American Clock and Watch Museum

The American Clock and Watch Museum (AWCM), located in Bristol, Connecticut, is one of a very few museums in the United States dedicated solely to horology, which is the history, science and art of timekeeping and timekeepers. Located in the heart of historic center of American clockmaking AWCM is the worlds preeminent horological museum in the area of American clocks, primarily industrial made clocks of the 18th and early 20th century.The museum is located in complex including the historic Miles Lewis residence, the partially relocated historic 1728 Barnes homestead, and a modern extension wing in the town of Bristol, Connecticut, the hometown of the former Ingraham Clock Company. Bristol is located North of Interstate Highway 84, about 30 minutes west of Hartford CT or two hours from New York City.

The AWCM is an independent educational institution, operating under Section 501c3 of the Internal Revenue Code, and besides a small professional staff relies on volunteers for much of its manpower and support. Originally known as 'The Bristol Clock Museum' the institution was started in 1952 and acquired its site the next year [ cite web
last =
first =
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = American Clock and Watch Museum
work =
publisher = AWCM
date = 2007
url = http://www.clockmuseum.org/c_about.htm
format =
doi =
accessdate = 2008-09-17] .

Exhibits

The exhibits include clocks (and some watches) from all periods and countries, but the focus of the exhibits is clearly on American clocks. A substantial part of the exhibit space is devoted to tell the story of Eli Terry and his successors and imitators [ cite book
last = Bailey
first = Chris H.
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Two Hundred Years of American Clocks
publisher = Prentice-Hall
date = 1975
location = Englewood Cliffs
pages = 254
url =
doi =
id =
isbn = 0 13 935130 2] , [ cite book
last = Roberts
first = Kenneth D.
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Ely Terry and the Connecticut Shelf Clock
publisher = Ken Roberts Publishing
date = 1973
location =
pages =
url =
doi =
id =
isbn = 0 913602 71 X] , who in the early 18th century pioneered mass manufacturing techniques by replacing the traditional system of making one clock at a time, with parts handmade (or adjusted) to fit with each other, with a system of machine made interchangable parts made to close enough tolerances that they could be assembled without further adjustment. Connecticut clockmaking, together with American firearm manufacturing, this launched the industrial revolution [cite book
last = Hoke
first = Donald
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Ingenious Yankees; SubTitle: The Rise of the American System of Manufactures in the Private Sector
publisher = Columbia University Press
date = 1990
location = New York
pages =
url =
doi =
id =
isbn = 0 231 06756 9] .

Library

The AWCM has a significant horological research library, that includes a particularly rich collection of historic catalogs of American clock brands. The library is open for horological researchers only by prior arrangement.

ee also

*Horology

imilar museums

*National Watch and Clock Museum
*Mussee Internationale d'Horlogerie
*Deutsches Uhrenmuseum

External links

* [http://www.clockmuseum.org/ AWCM Website]

References