the iron horse’s piping rock - welcome to the … · piping rock was very popular when...

NAWCC Watch & Clock Bulletin • July/August 2013 • 389www.nawcc.org

INTRODUCTIONIt is a rare pleasure to combine one’s passions in one

endeavor. However, the tale behind a Hamilton Piping Rock wristwatch that was once owned and used for years by arguably one of the most admired, respected, and leg-endary athletic heroes in American sports history repre-sents just that opportunity.

This story, commencing in 1928, represents the con-fl uence of America’s then favorite pastime (baseball), one of America’s most revered and respected sports fi gures (Lou Gehrig), and the start of perhaps the most incredible design period in United States history (art deco). It also involves the most famous sports franchise in the world (The New York Yankees), participating in the then pre-mier sporting event of the year (the World Series) along with one of the most famous and long-lived American watch manufacturers (the Hamilton Watch Company). These subjects interweave all of this author’s passions: American wristwatch collecting, the fabulous art deco period, major league baseball, the New York Yankees, “the Iron Horse” Lou Gehrig, a classic American watch manufacturer, and the determination of one unique, highly astute, and ardent watch collector.

But fi rst, as they say, we begin at the beginning. Hein-rich Ludwig (“Lou”) Gehrig was born on June 19, 1903, in New York City’s Yorkville section of Manhattan, the second child of four born to German immigrants Hein-rich and Christina Gehrig and the only one to survive. His father was a sheet metal worker, but because of bad health and alcoholism rarely worked. His mother was required to support her surviving child by working as a housecleaner and taking in laundry. As a result, Lou Gehrig was very devoted to his mother; she enabled him to attend PS 132 in the Washington Heights section of Manhattan, what was then Commerce High School, and Columbia University.

The Iron Horse’s

Initially, Gehrig could not play baseball for Columbia because he had played professional baseball for a minor league team before he started college. However, he was al-lowed to play football and was a standout fullback. Later, he was permitted to play baseball. In fact, on April 18, 1923, the day the original Yankee Stadium fi rst opened, and while Babe Ruth hit the fi rst home run there, Gehrig, pitching for Columbia, set a school record by striking out 17 batters. However, Gehrig gained fame as a hitter, not a pitcher. As a result, the New York Yankees signed him at the age of 20 to a professional baseball contract in 1923 with a $1,500 bonus.1

With the Yankees, despite playing in the ever-present shadow of the bigger-than-life Babe Ruth, Gehrig posted statistics and accomplishments that are impressive even today. Some of his achievements, noted at the Baseball Hall of Fame, are the following:

• The fi rst player to hit four home runs in one game on June 3, 1932.

• Winner of the Triple Crown in 1934 when he led the American League in batting average (.363), home runs (49), and runs batted in (RBI) (165).

• Retains the record for the most grand slams in a ca-reer, with 23.

• Hit 493 home runs in his career, setting the record for the most home runs hit by any fi rst baseman in his-tory until a “steroid-enhanced” Mark McGwire hit more.

• Became the only player in history to drive in more than 500 runs over three consecutive years with RBIs of 174 in 1930, 184 in 1931, and 151 in 1932, for a total of 509.

• His amazing total of 184 RBIs in a single season (1931) is still unmatched in American League history.

• Set a record by playing in a consecutive game streak of 2,130 major league baseball games despite 17 hand

by Fredric J. Friedberg (CA)

Piping Rockand a Snapshot of American Horology in 1928

© 2013 National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors, Inc. Reproduction prohibited without written permission.

390 • July/August 2013 • NAWCC Watch & Clock Bulletin www.nawcc.org

fractures, being hit in the head several times by pitch-ers, severe back pain, and suffering various other illnesses and minor injuries. Gehrig earned the nickname “The Iron Horse” in the process. Gehrig’s record stood until Cal Ripken Jr. broke it in 1995.

• Became the fi rst professional athlete in sports history to have his uniform number retired by his ball club.2

In addition, in 1927 Gehrig posted one of the great-est seasons by any batter in major league history. He bat-ted an astronomical .373, with 52 doubles, 18 triples, 47 home runs, 218 total hits, and a then record 175 RBIs. For his career, Gehrig’s batting average was an impres-sive .340, with 493 home runs, 2,721 hits, and 1,995 RBIs. He was selected as an All Star every year from 1933 to 1939. His team won six World Series, and he was twice voted the American League Most Valuable Player. He was named to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team and the Major League Baseball All Time Team.3

In the 1928 World Series the New York Yankees played the St. Louis Cardinals, and the Yankees swept the Car-dinals in four games, while Gehrig hit .545, with 4 home runs and 9 RBIs.

The 1928 Yankees set a major league record with nine players on their team who would eventually be elected to the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame: Earle Combs, Lou Gehrig, Tony Lazzeri, Babe Ruth, Bill Dickey, Leo Du-rocher, Waite Hoyt, Herb Pennock, and Stan Coveleski. Manager Miller Huggins and team president Ed Barrow were also inducted.4

THE HAMILTON WATCH COMPANYThe year 1928 also leads us to the well-known Hamil-

ton Watch Company. Hamilton was established in 1892 when the Keystone Standard Watch Company was forced into bankruptcy and sold at a sheriff’s sale to a group of Lancaster, PA, entrepreneurs whose “objective was to build only watches of the highest quality.” Initially, Ham-ilton focused on pocket watches, but during World War I began to produce its fi rst wristwatches, starting in 1917.5 In 1928 Hamilton purchased the Illinois Watch Compa-ny.6

THE 1928 HAMILTON PIPING ROCKIn July 1928, a few months before the World Series,

Hamilton released for sale one of its most popular and art deco-style watches. Hamilton’s Catalog described it in most complimentary terms:

Piping RockAn ultra-modern strap watch styled by design-

ers of international prominence. The numerals of gold, set in enamel are a part of the case - not the dial. 14K yellow or white gold, $125.00. The Piping Rock is fi tted only with the Hamilton 19 jewel, 6/0 size movement No. 979.

The Piping Rock (Fig-ure 1A) is one of three enamel-bezel watches produced by Hamilton; the Coronado and the Spur were the other two (Figures 1B and 1C). The Piping Rock was very popular when intro-duced and, along with the Meadowbrook, was the fi rst to use Ham-ilton’s more effi cient and hardy 979 19-jewel movement7 (Figure 2).

The Hamilton 979 movement, also fi rst introduced in 1928, is described as a “6/0 size Hunting ¾ Plate Move-ment, 19 Ruby and Sap-phire jewels, double roller escapement, sap-phire pallets, Brequet hairspring, compensa-tion balance, adjusted to temperature. Finished with extra fi ne fl ute damasking, with ratch-et and winding wheels highly polished.”8

Hamilton Wristwatches Released for Sale in 1928

• Hastings • Meadowbrook • Piping Rock

Figure 1B. Coronado.

Figure 1C. Spur.

Figure 2. No. 979, 19J movement. Figure 3. Meadowbrook.

Figure 1A. Piping Rock.



OTHER AMERICAN 1928 DECO WATCHESWhen art deco watches came into vogue in 1928, the Illinois Watch

Company, then owned by Hamilton, introduced for sale at least 14 “Deco styled” wristwatch models: the Beau Brummel, Beau Royale, Beau Brummel/Viking, Chevalier, Consul, Major, Marquis, Mate, Medalist, Ritz, and Square Cut Corner Large men’s models and the Berkeley, Del Monte, and Miami

ladies’ wristwatch models. Some of these models are pic-tured in the advertisements shown in Figures 4A, 4B, and 4C. In 1928 Elgin added art deco wristwatch models for ladies by world-renowned de-signer Lucien LeLong of Paris; these were its “Parisenne line,” along with the start of its Deco Legionnaire men’s wristwatch-es and other interesting men’s deco watches. Some examples are pictured in Figures 5A, 5B, 5C, 5D, 5E, 5F, 5G, and 5H.

This same year the Gruen Watch Company introduced its innovative Techni-Quad-ron wristwatches with their Swiss movement.

1928 UNITED STATES HISTORY• Herbert Hoover elected president.• Gene Tunney TKOs Tom Heeney in 11

for the Heavyweight Boxing title.• Ty Cobb, baseball Hall of Famer,

got his 4,191th and final career hit.• Amelia Earhart flew her plane east

across the Atlantic Ocean successfully,the first female to do so.

• Richard Byrd starts an expeditionto Antarctica; returns in 1930.

• The Academy Awards are handed outfor the first time.

• Wings wins Best Picture.• Freon invented.

1928 FIRSTS• First United States air-conditioned office

building opens in San Antonio, TX.• First transatlantic television image

received in Hartsdale, NY.• Amos and Andy debuts on the radio.• Mickey Mouse makes his first appearance

in Steamboat Willie.• Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin.• Boston Garden officially opens.• First issue of Time magazine.• First autogiro (predecessor of the

helicopter) flies in the United States.• First yo-yo factory opens in

Santa Barbara, CA.• Jacob Schick patents the first

electric razor.

NEW PRODUCTS RELEASED IN 1928• Birds Eye frozen vegetables• Kellogg’s Rice Krispies• Peter Pan Peanut Butter• Hallmark greeting cards• Scotch tape• Velveeta cheese• Ida Rosenthal founded Maidenform, the

company that defined bra sizes as A, B, C, D, etc.

• Gerber’s baby food• Lay-Z-Boy recliner invented.

PRICES IN 1928• Loaf of bread−.09¢• Gallon of milk−.56¢• Gallon of gas−.21¢• Average price of a house−$12mo.• U.S. postage stamp−.01¢• Average price/troy oz. of gold−$20.66• Price of a car−$600• Overalls and shirt−$4• Package of Razor Blades−.70¢

Figure 4A, above. Figure 4B, below.

Figure 4C, below.



ILLINOIS RECTANGULAR 12/0 SIZE,207 MOVEMENT

In 1928 the Illinois Watch Company advertised for sale its Medalist model men’s wristwatch with its new rectan-gular movement. However, it is unclear whether the 207 movement was actually put in use until 1929 or even per-haps as late as 1930. The Illinois Watch Company referred to its 12/0-size, 17-jewel movement as “America’s fi rst free training rectangular watch with second hand. The excep-tional design and construction permits the use of larger, stronger, working parts – thus assuring its owner the very best in strap watch performance.”

Its specifi cations were: 12/0-size, 17 ruby and sapphire jewels, raised settings, compensatory balance, double

roller escapement, sapphire roller and pallet jewels, pol-ished steel escape wheel, Breguet hairspring, recoil click, and black enamel lettering. In fact, some historians and current Hamilton collectors speculate that the existence of the Illinois rectangular movement was partially the impetus for Hamilton’s acquisition of Illinois, because Hamilton supposedly was having diffi culty developing its own rectangular movement. In fact, Hamilton’s fi rst 401 rectangular movement was a version of the Illinois 207 movement, signed Hamilton, with some subtle modifi ca-tions. Hamilton described its 401 movement as follows: “19 Ruby and Sapphire jewels with raised gold settings, double roller escapement, sapphire roller and pallet jew-els, polished steel escape wheel, Breguet hairspring, recoil click, gold center wheel and beautifully polished ratchet and winding wheels. It was also temperature adjusted.”9 It was used by Hamilton from 1930 to 1933 (Figure 6).

Figure 5A. Elgin, Captain Molyneux, 1928.

Figure 5B. Elgin, Lanvin Pariesiene, 1928.

Figure 5C. Elgin, Louise Boulanger, 1928.

Figure 5D. Elgin, Madame Jenny, 1928.

Figure 5E. Elgin, Madame Premet, 1928.

Figure 5F. Elgin, Model E-12.

Figure 5G. Elgin, Presentation 212.

Figure 5H. Elgin, Presentation 213.

Figure 6. Illinois 207 (L), Hamilton 401 (R).

HAMILTON 401 RECTANGULAR MOVEMENT MODELSThe Hamilton Watch Company released the following

men’s wristwatches using its 401 rectangular movement: • Andrews • Livingston • Byrd • Stanley • Ericsson • Wilkinson

ILLINOIS 12/0 SIZE, 207 MOVEMENT MODELSThe Illinois Watch Company ultimately released

21 men’s strap watches using this rectangular move-ment: • Andover

• Kensington*• Ardsley • Larchmont• Chesterfi eld • Medalist• Chesterfi eld Stepped Bezel • No. 250*• Finalist • Richmond 12/0• Finalist Deco • Rockcliffe• Frontenac

• Rye*• Futura Trophy• Galahad • Vernon• Hudson • Wembley• Illinois byHamilton • Wentworth• John Alden* • Westchester**• Kenilworth

*Identity Unknown **Reference: The Illinois Watch: The Life and Times of a Great American Watch Company, p. 53.



THE GRUEN WATCH COMPANYWhile Hamilton was introducing its new 979 model

movement in 1928 and Illinois was announcing its new rectangular 12/0 size, 17-jewel movement, their Ohio competitor the Gruen Watch Company was introducing its own new watch and movement, the “Techni-Quad-ron,” according to Gruen historian Paul Schliesser.

THE ELGIN NATIONALWATCH COMPANY

The Elgin Watch Company (also known as the Elgin National Watch Company) was the largest United States watch manufacturer in terms of production. In fact, it is claimed by Elgin historians that Elgin produced approxi-mately one-half of the total number of higher-quality pocket watches manufactured in the United States. Total production over their 100 years of operation reached 60 million watches.11

The company was founded in 1864 in Elgin, IL, as the National Watch Company, and some of the organizers were J. C. Adams, P. S. Bartlett, D. G. Currier, Otis Hoyt, and Charles H. Mason, with fi nancial backing from for-mer Chicago Mayor Benjamin W. Raymond. The factory for the National Watch Company was completed in 1866, and the fi rst movement produced in 1867 was an 18-size B. W. Raymond. In 1874 the company offi cially changed its name to the Elgin National Watch Company, and that name remained until it stopped producing watches in the early 1960s.

Elgin was not known for making the highest quality watches, though some of their higher grades were exqui-sitely made timepieces.12 Together with Waltham Watch

1928 Gruen Techni-Quadron Watches(“for exact time in seconds”)

The famous Techni-Quadron “doctor’s watches” are so-called because the large seconds dials was handy for timing a patient’s pulse. These were not sold only to doctors, however. The watch was advertised as a timepiece for technicians and “radio and mechanical engineers” – anyone who needed to measure time in seconds. The 877 movement, manufactured by Aegler in Biel, was also used in the Rolex Prince; this unusual movement gives the watch its distinctive “dual dial” de-sign. Hours and minutes are confi ned to the upper half of the dial, while the entire lower dial is dedicated to seconds. The Techni-Quadron provided a useful alter-native to the tiny seconds hands on most watches from this era, which can be as little as 2mm (one tenth of an inch) long, and are not practical to use for timing.

The Techni-Quadrons were extremely accurate, and like other Quadron models did well in European chro-nometer tests.10

In 1928 Gruen also released several exciting enamel-bezel deco-style wristwatches.*Reference: Gruen Watch Company History, by P. Schliesser.

Company, they dominated the huge market for mid-grade watches. Elgin watches remain extremely popular with collectors today because they are plentiful, can be obtained at reasonable prices, and can be relatively eas-ily repaired because of the large number of watches and parts available.13

As mentioned above, in 1928, Elgin, with the help of LeLong, began advertising a dazzling array of ladies’ deco wristwatches, most of which contained dramatic and daring enameled bezels, in various innovative deco, geometric designs. The fi gures in Figure 5 are examples of these fabulous and collectible watches issued in 1928; more were released in 1929.

BULOVA WATCH COMPANYThe Bulova Watch

Company, founded in 1875 by Joseph Bulova and based in New York just outside of Man-hattan, issued several daring deco-designed watches in 1928, as shown in Figures 7A and 7B.

1928, THE WORLD SERIES, THE NEW YORK YANKEES, LOU GEHRIG, ANDTHE HAMILTON PIPING ROCK

After the New York Yankees swept the St. Louis Car-dinals in the 1928 World Series, according to Hamilton historian Donald Sauers in Time for America,

“When Jacob Ruppert (the then owner of the New York Yankees) decided to honor his World Champion New York Yankees in 1928…he commissioned Ham-ilton to create a Yankee Watch. The watch chosen for customization was the Piping Rock, and a special engraved caseback was designed. It displayed crossed bats, an American eagle, the date and inscription, ‘YANKEES – WORLD CHAMPIONS.” Each member of the team was awarded one at a well-publicized cer-emony at the beginning of the 1929 season”14 (Fig-ures 8A and 8B).Each recipient had his own name engraved on the side

of the watch. Gehrig’s was engraved “Henry L. Gehrig” (Figure 9).

ELGIN RELEASES IN 1928• The Premet • The Madame Lanvin• The Madame Agnes • The Captain Molyneux• The Madame Jenny* • The Madame Louise • The Legionnaire (Men’s) Boulanger

Figure 7A, right. Bulova, Geometric Enamel, 1928. Figure 7B, far right. Bulova, Polychrome Enamel, 1928.

•

• •



GEHRIG’S DECLINELeaping from 1928 to 1939, we fi nd that “When the

Yankees began their 1939 spring training in St. Peters-burg, Florida, it was clear that Gehrig no longer possessed his once-formidable power… By the end of spring train-ing, Gehrig had not hit a home run.15 Throughout his career, Gehrig was considered an excellent baserunner, but as the 1939 season got under way, his coordination and speed had deteriorated signifi cantly.”16

By the end of April, the fi rst month of the new base-ball season, his statistics were the worst of his career, with only one RBI and an anemic .143 batting average. Fans and the press openly speculated on Gehrig’s abrupt and drastic decline. James Kahn, a reporter who wrote often about Gehrig, observed:

“I think there is something wrong with him. Phys-ically wrong, I mean. I don’t know what it is, but I am satisfi ed that it goes far beyond his ball-playing. I have seen ballplayers ‘go’ overnight, as Gehrig seems to have done. But they were simply washed up as ball-players. It’s something deeper than that in this case, though. I have watched him very closely and this is what I have seen: I have seen him time a ball per-fectly, swing on it as hard as he can, meet it squarely — and drive a soft, looping fl y over the infi eld. In other words, for some reason that I do not know, his old power isn’t there... He is meeting the ball, time after time, and it isn’t going anywhere.”17

He was indeed meeting the ball, with only one strike-out in 28 at-bats; however, Yankee Manager Joe McCar-thy found himself resisting pressure from Yankee man-agement to remove the “Iron Horse” from the lineup.18

On April 30 Gehrig went hitless against the Washing-ton Senators. Gehrig had just played his 2,130th consecu-tive major league game.19

On May 2, the next game, Gehrig approached McCarthy before the game in Detroit against the Tigers and said, “I’m benching myself, Joe,” tell-ing the Yankees’ skipper that he was doing so “for the good of the team.”20 McCarthy acqui-esced and said that whenever Gehrig wanted to play again, the position was his. Gehrig himself took the lineup card out to the shocked umpires before the game, ending the 14-year consecutive game streak. Before the game began, the Briggs Stadium announcer told the fans, “Ladies and gentlemen, this is the fi rst time Lou Gehrig’s name will not appear on the Yankee lineup in 2,130 consecutive games.” The Detroit Tigers’ fans gave Gehrig a standing ovation while he sat on the bench with tears in his eyes. Gehrig stayed with the Yankees as team captain for the rest of the season, but never played in another major league game.21

A.L.S.Because of Gehrig’s rapid deterioration, his wife Elea-

nor arranged for him to be examined by Dr. Charles Wil-liam Mayo, at the eponymous Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN.22

After six days of extensive testing the diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) was confi rmed on June 19, Gehrig’s 36th birthday. The prognosis was dis-mal: rapidly increasing paralysis, diffi culty in swallowing and speaking, and a life expectancy of less than three years. Eleanor Gehrig was told that the cause of the ALS was unknown but it was painless, noncontagious, and cruel: the motor function of the central nervous system is destroyed but the mind remains fully aware to the end.23

“THE LUCKIEST MANON THE FACE OF THE EARTH”

The New York Yankees announced Gehrig’s retirement and proclaimed July 4, 1939, “Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day” at Yankee Stadium. Between games of the Indepen-dence Day doubleheader special retirement ceremonies were held at home plate.

The Yankees retired Gehrig’s uniform number “4”; Gehrig was given many gifts, commemorative plaques, and trophies. Some came from VIPs; others came from the stadium’s groundskeepers and janitorial staff. Foot-age of the ceremonies shows Gehrig being handed vari-ous gifts, and immediately setting them down on the ground, because he no longer had the arm strength to hold them.24

After the presentations and comments by Babe Ruth, Gehrig addressed the crowd with his now famous re-marks (in part):

“Fans, for the past two weeks you have been read-ing about the bad break I got. Yet today I consider

Figure 8A, left. Gehrig watch, front, as it looks today with original aged crystal and dial.Figure 8B, right. Gehrig watch, back, that shows some wear from his actual use of the watch.

Figure 9. Gehrig watch, side.



myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth. I have been in ballparks for seventeen years and have never received anything but kindness and encourage-ment from you fans…

When the New York Giants, a team you would give your right arm to beat, and vice versa, sends you a gift—that’s something. When everybody down to the groundskeepers … remember you with trophies —that’s something. When you have a wonderful mother-in-law who takes sides with you in squabbles with her own daughter—that’s something. When you have a father and a mother who work all their lives so that you can have an education and build your body —it’s a blessing. When you have a wife who has been a tower of strength and shown more courage than you dreamed existed—that’s the fi nest I know.

So I close in saying that I might have been given a bad break, but I’ve got an awful lot to live for. Thank you.”25

No one who has seen footage of the newsreel or Gary Cooper’s famous reenactment of Gehrig’s speech can fail to be moved by this heartfelt speech fi lled with humility and gratitude.

THE WATCH, THE AUCTION,AND RESULT

In November 2011, 83 years after Lou Gehrig received his special Yankee Piping Rock commemorative wrist-watch in 1929, Heritage Auctions of Dallas, TX, listed the Iron Horse’s watch for sale. Heritage Auctions wrote:

Any vintage Piping Rock from 1928 is highly collect-ible, but the rarest of the rare are the 35 Piping Rocks made to commemorate the World Series Champion-ship that year of the New York Yankees, a squad that was one of the most legendary lineups (nicknamed “Murder’s Row”)…and that represented more future Hall of Famers than any other team in baseball his-tory. On opening day of the 1929 season, 30 watches were presented to the players of the 1928 squad, one watch was presented to the owner (Jacob Ruppert), and one was kept by Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, a (former) federal judge who was baseball’s fi rst com-missioner… Three watches were kept by Hamilton, but their current whereabouts are unknown.26

According to Heritage, Will Roseman, a vintage Ham-ilton expert, had spent years trying to track down these 35 and until recently had only been able to locate four. The watches for Judge Landis and Waite Hoyt are in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. The watch owned by Jacob Ruppert is in private hands. And Rose-man himself is fortunate enough to own the watch that was presented to Yankee catcher Patrick Collins. But that leaves 31 unaccounted for, including Babe Ruth’s and Lou Gehrig’s watches.

Recently, the watch engraved to “Henry L. Gehrig” was brought to Heritage Auctions to consign along with

other Gehrig memorabilia by the son of one of the Iron Horse’s ‘former girlfriends’…”27

THE MYSTERY WOMAN CALLED “RED”According to Peter Applebome of The New York Times,

The Iron Horse’s Piping Rock involves “a young woman three years younger than Gehrig, whom he called Red, a domineering mother, an athlete who was a master on the fi eld but was fi lled with discomfort, particularly with women off the fi eld.”28 “He lived with his parents until he was 30 and was the ultimate outsider from baseball’s raucous atmosphere in the 1920s and ’30s.29 Jonathan Eig’s 2005 Gehrig biography, Luckiest Man, quotes Mike Gazella, a Yankee infi elder: “He was just hopeless. When a woman would ask him for an autograph, he would be absolutely paralyzed with embarrassment.”30 Gehrig struggled with another complication to his attempts at a social life—his beloved, strong-willed mother, Christina, who became the gatekeeper for whatever romantic life he managed to achieve.31 At least twice prospective wives were vetoed by Mrs. Gehrig.32

According to The New York Times story, exactly where Ruth Martin fi ts into this may never be fully known. All that survives of the relationship is a 1930 Christmas card signed by Gehrig with an envelope addressed to “Miss Ruth Martin.” Her only son, Jeffrey Quick, a retired pen-sion and retirement plan consultant, said his mother, whether out of deference for Gehrig’s privacy, her own feelings, or some other reason, seldom spoke about any relationship. She said they met through a mutual ac-quaintance, and she told a neighbor that Gehrig once gave her apple blossom fl owers, viewed at the time as a particularly romantic offering.33

Applebome asks if Ruth was one of the potential mates vetoed by Christina? We’ll never know, but eventually they went their separate ways.34 At a party the night be-fore the third game of the 1932 World Series, Gehrig met a worldly, fashionable woman in Chicago named Eleanor Grace Twitchell. Her relationship with Gehrig’s mother was chilly from the start, but Gehrig told Lieb: “Mom is the most wonderful woman in the world. She broke up some of my earlier romances, and she isn’t going to break up this one.”35

Applebome reports that on Sept. 29, 1933, after the relationship almost fell apart when mother and fi ancée argued over some drapes, Gehrig fi nally broke free and married in New Rochelle, NY. A year later, on June 23, 1934, also in New Rochelle, Ruth Martin married Herbert Quick, a salesman at an upscale Fifth Avenue furniture store.36

Although Gehrig’s relationship with “Red” ended, ap-parently his mother’s did not.

Jeffrey Quick, at 69, told The New York Times that his parents regularly took him to visit the couple he came to know as Mom and Pop Gehrig, and Christina came to visit at their house in New Jersey or a vacation cottage on the Delaware River in Pennsylvania…37



When Momma Gehrig died in 1954, because she had such a poor relationship with Gehrig’s widow Eleanor, and since there were no grandchildren, she left some of her personal items to “Red,” along with some baseball items from her son. Most of these items were stored in a basement cedar chest for decades.38

Ruth Martin Quick (“Red”) died at age 87 in 1995. Jef-frey Quick moved some of the memorabilia to a safe de-posit box. He advised The New York Times, “It’s been in a safe deposit box and a cedar closet,” he said. “No one ever looks at it. We don’t even look at it. They’re wonderful sports artifacts. I’d rather turn it loose into the collectible community.”39

Among these collectibles, six of the most important baseball items were sold by Heritage Auctions in Octo-ber 2011, including Gehrig’s Art Deco 1928 World Series Hamilton Piping Rock wristwatch.

Mr. Quick’s Piping Rock, once owned by the “Pride of the Yankees” sold at auction for a total sales price of $167,000, including the buyer’s premium and applicable taxes. To take the $167,000 purchase price in context, it would mean adjusted for infl ation, the Lou Gehrig Piping Rock would have sold for $13,245.26 in 1928, clearly a huge appreciation over a standard Piping Rock’s original $125 price.

ANONYMOUS BUYERI was fortunate to connect with the winning bidder

of the Gehrig Piping Rock. Although the buyer wishes to remain anonymous, the buyer did agree to a brief inter-view:

Q. Why did you purchase the Lou Gehrig Piping Rock?A. I am a sports fan and have been interested in Ameri-

can wristwatches for a long time. This watch ties these two strong interests together.

Q. What was the most appealing aspect of the watch?A. That it was owned and actually worn by one of the

greatest, if not the most admired sport fi gure, in sports history. There is no one that has ever had anything nega-tive to say about Lou Gehrig.

Q. Do you consider this the rarest American watch?A. I am not an expert on American wristwatches, but

this certainly has to be considered the rarest American watch owing to its lineage, at least, until the Piping Rock owned by Babe Ruth surfaces. This one is rare because there were only 35 of them made and it was owned by the second most famous New York Yankee ever. I suppose there could be rarer American watches based on their own merit, not based on whom they belonged to.

Q. Is it the most valuable American watch?A. Yes, unless a collector knows of one that has sold for

more than $167,000.Q. Would you have paid more for this watch?A. Much higher. I felt I paid under market, but in these

hard times things are tight and it was just the right watch at the right time. I think the watch will be a million dol-

lar watch in due time. It’s American history in watches, as well as American baseball history. Lou Gehrig wore this watch–it’s just amazing. C’mon, Fred, I let you wear it and I saw the tears in your eyes!! It’s that emotional when you hold it, wear it, and touch it.

Q. Would you resell it?A. My estate can deal with that question when I am

long gone.Q. Are you a baseball fan?A. Yes, but prefer golf now.Q. Are you a Yankee fan?A. Yes, I am a huge New York Yankees fan. I have tre-

mendous admiration for Lou Gehrig, and I respect the Yankees’ total commitment to winning. I would love to get a photo of the watch taken with the current New York Yankees team.

Q. Are you a Lou Gehrig fan?A. Yes, of course—how can anyone not be?Q. Do you think that the Babe Ruth Piping Rock would sell

for more?A. Yes, defi nitely. There are Babe Ruth’s baseball bats

that have sold in excess of one million dollars. Because Babe Ruth is, perhaps, the all-time sports icon, anything associated with him customarily brings much attention and a high premium at auctions. (See Figure 10.)

Q. Would you try to buy the Babe Ruth Piping Rock if it was up for auction?

A. Without a doubt, I would pursue it vigorously.Q. Would you bid on another of the 35 1928 Yankee Piping

Rocks if one were offered for sale?A. Yes, because there were only 35 made, I would ea-

gerly pursue all of them that became available for sale. Each is unique in its own way, but their values vary by the name of the Yankee engraved on the side of the watch.

Q. What is the most valuable Hamilton watch that was not owned by and/or engraved to a famous person?

A. Through my research, it has to be the Hamilton Barbizon wristwatch, which sold in 2010 at auction for a total price of over $45,000 with the buyer’s premium and sales tax. (See Figure 11.) Although I wouldn’t mind try-ing to persuade Will Roseman to sell me his Joe DiMag-gio Hamilton “Seneca” (engraved to Joe DiMaggio), that’s a great watch also. Other than these, Elvis’s Hamilton “Ventura” comes to mind as a valuable American watch.

CONCLUDING NOTEThe NAWCC in March 2012 noted that “celebrity ped-

igree enhances watch and clock collectability.” “In Oc-tober 2008 Albert Einstein’s otherwise undistinguished Longines wristwatch was auctioned at Antiquorum in New York, bringing an amazing price of $596,000.” See Figures 12A and 12B.

A “wristwatch, once owned by John F. Kennedy, was auctioned in 2005 by Guernsey’s for $350,000.”40

These astronomical prices attest to a not-so-latent ad-miration of important fi gures and their artifacts. The



value of an object is often its attachments, rather than the object itself, as pointed out by Einstein’s inexpensive watch. It also emphasizes this author’s contention (please see “The ‘Convict’ Consul and the ‘Undertaker’s’ Con-sul,” by Fredric J. Friedberg, Watch and Clock Bulletin, No. 396 (March/April 2012): 171) that, contrary to certain dealers’ opinions, watch inscriptions may increase our

appreciation of the watch itself.Last, as this historical review

emphasizes, the single threads of our boyhood dreams and fancies can, with time, be inter-woven together in a tapestry of continuing fascination.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTSI thank Rick Vess and Elliot Abe-

mayor for reviewing and comment-ing on the article and Bryan Girouard for the pictures of the Hamilton wristwatches and the dates on the El-gins, Gruens, and Bulovas.

NOTES1. Jonathan Eig, Luckiest Man, The Life and Death of Lou Geh-

rig (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2005): 40.2. www.lougehrig.com.3. www.lougehrig.com/About/Bio.htm.4. www.Wikipedia.org/wiki/1928_New_York_

Yankees_Season.5. Bryan Girouard and Will Rosemann, “The O-Size Wrist-

watch: Hamilton’s First Wristwatch for Men,” NAWCC Bulletin, No. 361 (April 2006): 167.

6. Fredric J. Friedberg, The Illinois Watch: The Life and Times of a Great American Watch Company (Atglen, PA: Schiffer, 2004): 16.

7. www.hamiltonwatch.info.com.8. Ibid.9. Ibid.10. www.pixelp.com/Gruen/1922.html.11. www.pocketwatchrepair.com/histories/elgin.html.12. Ibid.

13. Ibid.14. Don Sauers, Time for America

(Lititz, PA: Sutter House, 1992): 141.15. www.lougehrig.com.16. Ibid.17. Ibid.18. Ibid.19. www.baseballlibrary.com/ball-

players/player.php20. Ray Robinson, Iron Horse (New

York: W. W. Norton Company, 1990): 251-253.

21. Ibid.

Figure 12A, left. Einstein watch, front. Figure 12B, below. Einstein watch, case back.

Figure 10. Babe Ruth (left) and Lou Gehrig (right), with their manager Miller Huggins in 1929 on break during Yankees spring training in St. Petersburg, FL.

Figure 11. Hamilton Barbizon.


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