Bulova

1875

The Early Years

Origins & Firsts

Saturday Evening Post · 1922 · "The Most Beautiful Watch in the World"

01 Founding

Joseph Bulova worked for Tiffany & Co. for five years in the 1870s before launching his own vision for American watchmaking. The Tiffany connection would resurface — dramatically — decades later.

Gold engraved Art Deco Bulova tank watch

Early Bulova Timepieces · Hudson Maxim · Rubaiyat · Art Deco Collection

02 1898

Joseph Bulova received a U.S. patent for an improved bicycle crank — evidence of his relentless drive for mechanical innovation before watches became his legacy.

03 Early Dials Heritage

The earliest Bulova timepieces bore no brand name on the dial. They sold under names like Hudson Maxim, Lady Maxim, Rubaiyat, American Maid, and Lord Springfield.

04 1922

Bulova produced the world's thinnest watch — the Phantom — and commissioned the iconic Goddess of Time sculpture the same year.

Bulova ring watches — 1920s originals and 2026 revival

05 1922 — 2026

Bulova crafted delicate ring watches in the 1920s — and revisited the design a full century later. Some ideas are simply timeless.

06 Innovation

Joseph Bulova is often called the Henry Ford of watchmaking — insisting on the standardization of parts for interchangeability, transforming how watches were manufactured in America.

Bulova standardized watchmaker's parts kit — interchangeable components in corked glass tubes

Bulova pocket watch made for HRH the Prince of Wales, 1924, in original presentation box

07 1924

Bulova released a special pocket watch in honor of the Prince of Wales' visit to the United States.

Presenting Miss America by Bulova — 1930s advertisement featuring the Bulova Observatory

08 1926

Bulova produced the smallest watch in the world — less than a dime in size, crafted in solid platinum, sold for $1,000 — and presented to Queen Marie of Roumania.

The Saturday Evening Post · 1930 · Featuring Olympic Champion Johnny Weissmuller

1920s

The Golden Age of Flight

Aviators & Adventurers

Saturday Evening Post · 1925 · Wesley L. Smith, Pioneer Air-Mail Pilot

Col. Lindbergh — Lone Eagle Bulova endorsement poster, 1927

09 1927

After Lindbergh's solo transatlantic triumph, Bulova created the Lone Eagle watch. The Colonel himself declared: "My Bulova Watch keeps accurate time and is a beauty."

Bulova Ruth Elder wristwatch presentation ad, 1927

10 October 1927

Ruth Elder flew from New York to the Azores, setting a record for female aviators. The watch she wore was later named the "Ruth Elder" in her honor, sold in a gift box with her autographed photograph.

Lady Lindy — Amelia Earhart Bulova watch ad, 1928

11 1928

When Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly trans-Atlantic, she became known as "Lady Lindy." Bulova marketed a watch honoring her feat — endorsed by the aviatrix herself via Western Union cablegram.

Admiral Byrd — Bulova endorsement, first to cross the Atlantic in a Triple-Motor Monoplane

12 1927

Admiral Richard Byrd — renowned for polar expeditions and the first to cross the Atlantic in a Triple-Motor Monoplane — wore a Bulova watch.

George Norville's Bulova wristwatch on display — hands stopped at the moment the America crashed off France, 1927

13 June 1927

George Norville's Bulova — worn on the Fokker Tri-Motor — is now in a museum. Its hands mark the exact moment the America crashed off the coast of France, frozen in time.

Bulova Round the World watch in original gift box — as worn by Post and Gatty, 1931

14 1931

Wiley Post and Harold Gatty wore Bulovas as they became the first pilots to fly around the world. The commemorative watch was sold in a gift box mapping all 14 refueling stops on the voyage.

15 1938

Douglas Corrigan took off from New York claiming a cross-country flight — and landed in Ireland. Bulova immortalized the spectacular "Wrong Way Corrigan" with a watch of the same name. Corrigan himself said: "I think my Bulova Watch is swell!"

The New Bulova Doug Corrigan watch advertisement, 1938 — created in honor of the Trans-Atlantic Flyer

N.Y.C.

A New York Institution

Fifth Avenue & Beyond

Scenes at the Bulova Observatory, Fifth Avenue, New York — watchmakers at long benches

16 Fifth Avenue

Bulova maintained offices at five different locations on Fifth Avenue. The Observatory at 580 Fifth Ave — where every watch was timed and regulated — became one of New York's most precise addresses.

The Bulova Factory, Woodside, Long Island — most modern watch factory in the world

17 Woodside, L.I.

Described as "the most modern, most scientific watch factory in the world" — the Bulova factory in Woodside, Long Island was a marvel of precision manufacturing.

Bulova Corporate Center — inspired by the 1937 Federal Reserve Building

18 Architecture

The Bulova Corporate Center was architecturally inspired by the 1937 Federal Reserve Building — a monument to permanence, precision, and the weight of institutional trust.

Bulova Fifth Avenue, New York — crimson velvet presentation box interior

19 Fifth Avenue

The iconic Bulova Fifth Avenue, New York presentation boxes — luxurious crimson velvet — embodied the brand's aspirations as a gift of enduring elegance.

President Calvin Coolidge presenting Bucky Harris with a Bulova watch, 1925

20 1925

President Calvin Coolidge presented player-manager Bucky Harris with a Bulova. It became known as The President — one of the most celebrated watches in American sports history.

Babe Ruth Bulova watch ad — as worn by The Babe, preferred by prominent sportsmen the world over

21 1926

Babe Ruth was personally presented a Bulova watch by a Bulova jeweler. The resulting ad declared it "A He-man's Timepiece — As Worn by The Babe, Preferred by Prominent Sportsmen the World Over."

1939 New York World's Fair entrance with Bulova neon clock

1939 New York World's Fair — color photograph of entrance with Bulova neon clock visible

22 1939

The entrances to the New York World's Fair were adorned with a glowing Bulova neon clock — one of the most visible timepieces in the city's history.

Contents of the 1964 World's Fair Time Capsule — including a Bulova Accutron watch

23 1964

When New York hosted the World's Fair again, a time capsule was buried alongside a Beatles record, birth control pills, and a Polaroid camera — including an Accutron watch.

Bulova Annual Report · 1955 · "More People See Advertising for Bulova Than for Any Other Advertised Product in the World"

1940s

Screen & Stage

Pop Culture & Spectacle

Bulova Official Timepiece of Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Circus — Gift of a Lifetime ad

24 1940s–50s

Bulova was the official timepiece of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus throughout the forties and fifties — "America Runs on Bulova Time."

Jackie Gleason Bulova ad — 'What a Beauty! Bulova, The Finest Watch of All'

25 1950s

"And Away We Go…" Bulova sponsored the Jackie Gleason Show. Gleason composed and conducted the album Time exclusively for Bulova — a television, music, and commerce intersection unique in the era.

Bulova portable phonograph — 4-speed automatic record player in turquoise case

26 Products

Beyond watches, Bulova manufactured phonographs and ladies' electric shavers — demonstrating the extraordinary breadth of its precision manufacturing ambitions.

Bulova grandfather clock radio — first clock radio, combining a tube-based radio with a clock, 1928

27 1928

Bulova created the first clock radio — combining a tube-based radio with a clock, with designs crafted to match home décor of the era. It transformed the industry.

28 1950s

Bulova sponsored the Frank Sinatra Show. The relationship continues — Bulova collaborates with the Sinatra estate to this day, honouring a legacy that spans generations.

Film

On Screen

Bulova in the Movies & Television

Television & Prestige Drama

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
The Queen's Gambit
Mad Men
Peaky Blinders
The Many Saints of Newark
Da 5 Bloods

Cinema

Priscilla
Bladerunner
L.A. Confidential
Zoolander
Love Happy
Monkey Shines
Fahrenheit 451
Seven Days in May
Winning

1950s

The Precision Revolution

Accutron & National Defense

The Bulova Phototimer · "A Notable Advancement in Timekeeping" · Timing Sport to the Fraction of a Second

29 Accutron

In the 1960s, Accutron's tuning-fork technology enabled a revolution in documentary filmmaking. Richard Leacock used the Accutron's 365 Hz signal to synchronize cameras with tape recorders — eliminating cables and birthing Direct Cinema.

New York Times headline — Bulova Acquiring Stock in Tiffany, 1955

30 Tiffany × Bulova

Joseph Bulova had worked for Tiffany in the 1870s. In 1955, his son attempted to acquire Tiffany & Co., owning over 25% of its shares — as reported on the front page of the New York Times. Bulova and Tiffany later co-branded Accutron watches.

31 National Security

Bulova was a critical supplier of precision instruments for national defense — manufacturing mine detectors, missile guidance systems, electronic time fuzes, and the GAIL glide angle indicator for U.S. Army jungle landings.

32 WWII

Bulova manufactured the A-11 specification hack watch — so vital to synchronized military operations that it became known as "the watch that won the war."

33 Joseph Bulova School

The Joseph Bulova School of Watchmaking gave veterans with disabilities a skilled trade — and also sponsored a competitive wheelchair basketball team, one of the earliest adaptive sports programs in America.