Lighthouse Clock

A lighthouse clock is a type of mantel clock manufactured in the U. S. from 1818 through 1830s by the American clockmaker Simon Willard, having the dial and works exposed beneath a glass dome on a tapered, cylindrical body.

They were also made by Simon Willard & Son, a partnership between the clockmaker and his son Simon Willard Jr. created in 1823. The father and son were in partnership for five years and in 1828, Simon Willard, Jr. established his own shop in Boston.

Lighthouse clocks are regarded as the first alarm clocks produced in America, although a significant number of the later clocks of this type were crafted without alarms. The clock consist of a round, square or octagonal wooden base that rises in a tapered column, which is itself surmounted by clockworks that are covered by a glass dome, giving the effect of a standing lighthouse. Some bases were decorated with pictures depicting classical scenes.

Both the form and the respective patented movement (in 1818) were invented by the clockmaker and this timekeeper was devised to offer an alarm mechanism in a high-style shelf clock. Originally known as the "Patent Alarm Timepiece", S. Willard's patent also refers to them as "alarum (sic) clocks", they have become known as lighthouse clocks (a 20th century term) for their obvious similarities. The design of the cases were based on the classical art then in vogue; Neoclassicism and Empire. Some of these clocks, however, are less formal and reflect the vernacular interest in painted furniture, particularly Windsor chairs. Therefore, the wood cases are quite varied in design, quality and workmanship, and they could be paint and stencil decorated or mahogany with decorative ormolu brass mounts. The best pieces, displayed figured mahogany veneer as the finest Empire parlour furnitures. Few original Willard lighthouse clocks have survived and it is estimated that about 200 to 300 examples of this highly sought-after collector timepiece remain.

The timekeepers are generally 24 to 30 inches tall, although there are examplaries where the column is as short as a couple inches. The notion of a clock under a dome may hark back to the imported, some glass-domed, French Empire mantel clocks fashionable at the time. Or, they might have been influenced by English and French skeletonized clocks as well; that is, clocks whose plates have been cut and exposed in such a way as to show the internal workings of the clock. Willard's clockworks were not skeletonized, but the mechanism was visible too. The alarm bell was mounted atop the clock brass movement. Clock mechanisms are driven by a weight concealed in the body of the lighthouse, though the alarm mechanism is sometimes driven by a separate weight raised by a pullcord.

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