Who has not heard of Bulova mens watches? Adorning the wrists of men and women around the world, the Bulova brand is well recognized and very well respected. Over the years it has developed several different styles, each with its own brand name and own personality.
First created in 1875 by a young immigrant from Bohemia in a small New York City jewelry store, the Bulova brand has developed into a broad range of styles and prices. In those days, men carried pocket watches and women wore watches as pins. Wristwatches were for the rich and considered luxury items. Until 1911 Joseph Bulova designed and sold fine pocket watches and fancy clocks. It was not until World War I that wristwatches were seen as practical timekeeping instruments.
Between the years of 1875 and 1920, Joseph Bulova devoted himself to designing new styles of clocks and watches. He developed new mechanisms that would provide more accurate timekeeping, down to one-thousandth of a second. He was not satisfied with the beauty of the watch exteriors, but worked to create the most accurate timekeeping mechanisms known to man.
By the end of the First World War, Joseph Bulova and his Bulova Watch Company have produced thousands of watches worn by our soldiers on the battlefields of Europe. He presented a special commemorative watch to Charles Lindbergh when he completed his solo transatlantic flight in 1926. And as the twenties roared, the company presented the first National Radio Advertisement in 1926 at a Dodgers vs. Phillies baseball game.
Other firsts include the introduction of the first clock radio in 1928. In 1929 they re-engineered how automobile clocks were made and installed. In 1924, Bulova was the first watch company to introduce a line of women’s watches, including diamond-encrusted styles. By now, more Americans were wearing Bulova watches than any other watch brand.
In 1926, Arde Bulova, the son of the founder and now President of the company, offered a prize to the first pilot to fly a transatlantic flight solo. In 1927 Charles Lindbergh was presented with a special commemorative watch. Five thousand copies of the men’s wrist watches named the “Lone Eagle” were sold in three days after Lindberghs’ famous flight.
The Bulova Watch Company has worked closely with the US Government to produce timekeeping and precision instruments for the Army at cost, making no profit during World War II. A resolution was passed by the President, Arde Bulova, son of Joseph Bulova, in 1941, to sell products for national defense at actual cost. They designed and manufactured watches for the military, as well as critical torpedo mechanisms and fuses.
To help our wounded veterans, the Watch Company opened the Joseph Bulova School of Watch Making. This school was designed for disabled veterans with forward thinking accessibility: automatic doors, wider than usual door openings and aisles, lower worktables, and other accommodations. Upon graduation, the vets would find employment across the country. Most likely one of those jobs was from the 1,500 jobs pledged by the American jewelers. Once again, the company put our country first.
When the war was nearing its end, the company founded the Joseph Bulova Watchmaking School for disabled veterans. Equipped with state of the art features for disabled accessibility, the school taught many of our veterans a trade that would provide them with employment for the rest of their lives. As if this was not enough, the school assured employment with over 1,500 positions promised by American jewelers.
The story of Bulova watch is the story of America. From the imagination and hands of a poor immigrant from Bohemia, came beauty and craftsmanship, endurance, and practicality. Joseph Bulova changed the way Americans kept time.