'I feel closer to history and Lincoln'

Ancestor engraved secret message in president's watch

There's really no shortage of Abraham Lincoln lore connected to Waukegan, but the story local attorney Doug Stiles tells -- small as the city connection may be -- actually has some legs to it.

Stiles had his 15 minutes of fame last month when it was discovered that his great-great-grandfather, Jonathan Dillon, had engraved a secret message in President Lincoln's watch at the start of the Civil War.

The story of Jonathan Dillon has been circulating in Stiles' family for a number of years. Family lore said that Dillon, an Irish immigrant, was working in a watch shop just blocks from the White House, repairing Lincoln's pocket watch when Fort Sumter was attacked on April 12, 1861, beginning the Civil War.

As family legend (and a sketchily detailed 1906 New York Times article) had it, Dillon became so overwhelmed that he inscribed a message on the watch that proclaimed the end of slavery and praised the president.

Stiles, 59, said he first heard the story from a great uncle in the 1970s while he was compiling family history.

"He told me the story and I went 'wow, that's interesting,'" Stiles recalled. But he was also skeptical. "It's Lincoln's watch. (I figured) someone would have noticed. I had my doubts."

Years passed without Stiles pursing it, but eventually he began doing some footwork. As time went by, his research led him to the Lincoln Museum in Springfield and to the Lincoln Collection at the Smithsonian.

It was in Washington, D.C., where he was finally able to locate the watch. But Lincoln curator Harry Rubenstein was suspicious, Stiles said.

As Stiles recalls, Rubenstein said the pocket watch was one of the collection's prized possessions. It's been handled and photographed dozens of times and no message has been found. The watch in question is the same one Lincoln was believed to have had for much of his political career. Photographs show him with it at the Gettysburg Address.

Stiles eventually convinced the museum to open the watch. So on March 10, the Smithsonian held a special ceremony, where an expert watchmaker was brought in to disassemble the watch and look inside. Once opened, Stiles was called to the front of the room, where he was delighted to see his family's story validated.

"First thing I saw was my ancestor's signature, and I have to say that was a cool moment," he said.

On the watch Dillon had inscribed the following: "Jonathan Dillon April 13, 1861 Fort Sumpter [sic] was attacked by the rebels on the above date J Dillon April 13, 1861 Washington" and "thank God we have a government Jonth Dillon."

Seeing that inscription more than three decades after first hearing the story excites Stiles.

"It's hard to describe. I feel closer to history and Lincoln," he said. "I feel so moved that he wanted to write something on the president's watch."