This Historic American Brand's Vintage Watches Are Still Affordable

While now a relatively obscure name, Gruen was once among a club of notable American watch makers The company's history goes back to making pocket watches in late 1800s under the name Columbus Watch Manufacturing Company, founded by a Swiss-trained German immigrant in Ohio Like so many watch makers of the time Gruen didn't survive into the modern era - at least not as an American company, and it ceased to be family-owned after 1953.

The three watches below all contain Swiss movements, but they each represent a different decade in the American company's history, from the '50s to the '60s, and finally from the 1980s equipped with a sourced ETA movement There are plenty of Gruen Precision dress watches out there, but this one has a cool alpha-style handset, day and date display, and a range of other aesthetic touches that come together in quite an attractive way What We Like: This Gruen Moon Phase Calendar watch feels relatively modern in some ways, made in the 1980s, but also has some interesting features not often found in today's watches.

The movement dates to perhaps earlier, when the brand was family-owned and American. . Source