Swiss 18 carat gold hunting cased precision watch Circa 1875

Gold hunting cased precision watch by Albert H. Potter
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A Swiss 18 carat gold hunting cased precision pocket watch, circa 1875. Special bridge movement ‘AP’, nickel plated, ‘fausses côtes’ decoration, large gold screwed compensation balance, Potter’s patented escapement with crosier, gold drive. White enamel dial, Roman numerals, outer minute ring, small sunken decentral seconds and blued  filigree Breguet hands. Smooth case monogrammed on both sides, à goutte, signed and hallmarked. Comes with the original box and with detailed documents from Potter’s patents.
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Diameter: 52 mm
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Weight: 135 g
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Signed: Albert H. Potter & Co. Geneva
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Albert H. Potter (1836-1908) was born in 1836 in Mechanicville, New York. Potter completed his three year apprenticeship at Wood & Foley in Albany in 1855 and then opened a repair shop in New York. In addition to the repairs, he constructed about 35 three-quarter-board works with anchor or spring locking, which he sold for 225-350 dollars. In 1861 Potter went to Cuba, where he stayed for five years and continued to carry out both repairs and new construction methods. He constructed at this time a quarter hour repeating mechanism and a kind of duplex escapement. After his return to New York Potter received his first patent for inhibition in 1868 and soon moved to the West of the United States. He spent a short time in Minneapolis and Milwaukee, eventually settling in Chicago around 1870. In 1872 Potter founded the company ‘Potter Brothers’ with his brother William Cleveland Potter. The company closed in 1875, but W.C. Potter continued to do business until his death.
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Before leaving the United States in 1875 to settle in Geneva (where he would remain for 33 years until his death), Albert filed several patents for compensation riots and inhibition improvements. He transferred half of these rights to John H. McMillan of Chicago, who appeared to be a partner of Potter in his first Swiss ventures. During his time in Chicago, Potter had designed and built a pocket chronometer that may well be considered his masterpiece. This chronometer was the prototype for several copies which he then built in Geneva, where he received on February 11, 1876, its settlement permit. In an article in The Horological Journal of May 1882, Potter wrote that he had made design drawings and working models for 14 different inhibitions.
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Literature : Kathleen H. Pritchard, Swiss Timepiece Makers 1775-1975.