A lighthouse clock is a type of mantel clock manufactured in the U.S. from 1818 through 1830s by the American clockmaker Simon Willard, having the dial and works exposed beneath a glass dome on a tapered, cylindrical body.
They were also made by Simon Willard & Son, a partnership between the clockmaker and his son Simon Willard Jr. created in 1823. The father and son were in partnership for five years and in 1828, Simon Willard, Jr. established his own shop in Boston.
Lighthouse clocks are regarded as the first alarm clocks produced in America, although a significant number of the later clocks of this type were crafted without alarms. [1] The clock consist of a round, square or octagonal wooden base that rises in a tapered column, which is itself surmounted by clockworks that are covered by a glass dome, giving the effect of a standing lighthouse. Some bases were decorated with pictures depicting classical scenes.
Both the form and the respective patented movement (in 1818) [1] were invented by the clockmaker and this timekeeper was devised to offer an alarm mechanism in a high-style shelf clock. Originally known as the "Patent Alarm Timepiece", S. Willard's patent also refers to them as "alarum (sic) clocks", they have become known as lighthouse clocks (a 20th century term) for their obvious similarities. The design of the cases were based on the classical art then in vogue; Neoclassicism and Empire. Some of these clocks, however, are less formal and reflect the vernacular interest in painted furniture, particularly Windsor chairs. Therefore, the wood cases are quite varied in design, quality and workmanship, and they could be paint and stencil decorated or mahogany with decorative ormolu brass mounts. The best pieces, displayed figured mahogany veneer as the finest Empire parlour furnitures. Few original Willard lighthouse clocks have survived and it is estimated that about 200 to 300 examples of this highly sought-after collector timepiece remain. [1]
The timekeepers are generally 24 to 30 inches tall, although there are examplaries where the column is as short as a couple inches. [1] The notion of a clock under a dome may hark back to the imported, some glass-domed, French Empire mantel clocks fashionable at the time. Or, they might have been influenced by English and French skeletonized clocks as well; that is, clocks whose plates have been cut and exposed in such a way as to show the internal workings of the clock. Willard's clockworks were not skeletonized, but the mechanism was visible too. The alarm bell was mounted atop the clock brass movement. Clock mechanisms are driven by a weight concealed in the body of the lighthouse, though the alarm mechanism is sometimes driven by a separate weight raised by a pullcord.
Regarding the movement, it is an 8-day weight driven, pendulum regulated clock and, as well as the cases, there were a considerable variety of mechanisms in terms of workmanship and design. Clocks with similar cases have significant differences in their movements, this could indicate there were many different makers or that some works were being imported from Europe. [1] About the dial, period lighthouse clocks either had porcelain dials with brass backs or painted iron dials, bearing the inscription; "Simon Willard" or "Willard Patent" or "Simon Willard's Patten" or "Simon Willard and Son's Pattent"; others have signed cases or tags with similar wording. In the larger market, however, there are a significant number of lighthouse clocks without a name on the dial, and even a few clocks with the names of other makers.
Most lighthouse clocks were produced between the mid-1820s and the mid-1830s, which was a time when the Empire style was still the prevailing art movement, hence that many lighthouse clocks have Empire cases. [1] From the artistic point of view, the best timepieces of the era were a masterful collaboration of cabinetmaker, clockmaker, glass blower, decorative painter, and gilder producing as a result a high quality clock as well as an elegant decorative object.
The reason why lighthouse clocks never became a mass-produced timepiece it is because in the 1830s the U. S. was deeply into the Industrial Revolution and mass production. The manufacturers who were able to produce cheap clocks and then sell them for $2 were forcing, somehow, individual clockmakers out of business. Lighthouse clocks were custom and handmade objects created in an age when the vast majority of the clocks were commercially manufactured, these original clocks were going against the Industrial Revolution. They were continuing the tradition of the handmade clock and the workshop of an individual craftsman.
During the 20th century reproductions of this kind of mantel clock have been made, even nowadays a couple of clockmakers manufacture them, proving the interest that still raise among collectors and connoisseurs the clocks made by the talented and ingenious Simon Willard.
To stand out, an unusual exemplary displayed in one of the bookshelves of the White House library, made by the clockmaker to commemorate the visit of the Marquis de Lafayette to the United States in 1824-1825. A likeness of Lafayette appears in a medallion on its base. [2]
Original lighthouse clocks are rare and have become very valuable; for instance one was sold at Sotheby's auction house on January 6, 2006 for US$744,000. [3]
John Harrison was a self-educated English carpenter and clockmaker who invented the marine chronometer, a long-sought-after device for solving the problem of calculating longitude while at sea.
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Mantel clocks—or shelf clocks—are relatively small house clocks traditionally placed on the shelf, or mantel, above the fireplace. The form, first developed in France in the 1750s, can be distinguished from earlier chamber clocks of similar size due to a lack of carrying handles.
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The banjo clock, or banjo timepiece, is an American wall clock with a banjo-shaped case. It was invented by Simon Willard, originally of Grafton, Massachusetts, later of Roxbury, Massachusetts, and patented in 1802. The banjo clock normally lacks a striking mechanism and indicates time only by its hands and dial, for which reason some horologists may insist upon calling it a timepiece rather than a true clock. In popular usage though, no such distinction is made.
A lantern clock is a type of antique weight-driven wall clock, shaped like a lantern. They were the first type of clock widely used in private homes. They probably originated before 1500 but only became common after 1600; in Britain around 1620. They became obsolete in the 19th century.
Simon Willard was a celebrated American clockmaker. Simon Willard clocks were produced in Massachusetts in the towns of Grafton and Roxbury, near Boston. Among his many innovations and timekeeping improvements, Simon Willard is best known for inventing the eight-day patent timepiece that came to be known as the gallery or banjo clock.
Eli Terry Sr. was an inventor and clockmaker in Connecticut. He received a United States patent for a shelf clock mechanism. He introduced mass production to the art of clockmaking, which made clocks affordable for the average American citizen. Terry occupies an important place in the beginnings of the development of interchangeable parts manufacturing. Terry is considered the first person in American history to actually accomplish interchangeable parts with no government funding. Terry became one of the most accomplished mechanics in New England during the early part of the nineteenth century. The village of Terryville, Connecticut is named for his son, Eli Terry Jr.
Aaron Willard was an entrepreneur, an industrialist, and a designer of clocks who worked extensively at his Roxbury, Massachusetts, factory during the early years of the United States of America.
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All Willard Brothers were born at their modest family farm in Grafton, Massachusetts, successively between 1743 and 1755. Owning independent workshops at Boston, they were the most celebrated clockmakers in the early United States.
Benjamin Vulliamy, was a British clockmaker responsible for building the Regulator Clock, which, between 1780 and 1884, was the main timekeeper of the King's Observatory Kew and the official regulator of time in London. In 1773 Vulliamy had received a Royal Appointment as the King's Clockmaker.
The Cuckooland Museum, previously known as the Cuckoo Clock Museum, is a museum that exhibits mainly cuckoo clocks, located in Tabley, Cheshire, England. The collection comprises 300 years of cuckoo clock-making history, since the very earliest examples made in the 18th to the 21st century.
A French Empire-style mantel clock is a type of elaborately decorated mantel clock that was made in France during the Napoleonic Empire (1804–1814/15). Timekeepers manufacturing during the Bourbon Restoration (1814/1815–1830) are also included within this art movement as they share similar subjects, decorative elements, shapes, and style.
The Negress head clock is a type of French Empire mantel clock depicting the head of a black woman flanked by sculptured putti. It is considered among the eccentricities of French horology and had drawn attention during the late eighteenth century. Five examples are noted in prominent collections.
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