Lot 264

Charles Henri Meylan

A very fine and heavy hunting case pocket watch with split seconds chronograph

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The Meylan family is one of the oldest watchmaking dynasties in Switzerland. The origin of the family probably lies in Le Lieu, where a Moise is already mentioned around 1670, an Abraham in 1683 and a David Meylan in 1685.
Charles Henri Meylan was born in Le Sentier on 21 April 1842, son of Charles Napoléon Meylan and his wife Louise Bonard.
After primary school, Meylan trained as a watchmaker and, as a talented watchmaker, worked for Nicole & Capt in London from 1864. In 1868, Meylan returned to his home country and initially settled in Geneva. In 1871, Meylan emigrated to New York, USA. Here he apparently lived for several decades, because in 1874 he received his first US patent with the indication: residing in New York. It was not until a US patent from 1889 that it was stated that, in addition to New York, he also lived at times in Le Brassus. It is not known whether Meylan worked as a self-employed watchmaker in addition to importing domestic watches. Around 1880, he founded the Ch. H. Meylan Watch Co. in Le Brassus, later Ch. H. Meylan & Co. In 1894, Charles Henri Meylan was one of the founders of the watchmaking school in Le Sentier. He died in Le Brassus on 13 October 1916.