Finally — a watch with my name on it

Some people Google their own name. Me, I type it into the search engine at eBay.

For a long time, I’ve loved really nice watches. I remember being fascinated by watches even as a kid, before I had any real use for them, lovingly looking through the Sears catalog before Christmas, picking out digital computer-watches with 1,000 functions.

These days, I go for a classic analog watch instead. I’ve got a nice watch, now, that I love. But I’d sure like to get my wrist on something kind of special.

Remember the triangular watches on Men In Black? I was really struck by them — even more so when I found out they were made by a company called Hamilton.

So for the last couple of years, I’ve been sort of longing for a Hamilton-brand wristwatch or pocketwatch (also, I really love their logo). Many of their watches have “names” — like Lloyd, Douglas, Perry and the like. I kept hoping for a Hamilton watch named “Grant” but there was nothing on their website.

It was only recently, though, that I discovered, in fact, that a couple of years during the Depression, Hamilton actually did make a watch, the Hamilton “Grant” — in honour of Ulysses S.

Well, if it’s good enough for the 18th president of the United States and general of the the Union forces during the Civil War, it’s good enough for me.

Only one problem — they’re exceedingly difficult to find

The place where I found the picture, above, is an online forum that suggests eBay, but so far all I can find is replacement crystals and people selling vintage ads that happen to mention the watch. The same forum has a different thread that suggests refurbishing a very old watch wouldn’t be all that difficult or that expensive. So keep your eyes out, people!