A Willard Banjo Clock, Circa 1982: When Old Becomes New Again

by David A. Sperling

The golden age of handcrafted clocks in America began in the 18th century and ran through the end of the first quarter of the 19th century. The golden age for mass-producing clocks by machine was certainly the last half of the 19th century. But meeting the needs of a more diverse and technologically more complicated society made the 20th century the golden age of horological accuracy. Within this framework there remain decorative, technical, and educational threads that connect the past with the present.

For most people who love the form and elegance of the Willard patent timepiece, current high prices make the acquisition of top-of-the-line examples difficult indeed. Because of a collaborative effort among the Chelsea Clock Company (CCC), Colonial Williamsburg (CW), and the Kittinger Furniture Company, however, there was an attempt in 1982 to re-create one of America's most beloved horological forms. The construction of this clock brought together the knowledge of all three eras: handcrafting, mass production, and accuracy. This article will attempt to relate how that effort was accomplished.

The story of the Chelsea Clock Company was recounted in Maine Antique Digest in an October 2005 article by Jeanne Schinto. She traced the knowledge and training that passed from Aaron Willard Jr. (1783-1864) to Edward Howard (1813-1904) and then to Joseph H. Eastman (1843-1931), the founder of the Eastman Clock Company. The last mentioned firm, founded in 1894, changed ownership in 1897 when Charles H. Pearson purchased it and renamed it the Chelsea Clock Company. In the 20th century CCC grew in prestige, creating fine timepieces for use at sea and on land for both the military and civilian sectors. The quality of its product was unsurpassed.

The precursor of the Kittinger Furniture Company began to take shape in Buffalo, New York, in 1866. The work force comprised immigrants from Poland, Germany, and Ireland. But it was not until 1913, when Irvine Kittinger became president and manager, that it began to flourish as an upscale furniture company. The organization grew, and by 1929 it had outlets across the country.

In 1937 Kittinger was chosen by Colonial Williamsburg as the sole furniture company to re-create many of the fine period pieces in the Williamsburg collection. It became a part of the Williamsburg Restoration project. Between 1969 and 1972, Kittinger helped to re-create early furniture for the presidential quarters in the West Wing of the White House. Kittinger pieces were given as gifts to visiting dignitaries. Presidents from FDR to Barack Obama have sat in its chairs.

John D. Rockefeller Jr., along with others, led the early 20th-century restoration of the homes of Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia. The mission of the project was the preservation of the physical environment, as well as fostering the concept of America, a land of diverse peoples coming together and bound by their desire for peace, equality, and freedom. Colonial Williamsburg's stated mission was to educate "so that the future may learn from the past."

The subject clock (Fig. 1) recently appeared on the auction market in Pennsylvania. Having studied Willard patent timepieces over the years, I was initially impressed by the quality of this reproduction. The form and proportions of the original were captured quite nicely and piqued my interest. Upon looking more deeply, it became clear that very few of these Williamsburg/Chelsea reissues had ever appeared at National Association of Watch & Clock Collectors shows or auctions.

CW issued a 1982 catalog listing several clocks that were reproduced. CCC was involved with only two: a Terry & Sons pillar and scroll mantel clock and a circa 1820 Aaron Willard gilt presentation banjo wall clock.

Feeling motivated to look further, I contacted Andrew Demeter, coauthor of Chelsea Clock Company: The First Hundred Years. Demeter stated, "The quality of the cabinetry was very traditional, and in the case of the banjo, it was outstanding."

Because of cost overruns, the retail price in 1982 had to be set at $3500. Taking inflation into account, that's roughly $8000 today. In addition, the clock came on the market during an economic recession. As a result, sales of the clock were poorer than expected.

Demeter was aware of only one or two of these banjo clocks and Terry shelf clocks (initial offering price $3450) that had surfaced since their creation a quarter century ago. According to CCC ledger books in the possession of Demeter, the serial numbers 854661 through 854811 were seemingly reserved for the sales of the Willard banjo and Terry shelf clocks. Many of these serial numbers went unused, and it appears that only 42 banjo clocks and 39 pillar and scroll clocks were actually produced.

John McCarthy of CCC provided information about this Chelsea banjo clock, serial #854708. This particular clock was shipped on January 28, 1983, to the Bailey Banks & Biddle retail store. In the past 15 years only one of these banjo clocks has been returned to the Chelsea factory for repair.

One of the most impressive features of the wall clock is the color and quality of its reverse-glass paintings (Fig. 2). Although one can differentiate these glasses from those of a period timepiece (Fig. 3), they certainly match or exceed the quality that one sees produced in fine Waltham banjo clocks (Fig. 4). The Chelsea glasses also compare very well to those found earlier, such as on an Attleboro, Massachusetts, banjo clock, circa 1850 (Fig. 5).

The ornamental artist who initially re-created the scene of Aurora for CCC was Marianne Picazio of Arlington, Massachusetts, now of Sagamore Beach, Massachusetts. She, along with her husband, Edmund, painted glasses and dials for Chelsea for several years, starting in the mid-1970's.

The construction of the casework is extremely fine. The carved wooden eagle is finished in 22k gold (Fig. 6), and the gilding on the case in 23k gold leaf. The beading created for the banjo clock frames copied the original form precisely, and the small gilt spherules that line the pedestal are attached with wire (in the traditional manner), rather than with wooden dowels (used in later 19th- and early 20th-century banjo clocks).

The movement of the banjo clock (Fig. 7), rather than being attached to the backboard of the case, is designed in such a manner that it attaches to a heavy brass plate (seen behind the movement) that is screwed to the case head. The brass plate serves a dual purpose in that it also is the point of attachment for the signed white painted dial (Fig. 8). CCC used its 4M brass movement, an eight-day spring-wound house strike version, which was very similar in design to its 1899 movement #3439 (Figs. 9A and 9B), and utilized a balance wheel. This movement needed to be adapted to take a pendulum escapement.

These movements, modified to use a pendulum, were used in the 1982 pillar and scroll and the banjo clock models. The innovation was the creation of Anselm James ("A.J." or "Jim") Leone, CCC's own horological genius, who came out of retirement to accomplish this work, after 47 years of service to the company. This spring-driven mechanism has "maintaining" power (the clock continues to keep time during winding), and the strike mechanism, a rack and snail, self-corrects to keep the chime in tune with the hour. It is accurate within a few seconds per week. This appears to have been Leone's last of numerous contributions to CCC.

Leone had been Chelsea's director of engineering (Fig. 10). In 1938 he invented the model 12E, which one of his associates, John McCarthy, called "one of the most accurate mechanical timepieces (clocks) ever mass produced." The clock movement resulted in a quarter-million orders from the U.S. Armed Services for use in the Second World War, as well as the conflicts in Korea and Vietnam. The clock and movement had to pass many strenuous tests using water, temperature, and shock. It proved just about indestructible.

In addition, Leone made improvements to CCC's famous ship's bell clock movement, renamed the model 4L, which remains essentially unchanged to this day. In 1973 Leone developed a new Chelsea clock that not only told the time very accurately (within one minute per month) but also told the time of high and low tides. This feature was of immense value to the individual sailor or yachtsman. He received a patent for this invention in 1975. From the mid-1970's and certainly by the early 1980's, the name Chelsea was reserved primarily for the finest CCC clocks. Its lesser models bore a Boston Clock Company brand name, a Chelsea affiliate since 1909.

The early Chelsea movements (1897- 1900) were limited primarily to "pendulum" models (wall regulator type) and "yacht" models (marine type). In 1899 CCC added the aforementioned house strike movement. (This movement would be modified over the years to become the Chelsea 4M eight-day house strike movement and would ultimately serve as the basis for the movement in the subject clock.)

Because of slow sales, CCC made a decision to place its clocks in jewelry stores. According to Demeter, "by late 1899 CCC had established dealers in every major eastern port, and by 1905 there were dealers in every major American city." Demeter stated that from its earliest days CCC had a jewelry line (retail sales through jewelry stores to private individuals), a marine line (sold to shipbuilders), a United States government line (sold to all branches), and a specialty line (clocks, instruments, and parts for commercial use).

The banjo clock strikes on a heavy coiled gong and has quite a resonant sound. It is interesting to note that A.J. Leone wrote an article, which appeared in the December 1965 issue of Precision Metal Molding, devoted to a major change in the creation of a brass clock case. Up until that time, metal cases for CCC clocks were sand cast. This resulted in metals that always had a degree of porosity, with most castings having microporosity. Leone wrote that forging brass cases, instead of sand casting them, produced several benefits in addition to cost savings. The forged metal had zero porosity. Thereby, parts would fit together more precisely; the finish was finer and longer lasting; and the gong would produce a better quality, more resonant sound.

In this regard it is interesting to recall that the movement of the subject clock screws into a heavy brass plate (see Fig. 7) that attaches to the head of the case. The painted brass dial is screwed into the front of this plate, which prevents the usual loosening of dial screws over time. The movement attaches to the rear of this brass plate with several small screws. As it relates to the movement, I believe one of the reasons to use such a plate is to amplify the lovely resonance of the chime. (Being familiar with Leone's 1965 article, I would imagine the brass plate was forged, not cast.)

Anselm James Leone, born on Hurricane Island, Maine, in 1909, became superintendent and chief engineer for CCC between 1929 and 1976. Leone's inventions were used in boats above and below the surface of the water and in airplanes. No doubt, his timepieces played a significant role in the Second World War. He remained a consultant engineer for the company from 1976 until his death in 1990 in Quincy, Massachusetts.

At CCC, his coworkers knew Jim Leone as a compassionate human being who was also a wonderful teacher to all those around him. John McCarthy, who joined the firm in 1956, was a colleague who considered himself one of Leone's

students. McCarthy's relationship to his mentor was always characterized by courtesy and grace. Leone was a member of at least five service organizations serving his profession and his community. He was a man deeply devoted to his work, his wife of more than 55 years, and his family.

CCC has been called "the last great American clock company," and one of Chelsea's own brochures claims that its clocks were "the last great American clocks." Certainly its copy of an old masterpiece wall clock was created in that very mold.

I find myself considering Jim Leone's ingenious creations during the 20th century alongside some of the 19th-century giants of the American clock industry, such as Willard and Terry. In fact, this beautiful wall clock (along with the Colonial Williamsburg Terry shelf clock) figuratively brings the three men together.

In this banjo clock exists a direct connection to past American greatness in the clock industry. In the creation of this fine wall clock, something old has indeed become new again.

Special thanks to Andrew Demeter, coauthor with David Demeter of Chelsea Clock Company: The First Hundred Years (Demeter Publications, Ltd., Chelsea, Massachusetts, 2003); James Dyson (www.chelseaclockmuseum.com) for use of early Chelsea movement photos; John McCarthy of Chelsea Clock Company, Winthrop, Massachusetts; Marianne Picazio, Sagamore Beach, Massachusetts; and John Sullivan of Starling Furniture Company, Braintree, Massachusetts.

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