Malleray Watch Co. is a largely unknown manufacturer of watch movements. Reason enough to compile what is known about the history and movements of this company.
Malleray Watch Co. was founded as a stock corporation on December 30, 1907 with its headquarters in the Swiss town of the same name, Malleray, about 60 km from Bern. Emile Quartier-Hässig and Georges Quartier-Gabus were appointed as managing directors. The company’s capital amounted to 60,000 Swiss francs.
There was however a much older Société d’horlogerie de Malleray, as it is known that it supplied the movements for the first Roskopf watches from 1867. We will not deal with this company here.
Shortly after its foundation, in March 1908, the Malleray Watch Co. registered the shape of two pallet forks in the Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC):
This was followed in July 1909 by the registration of two clicks:
In August 1909, the first two complete movements were finally registered as so-called models:
Technically, the two models are largely identical. Model no. 5 is the Lépine (open face) version of the movement, model no. 6 the Savonnette (hunter) version. The model numbers are not official caliber designations, but were merely used to register the design.
I can present model no. 6 here in the original:
The movement with a diameter of 19´´´ has a Swiss lever escapement, a monometallic screw balance, 6 jewels, a small second hand and the following features:
- Pillar construction
- Indirectly driven minute (therefore the bearing for a center minute wheel is missing on the bridge side of the movement)
- Negative winding mechanism, for American cases in which the winding stem is part of the case and not the movement
- Impulse ‘jewel’ not made of ruby, but of metal
Model No. 5 is also shown in the following Malleray advertisement from 1913, together with the information that it is intended for American and English watch cases and has a negative winding mechanism.
It continued in February 1911 with models 7 and 8:
These two Lépine (open face) movements also appear to be technically identical, differing only in slightly different bridge shapes.
The Malleray Watch developers were apparently busy, as three more movements were registered just one year later, in February 1912: models 9, 10 and 11:
Model no. 10 is also in my collection:
The movement with a diameter of 19´´´ has a Swiss lever escapement, a monometallic screw balance, 11 jewels and a small second hand.
The corresponding dial is labeled Système Glashütte. If you want to know what it’s all about, you’ll find it here: System Glashütte – What’s that?
Then came the first turning point in the company’s history. On September 1, 1915, the two associates Emile Quartier-Hässig and Georges Quartier-Gabus took over the company and renamed it Quartier frères, successeurs de Malleray Watch Co. (Quartier brothers, successors of Malleray Watch Co.). The form of a stock company was therefore abandoned.
The new company started in February 1916 with the registration of further movements with the model numbers 2, 3, 4 and 5 in the Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce:
A model no. 1 also exists, but it is not a movement, but a watch case!
This was followed just a few days later by the registration of many individual parts of a winding mechanism as model numbers 6 to 15:
And then, in August 1916, another movement, model no. 16:
Then there was silence for quite a while, until the company became a stock company again in March 1922 and from then on operated under the name Fabrique d’Horlogerie de Malleray S. A. (Malleray Watch Co.). The old name Malleray Watch was thus resurrected.
The registration of the new company contains interesting details:
- The company was only founded for four years, starting on 01.01.1922.
- The company headquarters were moved from Malleray to Neuchâtel.
- Emile-Georges Quartier, presumably a descendant of Georges Quartier-Gabus (both from Brenet), was appointed managing director.
- At the same time, Roland Tièche was registered as the second authorized signatory and appointed director.
The roots in Malleray were not abandoned despite the relocation of the company headquarters to Neuchâtel, as a branch was founded in Malleray in 1923.
The new company naturally also submitted registrations to the Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SHAB). The movement models no. 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20 were launched as early as mid-March 1922. Another No. 16? Unfortunately yes, perhaps someone wasn’t paying attention when submitting the registration. Or there is a deeper meaning behind it…
Models 16, 17, 18 and 19 are identical to models 2, 3, 4 and 5, which were registered in 1916!
At the same time, the parts of a winding mechanism were again registered as models 20 to 29, which had already been registered as models 6 to 15 in 1916! The new registration probably replaced the formal transfer from the old to the new company.
The date of the registrations is interesting, as the articles of foundation of the new company are only dated 31.03.1922 and the foundation was published in the SOGC on 15.04.1922! De facto, therefore, the registrations under the new company took place before it was founded.
In October 1922, new movements were registered again, the models no. 30, 31 and 32:
Model no. 33 followed in July 1923:
I can also show this one here:
The movement with a diameter of 10 1/2´´´ has a Swiss lever escapement, a monometallic screw balance, 10 jewels and no seconds. The ratchet wheel is marked VERDICT, one of the Malleray Watch brands (see table below).
In August 1925, 12 further movements were newly registered, models no. 34 to 45:
And then it was over, so no more movements were registered in the SOGC. Instead, the Fabrique d’Horlogerie de Malleray S. A. (Malleray Watch Co.) was granted Swiss patents CH107243 (1923) and CH118259 (1926) for parts of watch movements.
The next picture shows a small excerpt from the first patent. The mechanism for winding and setting the hands looks very similar to that of the model no. 33 shown above.
From here on, the information on the company’s history becomes rather sparse. The Fabrique d’Horlogerie de Malleray S. A. (Malleray Watch Co.) had only been founded for a period of four years, so it should have been dissolved on December 31, 2025. In fact, the company’s articles of foundation were amended in January 1926 so that the company could continue to exist indefinitely. In 1930, the company headquarters were again moved from Neuchâtel to Malleray. In 1941, the company went into liquidation and put all its assets up for sale. It was finally declared dissolved in February 1942.
26 years later, in March 1968, the company was reborn under the name Malleray Watch, Georges Juillerat. In December 1968, however, it was dissolved and at the same time re-established as Malleray Watch S.à.r.l., a limited liability company. The associates were Georges and Eliane Juillerat, Roland Carrera and François Pelletier. Roland Carrera left the company again in 1970.
Unfortunately, I was unable to find out whether there was a connection between the old and new Malleray Watch. At least the names of the partners do not directly suggest a connection.
The new company probably no longer had anything to do with the manufacture of watch movements.
The changes of name and relocations continue. In July 1972, François Pelletier and Claude Wittwer founded Pelletier et Wittwer, Malleray Watch in Malleray, which moved its headquarters to Reconvilier in December 1972. In November 1973, Pelletier et Wittwer, Malleray Watch became Pelletier & Cie, Malleray Watch, owned by François and Marie-Claire Pelletier. Claude Wittwer had therefore left the company.
François Pelletier was involved in both Malleray Watch S.à.r.l. and Pelletier & Cie, Malleray Watch. Unfortunately, I have to leave unanswered the question of how one emerged from the other.
On March 13, 1995, Pelletier & Cie, Malleray Watch was finally merged into the newly founded Pelletier & Cie S.à.r.l. with retroactive effect from January 1, 1995, in which François Pelletier consolidated many of his company holdings. The name Malleray Watch thus disappeared from the market!
In addition to the numerous movements and parts of movements, Malleray Watch Co. and its successor companies reserved a whole series of brands for themselves:
| Brand | Company | Date of registration |
|---|---|---|
| Cadi-al-Koda | Fabrique d’Horlogerie de Malleray S. A. (Malleray Watch Co.) | 05.12.1922 |
| Costo | Malleray Watch Co. | 23.12.1910 17.02.1916 transferred to Quartier frères |
| Courtege | Pelletier & Cie, Malleray Watch | 02.12.1974 Deleted again on 15.07.1975 |
| Cyprés | Quartier frères, successeurs de Malleray Watch Co. | 14.01.1922 |
| Duphont | Pelletier & Cie, Malleray Watch | 07.08.1974 |
| Fino | Malleray Watch Co. | 23.12.1910 17.02.1916 transferred to Quartier frères |
| Lara | Malleray Watch S.à.r.l. Pelletier & Cie, Malleray Watch | 22.05.1970 09.10.1990 |
| Mabet | Quartier frères, successeurs de Malleray Watch Co. | 14.01.1922 |
| Malleray | Malleray Watch Co. | 30.12.1907 |
| Nerina | Malleray Watch Co. | 19.03.1913 17.02.1916 transferred to Quartier frères |
| Noni | Malleray Watch Co. | 23.12.1910 17.02.1916 an Quartier frères übertragen |
| Nox | Malleray Watch Co. | 10.06.1914 17.02.1916 transferred to Quartier frères |
| Onorina | Malleray Watch Co. | 20.11.1912 |
| Orb | Malleray Watch Co. | 10.06.1914 17.02.1916 transferred to Quartier frères |
| Paxor | Pelletier & Cie, Malleray Watch | 02.07.1982 |
| PFR | Pelletier & Cie, Malleray Watch | 06.04.1979 |
| Radium | Quartier frères, successeurs de Malleray Watch Co. | 11.01.1916 |
| Riadeb | Quartier frères, successeurs de Malleray Watch Co. | 06.10.1919 |
| Richelieu | Malleray Watch S.à.r.l. Pelletier & Cie, Malleray Watch | 21.01.1970 20.04.1990 |
| Verdict | Fabrique d’Horlogerie de Malleray S. A. (Malleray Watch Co.) | 05.12.1922 |