This blog will follow my efforts to restore and display this very old tower clock.
My Tower Clock
Thanks for visiting my blog.
If you have a tower clock or parts available I would like to buy them. Please email me at stotlarj@gmail.com
In my quest to restore something awesome to put in my house, I stumbled upon tower clocks. These historical clocks were and are used to power the large clocks you see high in the clock towers of old buildings.
I purchased this tower clock on a whim from an online auction. I had done zero research on tower clocks and I really had no business bidding on this clock.
Once the deed was done I began to conduct my research. I reached out to a tower clock expert to see what I had purchased. He said it looked like a Seth Thomas #6, but it should not be red in color.
The pilot dial dial on the clock had the name FR. Philippe on the top and St. Louis on the bottom.
With this information, I was able to trace the provenance of this clock to St. Boniface church in St. Louis. The clock was installed in 1891.
Church documents state that a German Mechanic named Fred Philippe built the clock. This would explain the red color of the clock.
The stand came from The Johnson City Fire department. It is dated 1923. It is a stand for a seth Thomas #6 clock. No one knows what happened to the original clock. The stand was in the basement of the retired fire chief and when he passed away, it was sold at auction.
Click on pictures to enlarge them.
Wednesday, May 7, 2014
The New Gear Has been Made
Against the advice of everyone I spoke to, I borrowed a genuine Seth Thomas #6 Gear and had a blank cast from it. I then had the blank machined to original specs. Works great!!
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