Clockmaking
Comes to America The first clocks to arrive in America came in the early 1600s, brought by the wealthiest settlers. These were lantern clocks, the hardy English domestic timekeepers that preceded the invention of the pendulum. The first longcase clocks (later known as tallcase clocks, tall clocks or grandfather clocks in America) did not arrive until very late in the century. At this time the first clockmakers began to settle in the colonies, bringing with them skills acquired during their apprenticeships in their native lands. However, it is unlikely that any significant clockmaking activity began prior to 1700. Few early settlers were financially able to own a clock usually the most expensive article in a colonial household. The elite, who could afford a clock, considered imported products superior to those of colonial workmanship. Hence, America's earliest clockmakers, hailing primarily from England (with a very small contingent from Ireland, Germany, and Holland), made their living repairing and selling imported timekeepers rather than producing new ones. However, it was a matter of time before the growing population and wealth of the colonies would support a native clockmaking industry. By 1700, immigrant craftsmen were settling in the more populous and prosperous urban areas. New York, Newport, Charlestown, Baltimore, and New Haven developed packets of horological activity, but Philadelphia and Boston became the most active centers of colonial clockmaking. |
