calendar clock history

THE BRIEF HISTORY OF THE CALENDAR CLOCK

MACKEY'S ANTIQUES & CLOCK REPAIR
1249 GIHON ROAD
PARKERSBURG WV 26101

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SEPTEMBER 1 2008

WE DO NOT SELL GUNS -- WE COLLECT ANTIQUE AND VINTAGE ODD GAUGE SHOTGUNS

STEVENS 14 GA. TIPUP

THE INFORMATION BELOW WAS OBTAINED FROM

VARIOUS HOROLOGICAL CLOCK BOOKS

WE ACCEPT TRADES ON OUR CLOCK REPAIR WORK

CALENDAR INDICATORS ON CLOCKS THAT MEASURED THE DAYS OF THE WEEK ARE ANCIENT THEY WERE ON TALL CASE

CLOCKS FROM THE LATE 17th CENTURY AND WERE ON THE CHEAP CONNECTICUT WOODEN TALL CLOCKS OFFERED THE

SIMPLE CALENDARS INDICATING THE DAY OF THE MONTH . "COMPLEX" CALENDARS ARE THOSE WHICH HAVE MORE

COMPLICATED AND EXPENSIVE CALENDAR MECHANISMS THEN THE "SIMPLE"CALENDARS . THESE CLOCKS OFTEN HAD

SEPARATE DIALS FOR CALENDARS AND USUALLY TOLD MORE THAN JUST THE DAY OF THE MONTH . OFTEN THE DAY OF

THE WEEK,MONTH OF THE YEAR AND OCCASIONALLY EVEN THE MOON'S PHASES WERE INDICATED . SOME COMPLEX

CALENDARS WERE PERPETUAL, MEANING THAT THE MECHANISM WAS SO GEARED THAT THE CLOCK WOULD

AUTOMATICALLY CORRECT FOR THE DIFFERENT NUMBERS OF DAYS IN THE MONTHS . A FULL PERPETUAL WOULD

AUTOMATICALLY ADD AN EXTRA DAY TO FEBRUARY IN LEAP YEAR THERE IS A UNKNOWN CALENDAR MECHANISM

THAT HAS THE EXTRA ROLL( 3 ROLLS INSTEAD OF THE STANDARD OF 2 )THAT TRIPPED THE THIRD ROLL LEAP YEAR

JOHN H. HAWES OF ITHACA NEW YORK WAS THE FIRST TO BE GRANTED A PATENT FOR A SEPARATE CALENDAR CLOCK

MECHANISM . HIS INVENTION , PATENTED ON MAY 17th,1853 DID NOT CORRECT FOR LEAP YEAR AND APPARENTLY WAS

NEVER PUT INTO PRODUCTION . TWO OTHER ITHACA MEN, WILLIAM H. AKINS AND JOSEPH C. BURRITT. WERE GRANTED A

PATENT IN 1854 FOR A MECHANISM AND IN 1857 FOR AN IMPROVEMENT ON IT . RIGHTS TO BOTH PATENTS WERE PURCHASED

BY WAIT T. HUNTINGTON AND HARVEY PLATTS OF ITHACA AND TURNED OVER TO JAMES E. MIX AND EUGENE M. MIX, AND

THERE MECHANICS, TO PRODUCE . THE MIX BROTHERS MADE IMPROVEMENTS THAT WERE PATENTED IN 1860 AND 1862; IN

ABOUT 1863 THEIR PERFECTED MECHANISM WAS SOLD TO SETH THOMAS CLOCK COMPANY . THE FIRM USED THE CALENDAR

MECHANISM UNTIL 1876, WHEN IT ADOPTED A DESIGN DEVELOPED BY RANDALL T. ANDREWS, JR. AN EMPLOYEE .

HENRY B. HORTON OF ITHACA, NEW YORK PATENTED A MECHANISM IN 1865 AND AN IMPROVEMENT ON IT THE FOLLOWING

YEAR . SOON AFTER HE WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN THE FORMATION OF THE ITHACA CALENDAR CLOCK COMPANY WHICH

PRODUCED CALENDAR CLOCKS UNTIL IT WENT BANKRUPT IN 1917. BENJAMIN BENNETT LEWIS OF BRISTOL CONNECTICUT

DEVELOPED A MECHANISM THAT WAS PATENTED IN 1862 WITH IMPROVEMENTS IN 1868 AND 1881. LEWIS CALENDARS WAS

USED BY SEVERAL BRISTOL FIRMS BURWELL & CARTER AND L.F.& W.W. CARTER THE E.INGRAHAM COMPANY AND THE WELCH

SPRING & COMPANY. ONE OF THE MOST COMPLICATED MECHANISMS WAS THAT MADE BY DANIEL JACKSON GALE OF

SHEBOYGAN WISCONSIN AND PATENTED IN 1877 . GALE SOLD THE RIGHT TO MANUFACTURE HIS CLOCKS TO WELCH, SPRING

& CO. OF BRISTOL CONN. WHO PRODUCED SEVERAL MODELS . BECAUSE OF THEIR UNUSUALLY COMPLICATED DIALS AND

GADGETRY HIS CLOCKS ARE VERY POPULAR WITH CLOCK COLLECTORS TODAY. MANY SMALLER FIRMS WERE FORMED FOR

THE MANUFACTURE OF CLOCKS WITH YET ANOTHER NEW CALENDAR DESIGN . AMONG THE BETTER KNOWN WERE THE

SOUTHERN CALENDAR CLOCK CO. OF ST. LOUIS MISSOURI AND THE PRENTISS IMPROVEMENT CLOCK COMPANY OF NEW

YORK . THE MOVEMENTS FOR THEIR CLOCKS WERE GENERALLY PURCHASED FROM CONNECTICUT COMPANIES SUCH AS SETH