Hamilton wristwatches by date 1933

The year that Gold became forbidden

On April 5, 1933, the new President – Franklin Roosevelt declared a State of Emergency and issued  executive order 6102, which forbid the ownership of gold. The order forbid the hoarding of gold coin, gold bullion, and gold certificates within the continental United States. The order criminalized the possession of monetary gold by any individual, partnership, association or corporation.

The order required everyone to deliver on or before May 1, 1933, all but small amounts of gold coin, gold bullion, and gold certificates owned by them to the Federal Reserve, in exchange for $20.67

1933 became the landmark year of the Great Depression of the 1930’s. 

Unemployment had reached 23.6%, and it peaked in early 1933 at 25%

Livingston	Lee
Grant

A drought in the agricultural heartland of the US caused  families and most businesses to default on a record numbers of loans. As a result more than 5,000 banks failed. Hundreds of thousands of Americans found themselves homeless. The homeless congregated  in shanty towns called “Hoovervilles” across the US.

Drought and then erosion caused a phenomena known as the  Dust Bowl, which displaced several more hundreds of thousands off their farms in the Midwest. Roosevelt demanded  restructuring of the economy. His “New Deal” programs sought to stimulate demand and provide work and relief for the homeless through government spending and the institution of financial reforms.

If someone violated Executive Order 6102, they found themselves punished by a fine up to $10,000 or up to ten years in prison, or both. Most citizens who owned large amounts of gold attempted to take the gold to countries such as Switzerland.

Lucky for Hamilton Watch Company

Roosevelt’s executive Order 6102 exempted  customary use of gold  in industry, profession or art that covered artists, jewelers, dentists, and sign makers among others. The order permitted any person to own up to $100 in gold coins 5 troy ounces or 160 grams. It also exempted gold coins with special value to collectors of rare and unusual coins. This protected recognized gold coin collections from legal seizure and likely melting.

The order exempted to one. For example, the US confiscated gold from foreigners, forced them to accept paper money for their gold. The Uebersee Finanz-Korporation, a Swiss banking company, had $1,250,000 in gold coins for business use. The Uebersee Finanz-Korporation entrusted the gold to an American firm for safekeeping. The gold was confiscated. The Swiss appeals were denied. The order entitled them to paper money. After the US seized gold, an overnight devaluation of the dollar occurred. Gold selling for $20.67 per ounce went to $35 per ounce. As gold prices rose, the dollar fell.

What about  Uebersee Finanz-Korporation? They lost 40% of their gold’s value overnight.

When the US government seized gold, legal actions swamped the courts. The Supreme Court upheld seizures as constitutional, with only one justice dissenting.

Anyone want a gold watch?

Welcome the Hamilton’s boom years of the 1930’s. Among management’s product diversification, the company had a windfall. Specialized gold watches became a hallmark of Hamilton’s products.

Hamilton produced the Grant in 1933 in a Wadsworth 10K yellow gold-filled case. In a few months, the Grant came in 10K white gold-filled and then 14K yellow and white gold-filled versions. Hamilton also produced a sterling silver Grant.

Hamilton also introduced the Lee in 1933 in a Wadsworth 10K yellow gold-filled case containing the 17-jewel 987 movement. In 1934, the Lee was offered in a 14K gold-filled case and choice of the 19-jewel 979 movement or the 17-jewel 987 movement.

Hamilton released the Livingstone  (part of the Hamilton Explorer Series). The company produced it in gold-fill. Hamilton included the Andrews, Byrd, Ericsson, and Wilkinson models as part of the Explorer series and cased each  in solid 14K gold only.

In 1933, the United States had its worse financial year ever.  Our people found themselves in the worse possible condition. While everyone expected a flight to gold, Roosevelt stopped holding gold. Hamilton, however, found itself in an advantageous position.

Some events from 1933

• President Franklin D. Roosevelt declares a “bank holiday”, closing all United States banks and freezing all financial transactions.

• In Miami, Florida, Giuseppe Zangara attempts to assassinate President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt, but instead fatally wounds Chicago Mayor Anton J. Cermak.

• An earthquake in Long Beach, California kills 117 people.

• The U.S. airship Akron crashes off the coast of New Jersey, leaving 73 dead.

• The United States officially goes off the gold standard.

• Union Station Massacre: In Kansas City, Missouri, Pretty Boy Floyd kills four unarmed FBI agents and accidentally kills fugitive Frank Nash in an attempt to free Nash.

• “Machine-Gun” Kelly and Albert Bates kidnap Charles Urschel, an Oklahoma oilman, and demand $200,000 ransom

• Loggers cause a forest fire in the Coast Range of Oregon, later known as the first forest fire of the Tillamook Burn. It is extinguished on September 5, after destroying 240,000 acres (971 km²).

• A United Airlines Boeing 247 is destroyed near Chesterton, Indiana by a bomb. This is the first proven case of air sabotage in commercial airline history.

• Albert Einstein arrives in the United States as a refugee from Nazi Germany.

• Dust Bowl: In South Dakota, a dust storm strips topsoil from desiccated farmlands (one of a series of disastrous dust storms that year).

• Gerald MacGuire allegedly organizes a coup to overthrow President Franklin D. Roosevelt. It becomes public in 1934.

• 15 million unemployed in the USA.

• The U.S. Congress abrogates the United States’ use of the gold standard by enacting a joint resolution (48 Stat. 112) nullifying the right of creditors to demand payment in gold.

Ironically, the year that brought hope to the Hamilton Watch Company was the worse year in American history.