Ansonia street and tower clock movements are extremely rare. Only four street clock movements such as this one are known to exist, one with the complete clock in Tampa, Fla. The only references to them are in the 1800 edition of the Ansonia catalogues.
For the first time ever, the Mid-South Regional meeting organizers will be offering a Public Day to non-members of the NAWCC. The public can participate in all the functions offered on Saturday, including the full schedule of events, for $10 per person (under 18 free). All functions will be in the Exhibit Hall C except for the lecture at 10 a.m. in Room 18. Jim Coulson will present “The Art and Science of Collecting Antique Clocks.”
The mart and exhibit will be open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. From 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., free evaluations will be available for the public. At 11:30 a.m., a walking tour will be offered with host Ken Hogwood. Attendees will have the opportunity to experience the excitement of the mart, where there are typically 200-plus tables of clocks, watches, parts, tools, books and other time-keeping materials on hand for sale to the public.
The day will be fun with silent auctions, door prizes and the ability to have a timepiece valued as well as buying items to add to your collection and/or inventory.
The themed exhibit, “The Golden Age of Mechanical Clocks,” will include carriage clocks from the 1830s made by the best French clock makers, a collection of early American carriage clocks and working English skeleton clock, circa 1850. The display will also include wooden movement clocks and early brass movement clocks from America and clocks from Germany and Austria. Also displayed will be an early English chronometer. This type of clock made it possible for ships to navigate the oceans of the world in the 1800s and 1900s.
The exhibit will represent the most significant 100 years in the development of mechanical time keeping from around the world, with a display of more than 50 clocks from many countries including a working movement from an Ansonia Street clock made in America around 1880.
If you have a antique timepiece you would like to learn more about, bring it to the Chattanooga Convention Center, Exhibit Hall C between 10:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Members of the National Association of Watch & Clock Collectors will be on hand, along with lots of reference books and price guides. Find out more about your watch or clock. Discover the history of your timepiece, not just when it was made, but the story of who made it, where, how and so forth. Many price guide books will be available, and each will receive a completed evaluation form identifying the timepiece, but an official appraisal cannot be given. Buying and selling will not be permitted at the Roadshow event.
Founded in 1943, The National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors Inc. is a nonprofit scientific organization which serves as a unique educational, cultural, and social resource for its membership and the public at large. Members include hobbyists, students, educators, casual collectors and professionals in related retail and manufacturing trades. The one common bond (and main membership requirement) is a fascination with the art and science of timekeeping (horology).
The NAWCC’s headquarters in Columbia, Pa., includes the NAWCC’s Library and Research Center, one of the largest horological libraries in the world. Housed within the National Watch and Clock Museum, the collection consists of more than 30,000 books, catalogs, and periodicals dealing with all aspects of the study of time and timekeeping. Special collection material includes 231,000 American patents; postcards dealing with horological subjects; postal stamps showing timekeeping devices; ledgers and drawings from the Hamilton Watch Company; the Whitaker Westclox collection; and the personal papers of such noted horologists as Jesse Coleman, Orville Hagans, Barclay Stephens, Robert Franks, James W. Gibbs, Albert Potter, and Charles Alvah Smith.
The National Watch and Clock Museum was officially opened to the public in 1977 with fewer than 1,000 items, and since that time, the collection has increased to more than 12,000 items. The museum is a journey through the history and science of time! Museum visitors experience a fun and fascinating trip into the world of timekeeping which is international in scope and covers a wide variety of clocks, watches, tools, and other time-related items. The largest collection is of 19th-century American clocks and watches. However, additional collections include early English tall case clocks, Asian timepieces from Japan and China, and timekeeping devices from Germany, France, the Netherlands, and Russia. Chronologically, the exhibits take you on a tour through the entire history of timekeeping technology from early nonmechanical devices to today’s atomic and radio-controlled clocks.
For information about getting into the mart on Friday (membership required), please contact Renee Coulson at 423-238-1555.
