Lt. Monroe A. Scott & His 1943 Bulova Minute Man

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M/Sgt Monroe Scott was finally promoted to a 1st Lieutenant in early 1943 after completing his three-month coursework at Grinnell College. In an April 1943 letter to his parents, Monroe talked about being stationed on the East Coast, which included traveling to New York City. It was there that he probably purchased a 10kt gold curved-case Bulova Minute Man watch, and had it custom inscribed “Lt. Monroe A. Scott ~ O1894790 ~ B ~ U.S.A ~ H”. (O1894790 is Scott’s Army Officer’s service number. I do not know what the significance of the "B" and "H" next to "USA" -- the "H" has been deliberately scratched out).

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The watch cost around $34 in 1943 ($750 in 2021; a Lieutenant's monthly salary was about $175). The elongated case was curved to comfortably fit on your wrist -- and was a copy of the very popular Gruen Curvex style; it is 43mm long by 22mm wide. Monroe's watch featured a 21-jewel Bulova 7AP movement, code dated to 1940. The dial was badly water damaged and the second hand was missing; the movement did not run.  I replaced the original, non-working 1940 Bulova 7AP movement with a working 1937 7AP 17-jewel donor movement. 

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The original WW2 leather watch strap was cracked and worn beyond repair; I was able to replace it with an identical WW2 Army-issued "new old stock" leather band.

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Bulova produced the "Curvex-style" Minute Man from 1937 through 1943; after that, it was replaced was a rectangular case. They continued to produce a Minute Man style through the 1970s.