Did Victorians have watches

Answer 1

Yes, Woman wore Wrist Watches, while Men used Pocket Watches.

Before World War I only women wore wristwatches, they were considered 'unmanly'. Wristwatches became fashionable as a result of their use by soldiers in WW1, who needed access to their watches while their hands were full. These first wristwatches, called 'trench watches', were made with pocketwatch movements, so they were large and bulky and had the crown at the 12 o'clock position like pocketwatches. After the war pocketwatches went out of fashion until by 1930 the ratio of wrist- to pocketwatches was 50 to 1.

The first timepieces to be worn, made in 16th century Europe, were transitional in size between clocks and watches. These 'clock-watches' were fastened to clothing or worn on a chain around the neck. They were heavy drum shaped cylindrical brass boxes several inches in diameter, engraved and ornamented. They had only an hour hand. The face was not covered with glass, but usually had a hinged brass cover, often decoratively pierced with grillwork so the time could be read without opening. The movement was made of iron or steel and held together with tapered pins and wedges, until screws began to be used after 1550. Many of the movements included striking or alarm mechanisms. They usually had to be wound twice a day.