National Watch Day is a holiday celebrated on June 19th every year, commemorating a piece of technology that has been around for hundreds of years. Although the modern wristwatch might have slipped in popularity over the last few years due to the rise of smartphones, many people still consider the perfect wristwatch to be a symbol of culture, sophistication, and taste. That’s why many people continue to celebrate this holiday—even to this day.

The History of Watch Day

National Watch Day was created in 2017 by Nordstrom as a way to promote its watch line. With the rise of smartwatches and smartphones, the need for wearing a traditional watch has diminished over the past few years, so this holiday was the perfect way to raise the profile of modern wristwatches and hopefully get consumers excited about wearing them.

The History of the Watch

Watches first appeared in 16th-century Europe and naturally evolved from spring-driven clocks that were first invented during the 15th century. These watches were mechanical devices and continued to be so until the 20th century when the quartz watch was invented in the 1960s. Quartz watches were electric watches that used a vibrating quartz crystal to keep time. This type of watch became extremely popular during the 1980s, and many mechanical watches were pushed from the market as a result.

By the way, the watch is called a watch because they were often used by town watchmen. Watchmen would use them to keep track of their shifts, and the name eventually stuck. Sailors during the 17th century also called their duty shifts “watches,” so it was natural to use the term to apply to these small timekeeping devices.

Fun Facts About Watches

Below are some facts that we’ve discovered about the common watch and about clocks in general. Hopefully, everyone who reads this will find the following facts as interesting as we did.

• The Ancient Egyptians invented the first sundial.
• The Sumerians were the first to record time.
• The Strela watch was the first watch to go into space, worn by Russian cosmonauts.
• Rolex made a special deep-sea watch that was taken 11,000 meters down to the bottom of the Mariana Trench.

Celebrating National Watch Day

National Watch Day can be celebrated by buying yourself a watch or giving one to someone you love or respect. Watches make great gifts and can be given not only for this holiday but also for graduations, birthdays, or anniversaries. And while you’re celebrating this holiday, be sure to use the hashtag #NationalWatchDay to ensure that everyone knows you’re celebrating it in a timely fashion.