Background
Robert Hawley Ingersoll was born on December 26, 1859, in Delta, Michigan, to Orville Boudinot Ingersoll and Mary Elizabeth Beers.
Businessman watch manufacturer
Robert Hawley Ingersoll was born on December 26, 1859, in Delta, Michigan, to Orville Boudinot Ingersoll and Mary Elizabeth Beers.
In 1879, with little formal education and no occupational experience except farming, Robert Ingersoll moved to New York City.
In 1880 Robert opened his own wholesale business, also selling rubber stamps. In 1881 he was joined by his brother Charles Henry Ingersoll. In 1892 the first Ingersoll watches, called "Universal" were introduced. This was first made for Ingersoll by the Waterbury Clock Company. In 1896 Ingersoll introduced a watch called the Yankee, setting its price at $1. It was the cheapest watch available at the time.
William H. Ingersoll was later a partner in the business. Afterwards Ingersoll bought the bankrupt New England Watch Company in 1914 and renamed it the Ingersoll Watch Company.
After selling over 90, 000, 000 watches, the firm of Robert H. Ingersoll & Brother failed in 1921. The assets were sold to the Waterbury Clock Company, the predecessor of the modern day Timex Group USA.
Robert Hawley Ingersoll died on September 4, 1928, in Denver.
On June 22, 1904 in Muskegon, Michigan, Robert H. Ingersoll married Roberta Maria Bannister.
Charles Henry Ingersoll, a younger brother of Robert, was the internal administrator of what grew to be a vast business, eventually conducted principally through its own chain stores.
