Left to right: Tall Case Clock with movement by George Graham, London,
England, ca. 1720. Detail of upper section and clock face. Eight-day clock movement signed by
James Craig of England and Williamsburg, ca. 1770. Tall Case Clock with movement by John Bailey,
Hanover, Mass., 1800-1815 and case attributed to Theodore Cushing, Hingham,
Mass., 1800-1815. Images provided by Colonial Williamsburg. All rights reserved.
Tall case clocks use weight-driven movements regulated
by pendulums housed in wooden cases. Clockmakers put together the mechanical
movement while specialists were often engaged to cast the brass gears for the
movement and engrave decoration or the maker’s name on the clock dial.
Cabinetmakers or joiners made the wooden cases while still more specialists
might produce inlaid wooden elements or painted motifs and patterns to ornament
the clock cases. The style and design of clock movements — especially their
dials — and clock cases changed over time with new advances, evolving fashions
and regional preferences.
“Until mass production of clocks began in the early
19th century, only the wealthy could afford the expensive mechanisms,” said
Tara Chicirda, Colonial Williamsburg’s curator of furniture. “But most people
could proceed through the day with little access to a clock. During the 18th
century, many used the sun’s location in the sky, sundials or public clock
chimes to regulate their days.”
As society became increasingly more dependent on time
regulation, clocks became more necessary and the introduction of mass
production in the 19th century made them more attainable.
The exhibition highlights the design of the movements
and clock dials, and looks at the changes in case and dial styles over time in
both England and America while showcasing Colonial Williamsburg’s collection of
Southern tall case clocks.
“Keeping Time: The Tall Case Clock” is made possible
by Martha Rittenhouse in memory of her parents, David and Evelyn Rittenhouse,
and her brother, Ward Rittenhouse, and will be on view through Feb.3, 2013. A
Colonial Williamsburg admission ticket or Museum ticket is required. The DeWitt
Wallace Decorative Arts Museum is located at 326 W. Francis St. and is open
daily throughout the year.
The Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg include the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk
Art Museum and the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum. The Abby
Aldrich Rockefeller
Folk Art
Museum DeWitt
Wallace Decorative
Arts Museum
The Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg
are located at the intersection of Francis and South Henry Streets in Williamsburg ,
Va. , and are entered through the Public Hospital of1773. Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily, except 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Sunday — Thursday through March 11. For museum program information,
telephone (757) 220-7724.
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation is the not-for-profit educational
and cultural organization that preserves and operates the restored 18th-century
Revolutionary capital of Virginia as a town-sized living history museum,
telling the inspirational stories of our nation’s founding men and women. Williamsburg
is located in Virginia’s Tidewater region, 20 minutes from Newport News, within
an hour’s drive of Richmond and Norfolk, and 150 miles south of Washington,
D.C., off Interstate 64. For more information about Colonial Williamsburg, call
1-800-HISTORY or visit Colonial Williamsburg’s website at www.history.org.
