Bulova Sea King Whale

Submitted by bobio42 on May 15, 2013 - 11:26pm

can anyone tell me any information about the above watch?? I have an opportunity to purchase one but have no idea of their worth or how rare they might be or when they were manufactured. This one is at auction, is gold filled, automatic and looks in good shape. Will be able to see it in person in a week or so. Just looking for some preliminary info.Thanks!!!

mybulova_admin
Posted May 16, 2013 - 1:08am

Need photos and details of the watch to help.

FifthAvenueRes…
Posted May 16, 2013 - 6:28am

I believe the Whale first appears around 1966 - 67 but does not signify a 'SEA KING' model, although used on.

The Whale indicates Waterproof.

It's My concensus that the Whale was used as a tribute to the Whalers of Sag Harbour, Home of the Bulova Watch Case factory.

http://www.mybulova.com/node/4290

FifthAvenueRes…
Posted May 16, 2013 - 7:00am

The image below is of a plaque which appears on the Pierson School in Sag Harbour Gym wall.

Today no-one knows why or how it got there.

the Date of 1966 coincides precisely with the Whaling Festival held and erection of a Monument which appears in the linked thread, celebrating the Whaling History of Sag Harbour - a 100 Yr anniversary I believe.

mybulova_admin
Posted May 16, 2013 - 7:55am

It is my opinion that the whale logo was used on all Bulova watches that were certified water resistant.

I would concur that the earliest advert I've found is also from 1969. Doesn't mean that Bulova didn't produce them earlier it just means that the earlist advert we have depicting a watch with the whale logo is from 1969. I'm sure the search will continue.

bobio42
Posted May 16, 2013 - 8:17am

Thanks everyone for your comments. I'll try to get some pics.Bob

FifthAvenueRes…
Posted May 16, 2013 - 2:18pm

'67

FifthAvenueRes…
Posted May 26, 2013 - 10:19am

The only connection between a Whale and Bulova Watch Company are the Old Time Whalers of Sag Harbour.

FifthAvenueRes…
Posted May 26, 2013 - 8:21pm

excerpt below from The Independant Dated 2 29 2012:

'Bulova, the brick mammoth in the center of town that dwarfs every other structure around it still stands, but just barely, though an ambitious renovation into condominiums promises to restore its lost luster. The building has a history as rich as the whaling port it anchors.

The whaling industry was already ending in 1836 when a group of whaling boat owners and captains, realizing an era had come to a close, decided to build a factory on Washington Street and Hampton Road, with easy access to both East Hampton and Southampton, as well as docks and waterways. If nothing else, it would provide jobs for their crews, and so it did for while, serving as a cotton mill.

The whaling boats then transported cotton, giving them a palpable secondary product to market as whales became scarcer. It was not unusual for a whaling boat to leave Sag Harbor and travel all the way to Europe, South America, and even the Pacific, hunting whales as the stock became more and more depleted.

After a fire destroyed the factory, civic leaders sought businesses to relocate to Sag Harbor and rebuild.

In 1881 Joseph Fahys, who owned a watchcase factory in Queens, did just that; in fact, the granite cornerstone of the rebuilt building was just unearthed during renovations earlier this month. Bulova purchased the building in 1936 and made its watchcases there'.

Full article here: http://www.indyeastend.com/Articles-i-2012-02-29-100448.113117-The-Bulo…

So, there's the connection: Joseph Fahys originally built what is known as the Bulova Watch Case factory in Sag Harbour to aid a floundering local econonomy, creating new jobs as its Whaling Industry came to an end.