Westclox Scotland produced its first clock on 21 September 1948; a spring wound alarm with a 4-inch (10cm) dial. Could you suggest how I could go about finding out this information. 5 17 15 is May 17, 1915 . The aim of the Western Clock MFG Co. in entering the manufacture of alarms was to apply to nickel clocks, features which were previously found only in high-priced timepieces, and prohibited in low-priced lever clocks by the high cost of production involved. I have a collection of alarm clocks, but slowly selling many. For at least four generations, the Western Clock Manufacturing Company, aka Westclox, was the lifeblood and largest employer in the small town of Peru, Illinois (with a mailing address in its twin city of LaSalle). I just had it repaired & it works & looks great. The trademark "Westclox" which had appeared on their Big Ben alarm clocks as early as 1910 was officially registered in January 1916. Here you can see production dates, original retail prices and other Dates Stamped on Big Ben and Baby Ben Clock Movements Dates were stamped on a movement plate of most Big Ben and Baby Ben alarm clocks made up until mid-1970's. Numbers are used for the month, day and year; or just the month and year (e.g. Ive recently acquired a New Haven decorative wall clock. Westclox made an excellent, almost exact, reproduction of the style 1a Big Ben in 1970. Stoddard: Ive been there several times. Read more about "Radium Girls" here. The disease, radium-induced osteonecrosis, was recognized as an occupational disease in 1925 after a group of radium painters, known as the Radium Girls, from the United States Radium Corporation sued. American manufacturers were quick to see that the millionaires are a negligible quantity as consumers, and that, not chronometersnot marvels of intricacy and originalitywere needed, but timepieces within the reach and want of all. [citation needed] This rate probably only represents the dose rate from gamma emission, as the alpha emission will be stopped by the lacquer, or crystal, or case; hence, the dose rate following ingestion or inhalation of the dust could be much higher. Radium was discovered in 1898 by Marie Curie and Pierre Curie. Ive been trying to compare lots of different clocks to find out what original parts go together. These efforts, combined with an ahead-of-its-time factory welfare department and employee benefits packages, led to a lot of workers spending their whole lives with Westclox. The pioneering spirit is there, but the business skills soon appear lacking. Radium was discovered by Marie and Pierre Curie in 1898[1] and was soon combined with paint to make luminescent paint, which was applied to clocks, airplane instruments, and the like, to be able to read them in the dark.[2]. This past weekend, thanks to the Westclox Museum, its doors were opened and former workers were welcomed back for Homecoming Day. I love the Hamiltons in particular, probably some of the best watches made in America. Radium paint itself was eventually phased out and has not been used in watches since 1968. It can be found with some other clocks in a case in the second floor hallway. 7&a half X 6..desk clock. Which is interesting because many of the electrics are scarcer but people just arent into collecting electric clocks. This particular clock is made in China while other similar Westclox alarm clocks at the time were made in Taiwan. Before OSHA was set up, 14,000 people died on the job every year; today, it is just over 4,500. My love is for the style 1 peg leg Big and Baby Bens; mostly Baby Bens. I have an antique mantle clock given to my Aunt & Uncle for a wedding gift (approximately 1949) FROM my great grandparents. 400-day clocks are also known as anniversary clocks, they would run 400 days on one winding. I know the site informs readers the amount of Big Bens produced in any one year, but does NOT for the reproduction model produced in 1970. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. Good old fashioned branding played a major role, as well. thanks for your time, was doing research.. Appears from search engine a conversation about D batteries but cant find it in the text.. Can anyone inform me of the different size of D? They made the most of the perk, wearing their good dresses to the plant so theyd shine in the dance halls at night, and even painting radium onto their teeth for a smile that would knock their suitors dead., When I went home and washed my hands in a dark bathroom, they would appear luminous and ghostly,, My clothes, hanging in a dark closet, gave off a phosphorescent glare. Im always interested in the history and the variations of clocks and how they fit in the scheme of things, what came before and what came after. Radiums luminosity was part of its allure, Moore writes. Created with WordPress. Don Spayer, volunteer and former Westclox employee, said the bulk of the museums collection was built through donations. Westcloxs Manual for Employees read, We expect you to work hard, and the pay is accordingly large . . Not everyone involved with the manufacturing of Westclox products was employed directly by Westclox, however. If you do not expect to work hard and carefully, you are in the wrong place., Big Ben is a handsome, well built, refined and bright looking fellow with a clean-cut open face and a deep cheerful voice,, A well-dressed, steady and punctual chap, up to the minute and always on the job., Big Ben always comes to you straight from home, LaSalle, Illinois,, But he only comes upon receipt of signed price agreement. lds missionary clothing stores; June 24, 2022 . Many folks might not realize that early vintage clock dials were painted with radioluminescent paint, which is a mixture of fluorescent salts (these produce the glow) and radium-226, which is a dangerous and highly radioactive element. Going back further in time, here is a pretty hypnotizing silent film released by Westclox in the early 1920s to promote the Big Ben and other products. That batch was in production non-continuously from 1939 to 1946, housed in gunmetal cases with nickel trim. Its got a round brass dial and a painting in the door, really neat. A clock without hands might seem indifferent to the passage of time, but these old Big Ben and Baby Ben dials have some serious stories to tell. Within two decades she had lost all her teeth. Westclox did make a couple of documented advertising clocks, but very few. Company in 1888 and installing another talented German, Ernst Roth, as the general manager. It still works. As my first name is Ben, I started to collect these alarmclocks since about 1970. Luckily for Charles, however, he is living in the same small town as Frederick William Matthiessena fellow German, but one with a hell of a lot more money and business experience. Lynda Hinshaw, At this moment I am research a clock by Falconer& co HongKong. Museum Artifacts: Luminous Big Ben & Baby Ben Clock Dials (1940s) and Style 1A Big Ben Alarm Clock (1920s), Made By: Western Clock MFG Company, aka Westclox, 350 5th St., Peru, Illinois [LaSalle]. Clocks produced in the early 1900's are particularly concerning in this regard. It is a wind up. These styles constitute the the knobs have foreign words ie wecker & UHR.would like to know about his clock Westclox set up a factory in England in the 1940s and also in Scotland. A 2015 article by Ben Hohenstatt in the Illinois Valleys News Tribune included interviews with a few former Westclox workers who returned to see the museum and remember old times. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Stopping this practice drastically reduced the amount of radium ingested and therefore, the incidence of malignancy. The clock is several houndred pounds, and keeps great time. It was put away for years and last year it was given to me as I have small collection of United novelty clocks. I have a sessions mantle clock duet#1. Big Ben style 1a continued in production until its discontinuation in 1935. US radium dial painting factory. Early in the 20th century there was a medical practice that revolved around a new treatment involving the radioactive material called radium. "Westclox" in italics, double hexagon legs: 1918, "Westclox" in italics, regular legs: 1918 -1922, "Westclox" in italics, very narrow lettering at bottom: "MADE BY WESTERN CLOCK CO., LA SALLE, ILL., U.S.A.", ca. There are many Westclox alarm clock models named Big Ben. Nowadays, Super-LumiNova, which is entirely non-radioactive and non-toxic, is the most used lume in watchmaking. The use of radium was discontinued since the 1960s. As Kate Moore explains it, The radium girls case was one of the first in which an employer was made responsible for the health of the companys employees. I recently added the Big Ben Style 1 and Baby Ben Style 1 Dial and Back types. How do you set the time on a old fashioned alarm clock? Stoddard: Pay attention to quality. My moms father had a small collection of antique clocks and when I was a little boy he showed me how to wind them and regulate them. The first Big Bens and Baby Bens in 1910 were wind ups.. Was just trying to find out any information on this clock or if you may have ever come across one like it Big Ben: butler nickel case, gold leaf numeral dial 1930 1932. Big Ben style, and there are other styles with names instead of numbers. These clocks were produced in the thousands and many can be bought on eBay for under $10. any info would be appreciated. This will broaden my view in the clock. I have a Westclox Big Ben 1910 style 1a and have not been able to find out the present value/worth. The movement was then used with minor changes in Loud Alarm models until 1956. They can be identified by having the modern type of flat head screws with shoulders instead of round head screws, and by having a 1910 patent date on the back even though the case is style 1a. 0 Comments; Uncategorized newark advertiser obituaries 2021 . Stoddard: I was pretty much on my own until college. They arent hurting it permanently, its just kind of weird. As seen below, the company made something of a symbolic gesture out of honoring the last Big Ben to roll off the assembly line on July 31, 1942, the day when all production shifted to government contracts for the duration of the war. Thanks, Paula. I have a Westclox Magnet Key Part number 031723 I think was used to open a door as it has an arrow on 1 end. When Westclox changed over to the style 8 Big Ben and Baby Ben in 1964, they used 4 divisions per 5 minutes, I believe to make the alarm easier to set. The only thing I found is the word Germny engraved on the back. In 2006 I started collecting vintage advertisements. Required fields are marked *. [5] Indeed, the body treats radium as it does calcium, storing it in bone where it may cause bone degeneration and cancer.[5]. A few years later my grandma gave me one that worked, and my aunt gave me another one. In 1913, with help from the US government, Dr. Douglas formed the National Radium Institute, to mine radium from uranium ores recently discovered in Colorado. About 1931 they made the first electric Big Ben, and they were plug ins. Also Telechron, which was a big maker of electric clocks. Recently Ive seen people taking an old Baby Ben thats worth a few bucks or so and gluing rhinestones around the bezel on the clock. Did Westclox use radium? Unfortunately, they also hint at a tragic chapter in American industrial history, when the appeal of a luminous new kind of paint wound up putting hundreds of workersmostly young womenat great personal risk. This was a wonderful article to read. All Rights Reserved. When radium was discovered in the early 1900s, people were fascinated by its mysterious glow and it was added to many everyday products, including paints. Copyright It is in the manufacture of alarm and one-day clocks that these results are the most noticeable, because in this field the quality of the product had always been subordinated to the market value, and the general feeling was one of let good enough alone., [Automatic machinery certainly sped up the manufacturing process, by plenty of human skill and attention was still required to make the Big Ben. They were, incredibly enough, instructed to ingest a radioactive poison all day, every day, and never properly warned of any potential hazards. Something about them has always been ingrained in me. I am looking to get an approxmiate value of this clock. Handle on top: down alarm off; up alarm on. When I went home and washed my hands in a dark bathroom, they would appear luminous and ghostly, an original Ghost Girl named Catherine Donohue (nee Wolfe) later testified. Among the rarities on display is a Westclox-made National Emergency Alarm Repeater. 1919 - 1920 on a small proportion of clocks, "Westclox" in Roman text, Wide lettering at bottom: 1923, "Westclox" in Roman text, Narrow lettering at bottom:1924 to 1927, "Westclox" in Roman text, Projection on the "x": 1928 - 1935, Luminous, "Westclox" in italics: ca. Thank you. Charles Stahlberg headed a group from Waterbury, Connecticut, who came to Peru in 1884 to build clocks based on a new idea by Stahlberg. A 'radium cow' or sample of radium would continually yield a supply of the nuclide. If you look at a Baby Ben in the 1959 Sears catalog, they sold for about nine dollars and if you go to a Wal Mart today you can still buy a Baby Ben for about nine dollars, but the quality isnt the same. Ruth Spayer at the Westclox Museum tracked down a newspaper story from the Daily Post-Tribune on March 21, 1944, describing a scene in which three women fainted, several clerks were trampled, and four showcase windows were shattered before police untangled a jam of 2,500 women and a few stout-hearted men who converged on the store.. When did westclox start making clocks? How do you date a Westclox Baby Ben? . Charles Stahlberg had an idea for making a better, but less expensive alarm clock. Radium dials usually lose their ability to glow in the dark in a period ranging anywhere from a few years to several decades, but all will cease to glow at some point. This 1964 Westclox Christmas ad describes their features. The Radium Girls were female factory workers who contracted radiation poisoning from painting watch dials with self-luminous paint. Quite a few who try to get every basic model, but fewer who get into the rarer models and do research. When did Westclox close? Can anyone direct me on how to find this clock? $25.99. It emits alpha, beta, and gamma radiation. Next to the original Westcloxes I have an interesting collection of European copies by a.o. Sometimes getting parts is tough, too, although it turns out Westclox made lots and lots of spare parts. It looks like you mount it to the wall. Is this a product that the company would have made or something someone created? I would like to know the value of a #4 black, #321(in original cardboard Christmas box), mint condition, Baby Ben alarm clock is. Columbia, PA 17512 [Workers assembling Big Ben alarm clocks at the Westclox plant, 1910s. Jessie, good observation. var year = today.getFullYear() I took it all apart and asked my dad to help me put it back together, but he cut his finger on the spring. 1980 By the early 1950s, Westclox employed thousands of LaSalle-Peru residents. Radium dials held near the face have been shown to produce radiation doses in excess of 10Sv / hour. The Ingersoll Watch division of the Waterbury Clock Company, a nationally-known maker of low-cost pocket and wristwatches, was a leading popularizer of the use of radium for watch hands and indices through the introduction of their "Radiolite" watches in 1916. Back then, radium wasn't considered to be dangerous in small doses. I have looked high and low in my attempts to find out how any of these resproduction style 1A were produced. (All images in this article courtesy Bill Stoddard, www.clockhistory.com), I found this article very complimentary to the Westclox company and an intriguing piece to read. German: WECKER (alarm); UHR (clock). This dustproofing is accomplished by fittings around the set knobs and winding keys and on the regulator. I was about 3ft high and recessed into the wall. Clock Repair and Hermle Chime, Mantel and Wall Clocks for Sale at Bill's Clockworks. Can you confirm? CAN SOMEONE TELL ME HOW TO RELEASE THE CLICK ON A WESTCLOX MANS WRISTWATCH MODEL A-201? I was pained to learn how the girls had suffered while working here and sacrificed their lives to give the name of the company which it has today. According to Periodic. Instead, it would be better to take the box outside and remove the lid there, which would allow any built-up gas to rapidly dissipate." The watches tested were produced from the 1920s through the '60s, and are a mix of British, Swiss, and American origin. Technically speaking, though, Westclox did still produce clocks during the gap years that followed. In 1914, Dr. Sabin Arnold von Sochocky and Dr. George S. Willis founded the Radium Luminous Material Corporation. Am I missing something here? It was passed on to my sister and for years it was on their mantle along time until it stopped. Matthiessen, 1904 Western Clock MFG Co. catalog cover, and the original Peru factory in 1905]. Before OSHA was set up, 14,000 people died on the job every year; today, it is just over 4,500. When I walked along the street, Iwas aglow from the radium powder., [Mrs. Charlotte Purcell, like Catherine Donohue, was one of 15 former workers at the Radium Dial Company who contracted cancer and sought justice in the late 1930s]. Here you can see production dates, original retail prices and other knowledge about vintage and antique Westclox clocks and watches. So you find clocks where parts have been switched, so thats one challenge, determining originality. It has a patent June 18-1882 and says Dakota on the back,can you tell me more? As various larger corporate interests got involved in the years ahead, however, and as increasing competition from electronic clockmakers slowed the Big Bens dominance, the inevitable slow down began. Westclox also made about 5000 gold-plated reproductions. I live in Scotland but my clock was made in USA. My husband has a Big Ben clock that he inherited, it was took down from a mill and given to his grandma. I think we threw it away. the clock face is 16, ca 1900. the clock belonged to pheobe appersons family at their ranch in sunol california. In its place, he ironically dubbed the little bedside clock Big Ben (apparently not copyrighted by the British Parliament), and introduced it to the public in early ads as a gendered he instead of an it., Big Ben is a handsome, well built, refined and bright looking fellow with a clean-cut open face and a deep cheerful voice, one ad read. Can anyone tell me about this? The women also left a legacy to science that has been termed invaluable., shifting from serif to sans-serif typefaces and from slightly ornate to more streamlined minute and second hands, all of which eased legibility; setting the clock face closer to the glass, reducing shadows; and creating a slightly smaller form overall., three women fainted, several clerks were trampled, and four showcase windows were shattered before police untangled a jam of 2,500 women and a few stout-hearted men who converged on the store., For That Healthy Glow, Drink Radiation . It would be greatly appreciated. In terms of my own collection, Im still trying to find some of the really early Big Bens. I would also like photo and more details of his clock, since I intend to write a follow-up article. During World War II they had some fantastic ads that you can see on my website like, Victory Wont Wait for the Nation Thats Late, and Guard Your Big Ben where they show a bulldog and a soldier with a gun guarding a Big Ben because during the war they stopped making clocks for the consumer market and totally switched over to military work. They are just gorgeous watches and very well made. . It is a Medbury-4W #4910. i use a 1980s I believe westclox pocket ben sweep 2nd hand, I actually had a westclox bullseye from the early 1990s when I was in elementary school. It would be very interesting if you could provide me with some pictures of the clock. Beginning in the 1910s, the girls instructed to put radium in their mouths didn't bat an eyelash. It is and Elias Ingraham Brass Clock with a patent stamp of September 30, 1862. How can people be exposed to Radium? In the production of ordinary clocks adapted to the needs and means of the millions, America produces results of remarkable excellence. The other thing is reproductions. Some years ago I intended to do a write-up on my collection and started researching on the internet and found the Westclox history site with a wealth of info. I have a similar clock. My clothes, hanging in a dark closet, gave off a phosphorescent glare. They have meetings every two months, and educational programs, so thats a really great way to meet collectors and get all kinds of advice. They made the most of the perk, wearing their good dresses to the plant so theyd shine in the dance halls at night, and even painting radium onto their teeth for a smile that would knock their suitors dead.. JavaScript is disabled. Radium dials are watch, clock and other instrument dials painted with luminous paint containing radium-226 to produce radioluminescence. Can someone get back to me as to what it is and possibe age of it. Im trying to determine if it is a legit or reproduction that someone made. A lot of American clocks have veneer over the base wood so if thats starting to peel it can be really expensive to get fixed. Located at 41.3275 N, 89.1290 W on the map, the companys former plant is admittedly on the absolute fringes of what would typically be designated Chicagoland turf. styles to organize them From that point on I really liked those. The sound is very good when I compare it with the Howard Miller and the Jauke I just purchases, its loud and resonates very well. it has a picture of a huck finn type boy,carying 2 bottles of coke& a fishing pole,with his dog. Just as pilots in World War II had radium on the dials in their cockpits for all-condition visibility, many people who purchased Big Ben alarm clocks during the same periodincluding the very style in our museum collection (made from 1939-1946)went to bed each night sleeping next to a tiny box of radioactivity. Radium dials were typically painted by young women, who used to 'point' their brushes by licking and shaping the bristles prior to painting the fine lines and numbers on the dials. As the 1960s began, over 50 million Big Ben clocks had been produced in total, and additional Westclox plants were now in operation everywhere from Athens, Georgia, and Ontario, Canada, to Scotland and Australia. I tried selling some of my surplus electric Big Bens on eBay and they just didnt go, you could get only about $0.99 for them. 1888. [Workers assembling Big Ben alarm clocks at the Westclox plant, 1910s. The drinking fountain worked.. I have purchased 1) Style 1 Baby and Big Ben with the Gold Leaf dial (seller stated raised letters); and, 2) a Style 1 Baby Ben with Baby Ben De Luxe on the dial. Even today, with the considerable help of a thing called Interstate 80, its still about a two-hour journey from LaSalle Street to LaSalle County. Most are in nickel finish cases, but some were made in gold plated cases. [Westclox advertisements from WWII period, ft. 1970s Many of these workers developed bone cancer . The phosphor deterioration means you can't see a glow anymore, but . You just cant imagine the size of this factory its just gigantic. Westclox - An Identification and Price Guide, and I added even more in 2012. The next month, Roth got a cablegram from London; his friend and valued co-worker Le Roy had died for his country. Those simple words, Roth later wrote in the November 1914 issue of the company newsletter, Tick Talk, unconsciously characterized the manunaffected, direct, devoted to his cause., [Images from a 1922 issue of the Westclox company newsletter, the very cleverly titled Tick Talk]. It might be the only one in the country, Spayer said. Theres a clock that came down the family, my great great granddad bought it used in about 1885, it was actually sold new in about 1839, one of the first of the weight-driven brass clocks. At one time they employed about 3500 people, making about 35, 000 clocks and watches per day. Westclox style series. The standard operating procedure of their daily work involved literally placing radium flecked paint brushes between their lips to create a finer point before application. The policy of the company is one of highly specialized production. Even if the Western Clock Co. wasnt born in Chicago or headquartered here, the immediate aftershocks of the companys cultural and industrial impact certainly reached our shores in a hurry, no interstate required. You must log in or register to reply here. [3] The Radiolite series, made in various sizes and models, became a signature of the Connecticut-based company. When I got out of college I started going to the watch and clock conventions and met a man who was giving a program about the history of Big Bens and Baby Bens. when did westclox stop using radiumcapricorn and virgo flirting. Inhaled or ingested particles may deposit a high local dose with a risk of radiation-caused lung or gastrointestinal cancer. There is a small dial inside of the clock face that has roman numerals like another clock face. Donohue, like many of her young peers in the radium industry, eventually realized that her amusing glow had been a warning of severe exposure to a radioactive substance. its about 2 inches long maybe 1/2 in thick with holes on either end to be worn on a key chain perhaps? Finally, with Catherine Donohue serving as a key witness from her death bed in 1938, a groundbreaking Supreme Court case finally delivered some long awaited justice to the victims. American manufacturers were quick to see that the millionaires are a negligible quantity as consumers, and that, not chronometersnot marvels of intricacy and originalitywere needed, but timepieces within the reach and want of all. Credit: pinimg. The dial painters soon became known as the ghost girls because by the time they finished their shifts, they themselves would glow in the dark.
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