Smiths
To readers of this website, Smiths is synonymous with timepieces, but in truth timepieces formed a tiny fraction of Smiths' output; indeed in 1966, S Smith & Sons became Smiths Industries to better represent their vast engineering presence. There are two comprehensive histories of Smiths: the Smiths Group official centennial history, "A long time in making" by Dr James Nye (2014) and a privately researched and published "S Smiths & Sons Ltd - The Golden Years" by Barry M Jones (2013) - the latter also analyses many of the companies diverse products (it would be easier to list what Smiths were not involved in)!
Jewellers and Diamond-merchants.
Smiths' origins date to around 1850 to Samuel Smith as a jeweller and diamond merchant centered on Newington Causeway, south London, also marketing clocks, pocket-watches, spectacles and magic-lanterns. All their products were bought in - timepieces used English, Swiss or German movements... albeit signed S Smith & Son. And so it remained until 1929 when the Smith family sold the retail side to concentrate on their massive, publicly owned Motor Accessories business, whose origins go back to 1904 with their first speedometer… and soon branched out into carburettors, and aircraft instruments; it was at this point that Smiths became manufacturers in their own right. Having just sold their retail side in 1929, Allan Gordon Smith acquired Williamsons to fulfil his dream of making electric clocks... as so began their 'Sectric' business and, using Williamson's famous Astral and Empire movements, the Smiths English Clocks business became clockmakers in their own right. Smiths then acquired Enfield and other fledgling clockmakers... but though Williamsons produced the high grade Astral pocket-watch, there is no indication that Smiths continued its production although in 1938 Smiths did begin development of a new pocket-watch sized calibre, of which little is known.
Myths and legends
The 1930s remain a bit of grey area which encourages over enthusiastic speculation. Indeed, identical time-pieces carry either the S Smith & Son Ltd (Trafalgar Square) or S Smiths & Sons (MA) Ltd legend note plural 'Sons') suggesting MA was marketing since 1913, timepieces to the motoring, aviation and military markets alongside the family retail business - this is poorly recorded. Indeed in the 1930s Smiths (MA) was marketing Swiss Landeron chronograph wristwatches, probably as an aircraft navigation aid (Smiths was pioneering auto-pilots). The other major myth and legend concerns R Lenoir and Smiths' war time development of pocket-, stop- and Jeager-LeCoultre.
