Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1890-10-29
100000 WATCH CASES.
JAMES BOSS MAKES THEN EVERY
YEAR.
How the Filled Case Business was In
stituted.


stituted.
There is an industry of vast impor-
lance carried on in Philadelphia that
comparatively few Philadelphians are
! ,ware of, and probably three-fourths
of the million residents of the city are
totally ignorant of its existence.
| Nevertheless, it is one of the powerful
factors in Philadelphia colleaion of
industries, and carries the fame of the
| Quaker City into foreign countries
that many other home productions fail
! to reach.
The manufacture of gold-filled
watch cases is the industry in question,
and l, 200 skilled artisans are daily en-
ployed in their production. AS the
filled watch case is of Philadelphia
birth, and the unrivalIed product of
Quaker City watch factories, it should
be a source of special pride to those
who dote on home-manufactured arti-
cles.
The filed case has an entertaining
history. A dingy old building at Dock
and Walnut streets was its birthplace.
Thirty-two years ago a watch-case
maker was puzzled about the tendency
of the low carat gold in his cheap
cases TO tarnish. For their selling
price he could not furnish a better
quality; but the persistence with which
the cases would tarnish was a source
of much thought to him. The case
makers name was Reese Peters, and
his employee was the workman to
whom credit is due for the great in
dustry which finds its leading expo
nents in Philadelphia. J;-nes Boss
was TSe workman and he was con-
tinually experimenting with acids and
metals. In his anxiety 10 procure q
better watch case, Reese Peters un-
consciously furnished the idea which
resulted in the patenting of the filled
/ case.
One day in sheer desperation Peters
told Boss if he could get a good quail
ity gold wearing surface, with a base
centre and low carat inside, there
was fortune in the idea. a month
later Boss had finished the model of a
machine that is the groundwork for all
filed case manufacturing. Two plates
of gold were laid on either side of g
central piece of metal, which after be-
ing rolled out to the desired consist
ency by heavy mills were placed under
the machine and struck off by a die.
1t was only by the finess calculation
and leyelling process that the surface.
would cling to each other without the
aid of solder.
Boss surmounted the difficulty ano
made the three surfaces so smooth that
they became adhesive, and the suction
established would allow one plate to
bear the others weight without artif-
cial aid. Boss was in high spirits over
his success and soon forwarded the
models of his machine to Washington.
The patent was granted, and the first
cases made were known as the James
Boss flied watch cases. Peters took
his workman into partnership, and for
several years they had a complete mon-
opoly of the business.
The first appearance created a big
sensation in the jewelry business, for
the idea of making a gold case out of
anything but gold had never been en-
tertained. The patent was regarded
as the most important ever known TO
the trade and Boss cases were eagerly
purchased. So confident were the
patentees of the superiority of their
new case that they furnished written
guarantee with every case, stipulating
that unless the case wore for twenty
years they would refund tie money of
the purchaser. This shrewd policy
made the filled case more famous than
ever, and they could not be made
rapidly enough to supply orders. Boss
sold out his patent few years later to
John Stuckhart, a casemaker, who
continued their manufacture until be
died from a disease contracted while
using the acids needed to prepare the
plates. His patent was disposed of to
Hagstoz & Thorpe, who began their
work in the Ledger building, and were
fortunate enough to arouse the interest
of George W. Childs.
With the money thus obtained the
industry was doomed, and soon as
sumed colossal proportions. A property
was purchased at Nineteenth and
Brown streets, and a plant erected
upon the site now occupied by the
Keystone Watch Case Company.
When the patents expired they were
eagerly appropriated by watch-case
companies, and the filed case was
manufactured in far larger quantities
than gold cases ever were. To-day
they are one of the most important
products of the times.
Philadelphia has retained the leao
she secured, and is in the van of all
| flied -pa-n mamie o.urinor cities Mar