you know somethings a cut above the rest.

To be honest, I wasn't sure whether it was English, Swiss or American until I saw the fusee work and ratchet toothed escape wheel - even the fusee work is very fine - the movement is also very slim at 7mm across the highest points on the plates.

An extra bonus too, was digging out the same box, a Pair cased verge by a Leeds maker and a scruffy looking Hebdomas in a Sterling case.......... oh yeah, and a couple of English lever fusees made by Whitby and would you believe it ..... Huddersfield makers ...... all Yorkshiremen!

Huge Thanks again Tom, where on Earth would we be without you!! ??

John

Wow, that's an exceedingly interesting movement and escapement. It would be neat to see it in operation, or at least to study it if the patent drawing had more detail. Very nice! I think now my piles of stuff will need a good going through as well!
Mike

Your welcome John, anytime I can research something just let me know, I believe I enjoy research more than the watches themselves.

But I agree with Michael, it would be nice to see that working, or maybe it already does?

Below are the city directory listings for 1837 & 1857 for West Ridding, Yorkshire. I am not to up on my geography here in the US let alone the UK but I am guessing since both Huddersfield & West Ridding are both in Yorkshire perhaps they are close together.

It also appears Charles had another son Charles who also became a watchmaker, I find a Charles listed in Yorkshire as a watchmaker into the 1890's & perhaps beyond but I would assume they are the son since the dad was born in 1801.

Tom

Thanks Mike, and you're right it is fascinating to watch.
It also makes a change for me to turn up something a bit different for once, I usually come on here to drool over what you guys keep turning up.

Tom, if you were to be paid for the research you do for us on here, you'd be a rich man for sure, but then you are ..... in ways money Can Never buy!
I can't think you enough for what you dug up on this little gem!

The movement Is a runner!
To be truthful, you can't see an awful lot, mainly what appears to be a roller table oscillating next to the escape wheel.

When I wind it up, it just kicks right off, and ticks away with a metallic 'out of beat' sort of tick - like an out of beat cylinder escapement.
It might be out of beat for all I know, but I've had the balance out, and when dropped back in, kicked right off again - can't be too ill!

At first I thought it was a cylinder escapement, but then thought Nah ..... Chronometer cylinder, what a joke! then hit Google and found the British museum entry.
The rest, Tom furnished for us!

OK, 'West Riding' (of Yorkshire) and Huddersfield!

'West Riding', refers to the (County of the) 'West Riding of Yorkshire', the largest of all the Yorkshire Counties, and Huddersfield is a large town, situated between Sheffield (to the South), Bradford (to the North) and 'generally' West of the City of York, from which Yorkshire takes it's name ....... then going further West you have Lancashire .... .

There used to be 3x Ridings, North, East and West, (no South 'Riding'), but officialdom keeps faffing around with names and boundaries, so they now resemble nothing like they did in Hanson's day.

These links will take you to some reading on the history etc of God's own County, easier than me filling the topic with it.
Enjoy!

http://www.yorkshireridings.org/

http://www.yorkshire-england.co.uk/index.html

John

Thanks for the information John.

Charles also had a patent in the USA.

Text of patent

This is just amazing Tom, Thank you.

I'm fiddling around with my microscope trying to take a short video of the escapement running, not sure if it'll work, or even post up on here yet though.

Guess what too, I also just turned up a J.F.Jacot movement, and a 1914 Silver Zenith wire lug watch in the same box ...........
think I'm going to have to look very closely at what's in there!
With a bit of (pushing it) luck, may even be the dial and motionwork for Hanson's watch yet, bottom of the box must be half an inch deep in screws, movement bits and other junk!

John.