#4  Simon Willard Tall Case Clock

What would a Historical Society be without grandfather clocks? These icons of early America were not known as grandfather clocks when they were made, that name was applied later when they came to symbolize “grandfather’s” day.

When Simon Willard made this clock around 1800, he advertised it as a tall case clock.  Willard, one of the most famous and collectible New England clockmakers, worked in the Boston area with his equally famous brother Aaron Willard.  This example is the high end model tall case clock with its delicate inlays, brass finials, and decorative face.  The clock is exceptionally tall measuring eight feet from floor to the top finial. Tall case clocks were typically placed in the front hall of a home, so that the entire household could hear it chime the hour and half hour.

Inside the clock’s door, is a document detailing the ownership of the clock from Simon Willard to the Peterborough Historical Society.  Jane Frothingham Hawkins of Dublin donated the clock to the Society in 1989. The clock is on permanent display in the Historical Society’s museum and is one of five tall case clocks in the museum collection.