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- Written by Dr. Lori Verderame Dr. Lori Verderame
I appraise my fair share of antique and vintage clocks via my public appraisal events and through photo submissions to my website. Some of the most intriguing clocks of all types are from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
While the early 20th century saw the advancement of many New England clock factories, some of the most famous clock shops were based in Connecticut, such as Waterbury Clock Company, Seth Thomas, Ingraham Company, Eli Terry, and Ansonia Clock Company.
Known locally in southern Connecticut as the New Haven Clock Shoppe, the New Haven Clock Company produced clocks featuring cast bronze Art Nouveau cases, arched wooden cases that recall Gothic buildings, and hand-painted ceramic cases as well as mantle clocks, wall clocks, shelf clocks, etc.
In 1884, Chauncey Jerome relocated his clock factory from Bristol to New Haven, Connecticut. The new factory and office location was situated on 2 acres of land near the predominantly Italian immigrant community of Wooster Square and within proximity to the Mill River and downtown New Haven.
Jerome was trained by Eli Terry, the famed clockmaker. Jerome made great strides in the clockmaking business as he discovered the stamping method for making clock gears rather than utilizing the expensive method of producing gears in cast metal.
This production method was a major cost-saver and allowed the New Haven Clock Company to produce the lowest-priced clocks in the world. This was a great boost to business.
The New Haven Clock Company capitalized on its low-cost stamped-gear clocks and introduced other clockwork production innovations.
For instance, glow-in-the-dark wristwatches with radium-laced dials were mass produced by the firm and shipped to soldiers serving abroad during World War I. The downside was that factory workers working on these products, known as Radium Girls, suffered radiation poisoning.
During World War II, timing fuses and mine relays were produced to support the war effort. Clock production, though reduced, resumed after World War II but eventually, in 1956, the factory closed.
Some of the factory buildings were leveled to accommodate the new interstate highway system that connects northern and southern Connecticut, from the state’s major cities of Hartford and New Haven, in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
Today, collectors seek out New Haven Clock Company clocks in various designs. The firm produced as many as 300 different types of clocks.
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, New Haven clocks were marked with two trademark names: Jerome & Co., which was a mark used until 1904, and New Haven Clock Co., which was a clear mark found on the front dial of many of the firm’s clocks.
A Ph.D. antiques appraiser, author, and award-winning personality, Dr. Lori presents antique appraisal events nationwide, appears on Netflix’s King of Collectibles and History channel’s The Curse of Oak Island and Pawn Stars Do America. Visit drloriv.com or watch her internationally popular selling and thrifting videos on youtube.com/drloriv.
