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The National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors (NAWCC) is an American non-profit organization with about 25,000 members. The NAWCC was founded in 1943 by members of the Horological Society of New York and the Philadelphia Watchmakers' Guild who wished to create a national organization. The membership is now divided into over 175 "Chapters" which can be based on a locality or a special interest ie, the local chapter for New York is Chapter 2 and the Early American Watch Club is Chapter 149. The vast majority of chapters are US location based, a number are also in Canada and Australia (which do not have national horological collectors associations) and a handful are elsewhere. Special interest chapters range from "Tower Clocks" to "Horological Science". Annually the Ward Francillion Time Symposium is held in late October, where eminent speakers present their research on a focused topic. The 2007 Symposium topic was "The Impact of Mass Production on the American Clock Industry" and was held in York, PA. The topic of this year's Symposium is "Electric Horology" and will focus on its impact on timekeeping and several key manufacturers in the United States. The speakers listed on the "Speakers" page are considered to be experts on their subject and selected to give a wide cross section of information on the topic of Electric Horology. Springfield, Illinois was selected as the site of this year's Symposium due
to it's central location in the United States and extensive horological
history. The home of the Illinois Watch Company, later purchased by the Hamilton
Watch Company, it was also the home of the Sangamo Electric Company. The
Sangamo Electric Company was founded in 1899 by then Illinois Watch Company Vice
President, Jacob Bunn Jr. and housed in buildings belonging to the Illinois
Watch Company. Sangamo manufactured the highest quality watthour meters,
but later diversified into other areas including clock making, from 1926 to
1931. Sangamo electrically wound and synchronous clocks are widely
considered to be one of the highest quality electric clocks ever made. DATE: October 23 - 25, 2008 LOCATION: Springfield, Illinois MEETING SITE: Route 66 Hotel and Convention Center |