Hess: Roland, it's good to talk to you again. We haven't spoken at length since we were on the same plane coming back from Basel last year. How have things been?

Roland: Things have been going quite well. We are very busy both with our active repair business but most especially with RGM and our manufacturing of specialty timepieces.

Hess: There certainly is a lot of industry buzz about your creations. Let's start at the beginning and I mean the very beginning. Where were you born? And do you remember your first watch?

RGM: I was born in 1961 near Baltimore in Anne Arundel County and in my teens moved up to Harford County. It was in Harford County that I obtained my first watch — a watch that I still have today. It was a Wile E. Coyote watch, an inexpensive pin-lever character watch.

Hess: Do you think it was in that little character watch that you realized you were in love with the science of time?

RGM: No, that came much later. I would guess it started when my dad bought the contents of a local clock company, the Damiker Clock Company that had gone out of business. Clock movements, cases and parts were everywhere. So I would tinker with them trying to get them to work, fitting movements into cases, just experimenting. I set up the dining room table into a retro-fitted repair shelf. It was fun and we enjoyed making clocks and we also bought and sold a few.

Hess: Did you continue tinkering with clocks after high school?

RGM: After graduating from high school I worked in the carpentry business and then in 1981 I decided to go to Bowman. (Editor's note: Bowman Technical School in Lancaster, Pennsylvania is America's oldest watch school, founded in 1857.) While at Bowman, I took a clock course that also teaches you a bit about pocket watches. I found this particular part of the course extremely interesting especially when listening to the instructors talk about the history of the pocket watch companies. I became obsessed with knowing how these companies evolved.

Hess: How long did it take to complete the Bowman program?

RGM: The course was about two years long. After I graduated I quickly started my own business repairing watches and clocks in doing a little buying and selling as well. I enjoyed myself and pretty much knew at that time that this may be my lifelong work. Most of my work was done privately however so I was so free to do whatever I wanted. I then heard about the WOSTEP program and upon hearing that the course was given in Europe I became very excited about the prospect. I had never been out of the United States and the combination of the European travel and continuing my education in horology was too much to bare. After the application process was over I was quickly accepted into the program.

Before long I found myself in Neuchatel, learning watchmaking with a talented multi-national group of Americans, Germans, Swiss and students from other countries. I was one of the top students in the class, so I was recruited by many of the biggest watch companies almost immediately upon graduation.

Many of the biggest names of horology wanted me and I did talk seriously with several of them. Ultimately I chose a job with SMH (now Swatch group) in product development for Hamilton which meant that I could go back to the United States while still working for one of the biggest Swiss companies. And I could be living in Lancaster, Pennsylvania which further fed my interest in the history of watch companies. I had an enjoyable time at SMH but the corporate structure was one that did not fully satisfy my creative urges.

Hess: You and I have spoken about how strong the Hamilton name is in America. And Lancaster, of course, is where it all started. Was this about the time when you started your own company?

RGM: Yes, I was frustrated with the fact that Hamilton was making such inexpensive watches and, really, I just wanted to do my own thing. So I set up a repair business to do repairs for individuals, private clients and stores throughout the area and eventually throughout the United States. My business grew and soon I was doing official repair work for several larger companies including Revue Thomen, Roger Dubuis, Fortis, Ventura, BMW and others. It is really interesting. I had already been developing my own watches a bit and repairing other companies' watches was good on many levels. As you can imagine, it clarified for me what worked and what didn't work. I mean when I received a watch for repair from one of the companies or better yet when I received several watches for repair from a company I would know that there was a problem and that perhaps I should avoid this problem when making watches.

Hess: When did you make your first "RGM" watch? And how long did it take?

RGM: Well, quite a while. Probably eight months, from beginning to end. It was really my first creation and I unveiled it around 1992. It was a labor of love and I was a bit apprehensive about showing it for the first time. It was a heavy, gold chronograph with an engine-turned dial. I decided to take it to the watch show in Florida that year at a big NAWCC regional. I was a little shy about showing it around. To my surprise, I was quickly overwhelmed by the excitement that it generated. And finally after a collector handed me a fistful of cash for my beloved "Classic Model 101," I knew I was on my way. Indeed, after selling that first watch I had the confidence to go forward.

Hess: Did this model become your first production piece? How many did you make?

RGM: Yes, it was my first production piece. About 150 were made, almost evenly split between the 101 and the 101M. We made them concurrently.

Both were very similar to each other, but one had just a moonphase and the other model had a moonphase dial and a calendar. I understand they are quite collectible today and that they rarely change hands.

Hess: Yes, this must be true of all of your watches. I have noted that several of your watches have popped up at major, prestigious auction houses.

RGM: Yes, that's true. Chistie's and Antiquorum, to name a couple. Some of my watches have brought upwards of $50,000. My minute repeaters often generate a lot of interest, whether changing hands privately or at auction.

Hess: I suspect that just about every one of your watches will eventually turn up at some prestigious auction house. I'm eager to talk to you about some of the newer watches that you're doing because I have had the privilege of looking at a couple of them. But before that, I'd like to talk to you about one of my pet topics.

You and I have touched on this subject in casual conversation from time to time and as you know, that is what constitutes an "Americanmade" watch? Both the term itself and/or legality of using the words "American-made" has been discussed on all of the serious Internet boards, including NAWCC.org, Equation of Time.com and even TimeZone.com. One of my pet peeves is that apparently the Swiss and the Germans have laws in place that insure that only 51% or so of a watch's value are needed to use the term "Swiss-made" or "Germanmade." In America the courts have ruled on this in a haphazard and rather ambiguous manner. I have the feeling that a Roland G. Murphy watch is in fact an American-made watch. I know you use fine Swiss ebauches and German movements, as well, but these watches are not considered Swiss or German.

RGM: We do design and build and embellish our watches in America. We even have a running prototype of a movement with all bridges, clicks etc. all made in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. I do not worry about how my watches are marked. Many of them are simply marked Lancaster, Pennsylvania. We run a reputable business and our customers know who we are and what we are. Our watches are basically American whether they have components that are Swiss, German, French or even American movements. I guess I will let that interpretation be up to the owner of the watch.

Hess: Roland, as I have said many times you are the man that is carrying the torch for this issue and I think there are going to be a lot of people in the future who will be making American-made watches and that you are the "grandfather," if you will, of the American revival movement. So, on that note, what is the most popular-selling watch in the history of RGM? RGM: Tough call. I guess in sheer numbers our pilot watches, perhaps because they have an entry- level price point. The 107P retails at $1800 and 151P at $2000.

Hess: I like those, as well. But there has been quite a splash of late with your Hamilton/ RGM hybrids. Everyone is talking about them and I've had the pleasure of holding one in my hand. I can tell you it is a very impressive timepiece. What made you decide to produce this unusual watch?

RGM: That's kind of a long story. A friend of mine in Germany used to make a living by re-casing fine old pocket watch movements into custom-made wristwatch cases. Every movement was different and every case was different and he succeeded at this so much that eventually he started his own watch company. I liked what he did but I wanted to do something a little bit different. Instead of saving these old fine movements for posterity by having to make an individual case for every individual watch, I wanted to find some watches that were readily available that were all the same size. I wanted it to preferably be an American watch and so I picked the Hamilton size-12 watches because they had a Swissstyle stem system that was easier to convert to a wristwatch. I did this as kind of a lark and it shocked me how well this watch has done. I sell about four or five pieces per week and the demand is growing by leaps and bounds. Everyone I show it to loves the concept and loves the watch even more, especially when they get it in their hands.

Hess: I think Hamilton was at the top of their game with their unheralded 12-size watches. I could stare at those movements forever. But the cases were, for the most part, mundane. You picked a perfect movement to bring out your creativity and your craftsmanship. Urich had a hard time deciding which of your new waches to put on the cover. All are awesome. So what is on the horizon for RGM?

RGM: We are always working on new things and I hesitate to talk about them too far in advance. One of the big things we do is "special order" watches. I guess I could reveal to you that we are working on our first dive watches to add to the RGM line. It's going to take quite a while to bring this to market as I want to make sure it is a good one. The long development time for this is because we want to make sure that it's truly water resistant. We want it to be just right. As you know, the dive watch aficionados are very exacting people and for good reason.

Hess: I'm sure it will be a huge success. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Shown in this article are the 222 signature series RGM with Hamilton 921 movement. This is also available with the 917 caliber and the rare 923 caliber. For more information, go to http://www.rgmwatches.com/222.html.

On the cover is the stunning Victory Series commemorating the battle of Trafalgar. In each one of Mr. Murphy's continuance of his Tall Ships watches is a different piece of artwork. His last Tall Ships series watch was his Reference 170 that premiered in 2004 and commemorated the 150th anniversary of America's last sailing warship, the USS Constellation. The cover watch is one depicting the great battle scene of Trafalgar with the HMS Victory crashing in the waves. This is a most impressive "art meets science" type of watch with a modified Valgranges high quality balance 24 jewel automatic movement — an instant collectible and surefire future museum piece to be sure. Only six are being made. Six! And two are spoken for. So when you read this, call RGM. You might get lucky. Each one is unique and each one is made by hand and will differ slightly. Good luck!

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