Inside Towson’s Secret Watch Manufacture — USA

Today, Towson Watch Company stands as a rare example of old-school craftsmanship thriving in America. Every Towson watch is made the traditional way: slowly, thoughtfully, and without shortcuts, for collectors who know the difference.

Hartwig Balke came to America from Pforzheim, Germany, as an engineer and inventor—but saw an opportunity to bring the traditional watchmaking methods of his hometown to an American audience. That vision became Towson Watch Company.

What he brought with him was a way of working—methods used by craftsmen in Pforzheim for generations. For more than two decades, Hartwig quietly crafted precision mechanical watches by hand in Towson, Maryland, using manually operated tools and working closely with component makers in Germany. Only in recent years has he begun training the next generation of American watchmakers, passing along the expertise he carried with him.

We still work with a few trusted partners in Pforzheim to produce raw components—cases, dials, and bracelets—to our exact specifications. But the watches themselves are built here, in Towson. Assembly, adjustment, and finishing happen in-house, by hand, using the same tools and techniques Hartwig used when he started the workshop.

Bracelet and case finishing, for example, is part of that. The bracelet arrives well-made, but raw. To match it with the case, it needs to be brushed, cleaned, and aligned—so the finish and engraving hold up and read as one. It takes time to get these finishing steps right. But once we have it, we deploy them in production—by hand—for a full series of Towson Watches.

Towson Watch Company remains one of the few places in America where mechanical watches are made this way. No marketing gimmicks. No shortcuts. Just serious watchmaking.

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