Star Watch Case Company Serial Numbers
Star Watch Case Company Serial Numbers
Star Watch Case Company Serial Numbers Lookup

For the vast majority of Bulova watches, no case manufacturer signature other than Bulova's appears anywhere on the case, and every genuine Bulova watch bears one of the known Bulova case signatures--of which there were many more than you might think. With just a couple of easily recognized exceptions, a genuine Bulova watch will bear the Bulova signature somewhere on the back of the case, either on the inside or the outside, or both. Exceptions to that rule include: 1) early 1900s models that bear only the American Standard or Wadsorth name, and 2) some late 1970s LCD/LED models that bear only a Swiss maker's name or symbol or no case signature at all. There are quite a few instances where another case manufacturer's name or symbol, or even a country name, such as Germany or Hong Kong, appears along side the Bulova name. Examples of that phenomenon are discussed below, along with the two instances where Bulova's name does not appear on the case at all.

Dennison Watch Case Company Star Serial Numbers. Star Watch Case Company. The Star Watch Case Company was known to make some mid-century military issue cases for Bulova and other watch manufacturers, and those watches bear the Star signature and trademark symbol inside the case, while the Bulova name is printed on the outside of the case back. These numbers are stamped on the back (outside) of the case. If there is no two symbols, it could be that your watch was made before 1948. The code is very simple. L=50, M=60, N=70, P=80, T=90. The code was usually stamped on the back of the watch case. For exabple, If you have a Bulova watch with the stamp M3 then it was made in 1963.

The serial number must be off the movement of the watch (where the gears are), not off the case. These two serial numbers are unrelated. For more information see the Watch Serial Number web page. You must give the letter prefix of the serial number, if there is one.

Toward the bottom of the page, I have cataloged all the case signatures in my collection and listed them by decade. So, if you're looking to match a particular signature configuration, you may want to check that list. If you have an example of a case signature that I don't list there, please send it to me so that I can include it in this discussion.

Wadsworth Watch Case Co.

We have recently verified through vintage advertisements that Bulova used another watch case company for early models, in addition to American Standard, which is discussed below. That additional case maker is the Wadsworth Watch Case Co. Advertisements declaring Wadsworth as the maker of the case for two different lines of watches known to be early Bulova products--the Lady Maxim and Huson Maxim--are provided below. Moreover, we now have an example of another early Bulova wrist watch--the Rubaiyat--housed in a Wadsworth case. Currently available advertisements and actual watches examples suggest that Bulova used Wadsworth cases both prior to, and concurrently with, cases made under the American Standard name. (For more information about the Rubaiyat, Lady Maxim, and Hudson Maxim lines of watches, review Searching for the Beginning).

According to the book 'History of the American Watch Case', by Warren H. Niebling, the Wadsworth Watch Case Co. was formed on January 4, 1892, when it was incorporated in Kentucky. The company manufactured both solid gold and gold-filled cases and had a reputation for high quality. After 1900, their cases were sold directly to watch making companies, rather than only to wholesalers.

According to trademark records, Wadsworth owned seven trademarks, including the 'Referee', which was registered in 1914 and appears in the watch example shown below. The company also trademarked 'Wadsworth' in various scripts, with first use reported as 1916, as shown in the listings below.

Excerpts from the 'United States Horological Trademark Index', by Kurtis Meyers

Star Watch Case Company Serial Numbers

1922 Bulova Lady Maxim (left) and 1921 Bulova Hudson Maxim (right) advertisements specifying Wadsworth cases

Bulova Rubaiyat wrist watch c. 1917 in Wadsworth 'Referee' case

American Standard Watch Case Co.

American Standard was a Bulova owned subsidiary at least as early as 1931, per the published annual business report for that year. According to trademark records, Bulova claimed rights to the American Standard name on July 28, 1927 and reported first use of the name on Aug. 1, 1918. Below is an excerpt from the Bulova section of the 'United States Horological Trademark Index' (copyrighted material):

Based on that information, there can be little doubt that Bulova used the American Standard name, and early Bulova watches bearing that signature--either alone or along with the Bulova name--are legitimate. However, it is important to note that there are actually two different American Standard case signatures, and it may be that only one of those falls within the trademark rights presented above.

It has recently been discovered that some very early Rubaiyat watches have cases signed 'American Standard W.C.Co.' versus simply 'American Standard' as seen above in the trademark owned by Bulova. It is my theory that this other version of the American Standard case signature pre-dates Bulova's ownership of the company and of the name 'American Standard'. Thus, watch cases signed 'American Standard W.C.Co.' pre-date August 1918, when Bulova first used 'American Standard' on its watch cases. This name change may also be an indication of when Bulova purchased the American Standard Watch Case Co. Below is an example of a Rubaiyat watch in a case signed 'American Standard W.C.Co.'.

c. 1917 Rubaiyat with case signed 'American Standard W.C.Co.'

Beginning in 1918, the typical signature seen on early Bulova cases is simply 'American Standard', along with 'Warranted 20 Years' or 'Warranted 25 Years' and a globe symbol. Bulova eventually trademarked the word 'Monogram' for use in watch cases, and reported first use as November 1919. Thereafter, and the term 'Monogram Quality' appears on some watch cases.

Many early Bulova cases (i.e., late 1900s and early 1920s) were made by the American Standard Watch Case Company and bear only the American Standard signature on the case. By 1924, we start to see the Bulova name appear on some watch cases. At that time, cases were signed 'American Standard' or 'Bulova Quality' or 'Bulova, American Standard' or 'Bulova Quality, American Standard'. By 1925, the 'American Standard' only signature is no longer seen. Below are examples of the American Standard case signatures seen on early 1920s Bulova watches.

Note the globe symbol used on these cases. Per the 1904 publication of the 'Trademarks of the Jewelry and Kindred Trades', the globe symbol was registerd to the J. Bulova Co. (predecessor to the Bulova Watch Company). Below is an excerpt from that text. The globe symbol appears on cases signed 'American Standard' through 1921, at which time the globe is replaced by a shield symbol, shown in several examples below.

Excerpt from 1904 'Trademarks of the Jewelry and Kindred Trades'

Early Rubaiyat model - 1919

No movement caliber, 15 jewels

No date code on movement

Movement signature: Bulova W. Co.

Early Lady Maxim model - 1921

AAII, 15 Jewel movement

No date code on movement

Movement signature: Bulova W. Co.

Unknown model - 1922

10.A.I., 15 jewel movement

No date code on movement

Movement signature: Bulova W. Co.

Model '150-B' - 1922

10.A.I., 15 jewel movement

No date code on movement

Movement signature: Bulova W. Co.

Unknown model - 1924

10A, 16 jewel movement

1924 date code on movement

Movement signature: Bulova Watch Co.

Treasurer - 1925

10P, 15 jewel movement

1925 date code on movement

Movement signature: Bulova Watch Co.

Moving on to the 1930s, on quite a few Bulova watches, including some very well-known and often seen models dating to the mid-1930s, a sheld-like symbol appears on the back of the case beside the Bulova name. Sometimes this signature combination is seen in conjunction with the standard Bulova signature inside the case; other times it appears with no inside case signature (see below for many examples of both s