Chapter 3: Planning and DocumentationProject Clock: Planning and Documentation

For consistency, the same project clock used in chapter 2 is again used to apply the methods

presented in the main chapter. The documentation strategies, when applied to the project clock,

have produced some very interesting findings.

1. Photo Documentation: As noted in the

main section on planning and

documentation, a basic set of photos is first

taken of front, back, top, bottom and sides.

If good quality photos were taken during

completion of the evaluation phase, the

needed photos may already exist. Such is

the case here and the baseline photos taken

in chapter 2 are used as a documentation

starting point. Certain of these photos are

again presented for continuity.

The front/side views from chapter 2.

The ¾ and back views previously taken.

The Clock Case Restoration worksheet

should be used throughout this photo session

to take notes about details or areas of

concern. A sketch good sized sketch of the

case can also be used to note details or

repair needs.

The basic mug shots are followed by close

up photos of important details. This would

include areas that will require special repair

efforts and areas that should be carefully

preserved.

Much veneer has been lost, but both the left

and right sides have complete, though loose

veneer. This can be re-glued easily.

As noted previously, the case is very loose.

The right side is easily raised from the base.

This area has partial veneer loss. If possible

this will be repaired instead of completely

replaced. This will retain as much of the

original structure as possible.

The top board has lost all veneer while the

cross piece is in relatively good condition.

Several of the smaller molding pieces have

lost veneer pieces from the edges. It should

be possible to “harvest” correct period

veneer to make these repairs.

While difficult to see, the base board is

made of two pieces that have become

completely separated. This will require a

sound repair to provide the needed

foundation for the case.

Below is an example of important details

that should be carefully noted. The veneer

is missing from the front edge of the left

column base. If period veneer can be

located, this should be a simple repair.

Upon closer examination of this area on

both the left and right column bases it was

noted that simply attaching a new piece of

veneer would result in an incorrect repair.

When the same area is examined on the right

side of the case, it can be observed that the

area is actually raised above the main

vertical board.

Examining the upper part of the case

confirms that this is the correct

configuration.

If a normal thickness piece of veneer is

attached to the left column base it would

create a flush instead of raised joint with the

side of the case.

Close study of the case revealed that a thin

wooden strip was glued to the end cap

before applying the veneer. This results in

the raised effect.

This illustrates the importance of close

examination and documentation of repair

needs. As a standard procedure,

comparisons of left versus right sides should

be made.

If this portion of the case were to be

disassembled, it might be accidentally

reassembled with the board mounted flush.

This would be an error that would be

difficult to correct. A note should be made

on the case worksheet.

In the area on the lower part of the case the

horizontal molding piece is missing.

Close examination of the left and right

vertical pieces reveals a faint outline of the

missing molding.

Before further work on the clock, a template

for the missing piece is made from the

visible outline.

If necessary use a white marking pencil

(available from sewing supply stores) to

make the line visible.

A piece of frosted plastic (used for making

stencils) can be cut and taped in place for

tracing. A felt tipped marker will make a

clean line.

Once the line has been marked, the plastic

can be removed and trimmed to complete

the template.

This template can be used to search for a

suitable replacement molding or for building

one from scratch.

The Dial: Once the case was thoroughly

photographed, the dial is documented. The

dial shown is not originally from the project

clock. It is the correct type that was secured

at an auction. While it is in very poor

condition, it provides the correct base for the

project clock. A search for a correct dial

will continue, but this dial could be pressed

into service if needed.

The dial details such as the floral patterns

and time track marks were photographed

close up.

If the dial is completely repainted, then these

close-up photos can be used to create

accurate stencils of the original design.

Further research will be undertaken to

determine the exact dial design used for this

model and vintage clock. Brass movement

clocks used pressed zinc dials almost

exclusively. Some versions of these dials

used dots for minute and hour marks instead

of the lines and blocks shown here. Better

dating of the clock will help to determine

which style is correct.

Glass and Tablets: Since the door is almost

totally missing from the project clock, there

was no glass or tablet to photograph. It will,

however, be necessary to research the tablet

design that is correct for this clock. This

will vary depending on the final age

determination.

Labels: The label on the inside back of the

clock is in good condition.

In fact it is unusual in that the printer’s name

is still readable on the bottom of the case.

The name T.M. Newson, Birmingham, Conn

can be clearly read on the bottom of the

label. This is a fantastic find for

determining an accurate manufacture date

for the clock.

Satisfied that the clock had been thoroughly

documented with photographs, the next step

was to record all important dimensions.

Dimensions & Specifications: While the

case is basically a rectangular box, there are

actually a number of detail dimensions that

need to be recorded for future reference.

Overall height from base to top board should

be noted.

Interior dimensions for the top molding

piece as well as the door opening.

The width of the missing lower molding

piece will be important when making a

replacement. Note that this piece actually

has two widths.

Carefully measuring the columns is

important, particularly if one is missing.

Width and height of the side boards should

be taken for reference.

As suggested previously, a basic sketch can

be very useful in recording dimensions. The

sketch below was drawn up using nothing

more than Microsoft XL. Borders were

simply drawn around cells to get the shape

shown.

A completed copy of this sketch, with

dimensions, is provided at the end of this

section.

Where documentation and dimensions really

come in useful is when dealing with a like

clock in the future that has pieces missing.

The notes taken with this clock will go far to

help you or someone else complete a

restoration.

Researching: In preparing for research on

the clock the information previously

gathered was reviewed. What is known at

this point is:

Maker: Seth Thomas

Case: Half-Column Shelf

Type: 30-hr brass, weight driven

Date Range: 1840~1865

The first place to gather additional detailed

information for this clock is the book Seth

Thomas Clocks and Movements by Tran

Duy Ly. This volume provides very detailed

information about this model clock and its

movement.

An additional source for case dimensions

was found in the book “Clockmaking, 18

Antique Designs for the Woodworker” by

John A. Nelson. This book provides very

accurate and detailed construction drawings

for many antique American clocks. The

designs are taken directly from actual

example of antique clocks. Fortunately, one

of the clocks in the book is a Plymouth

Hollow era Seth Thomas 30-hour half-

column clock. The photo of the original

even shows the correct dial.

The drawings and dimensions provided are

excellent and match the project exactly.

This will be a great reference for picking off

dimensions that may have been overlooked

during the documentation.

To gain information about the project clock

in particular, the printer’s name previously

noted was used.

Printer names for various clock makers and

the dates during which a printer supplied a

certain maker with labels has been

documented heavily over the years. Much

of this information was performed by

NAWCC members and published in issued

of the Bulletin (the NAWCC quarterly

magazine).

On the NAWCC web site (the Bulletin page)

a search of the Bulletin indexes was

performed on line. The search keyword

used was “Printers”.

A total of twenty matches were found.

Scanning through the titles, there was one

title “Label Printers for Seth Thomas” that

looked particularly interesting. An e-mail to

the NAWCC library was sent and reprint of

this article was received shortly thereafter.

The article was by Mr. Paul V. Heffner. It

states that the information was originally

compiled for the “The Printer’s Directory

Project” (This would be good source to

remember for future research).

A table in the article list seventeen different

printers who supplied labels to Seth Thomas

beginning before 1839 up to 1865 and later.

The printer name found on the label of the

project clock was T. M. Newson. In the

table, it shows that Newson provided labels

to Seth Thomas for only two years: 1845

and 1846.

The table indicates that the label shows

Plymouth Hollow as the location of

manufacture. It also says that the labels were

supplied for brass movement clocks. What’s

exciting about this information is that all

labels listed before Newsome are shown to

be for wooden works movements.

As with any ongoing research project, these

findings are subject to updating and

revision. However, based on the information

available at this time, it appears that T. M.

Newsome may have been the first label

maker for Seth Thomas brass movement

clocks. If that is the case, the project is

definitely one of the earliest brass movement

half-columns produced by Seth Thomas.

This is an outstanding find. It accurately

dates the project clock to 1845~46. This

dating is further corroborated by comments

made by Chaunecy Jerome in his book

“History of the American Clock Business for

the Past Sixty Years and Life of Chaunecy

Jerome”.

In the book, published in 1860, Jerome notes

that around 1840 Seth Thomas sent a

nephew, Mr. Marcus Prince to Jerome’s

plant in Bristol to learn how to make brass

clock movements. According to Jerome, Mr.

Prince spent two to three years working with

him before returning to Plymouth Hollow to

begin production. Based on this information,

it is likely that Seth Thomas began

introduction of brass movement around

1843 or 1844. With regard to the

significance and importance of the project

clock, this information greatly increases

both.

It’s unusual to find the printer’s name still in

tact on a label, but when it is present, this is

an example of how accurately the clock can

be dated.

The next source that was checked was the

web site ClockHistory.com. This site has a

section on Seth Thomas which includes

details on cases, movements and dials.

From this site if was found that the hour and

minute markings on zinc dials varied in over

the years. Early metal dials used small

round hour marks.

It also noted that some early dials had two

lines on the outside of the time track instead

of one. This is noticeably different than later

zinc dials that used a square block for the

hour mark and a single line on the outside of

the time track.

It appears that as late as 1850, the round

hour marks and double lines were still in

use. The project clock would definitely use

this earlier dial design.

Another interesting design note is that the

early zinc dials had a reinforcing ridge

pressed just outside the outer chapter ring.

This ridge is not seen on later zinc dials.

It was noted that there were some limited

number of wooden dials still in use up to

around 1850. It is supposed that these were

actually left over inventory from the earlier

wooden-works clocks that were pressed into

service.

Close inspection of the mounting pins for

the dial shows that there are no “extra” holes

in this area and the pins are slightly flattened

which is correct for originals. There is a

high degree of confidence that the pins are

original on the project clock.

These pins are inserted to give only about

1/16 inch clearance between the upright

bend in the pins and the wood mounting

surface.

This clearance would have been insufficient

to mount a wooden dial. Based on the

inspection of the pins and the absence of

extra holes, the working assumption is that

the project clock used a metal dial.

Another important dial feature documented

at this web site was the fact that some early

dials used tapered numerals at the III, IV

and VIII positions.

The site also shows examples of 1845~46

era dials in which the double outside line is

retained as are the dots for minute and hour

marks, but the tapered numbers have been

replaced by non-tapered.

All of this is important information since a

correct dial for the project clock would have

round dots instead of the square blocks and a

reinforcing ridge. The tapered versus non-

tapered numerals will require further

research to be sure of the correct style. The

dial currently under consideration for the

project clock has neither dots nor the

necessary ridge.

The next stop for research was the Antique

Clock Identification Guide. This is a

combination of software for your PC and an

on-line library.

Searching the library for “Seth Thomas

Column” provided a large number of

examples of various Seth Thomas designs.

There were four examples that closely

matched the project clock. The detail

provided with each example confirmed that

they were all Plymouth Hollow era clocks.

The photos for the four examples were

saved to a PC file for future study and

reference. These examples provided

excellent detail regarding tablet designs and

column finishing.

It was noted that among the examples, there

were columns finished in three different

styles:

Polished wood

Gilded top and bottom with tortoise shell

on the main length.

Fully gilded columns with alternating

bright then matte rings.

It will be necessary to do further research in

order to determine if all of these finishes

were available throughout the 1845~46

period.

The Hortons Antique Clocks web site was

searched for additional examples of the

project clock. This site has a large library of

previously auctioned clocks. Photos and

detailed information is provided for each

clock. Information found here can help to

build the data base on the project clock.

A quick search of ebay, searching “Seth

Thomas Clock” provided additional sample

photos. The written information is usually

vague, but the photos of clock details are

often quite good. It’s well worth the search.

At this point, the date of manufacture for

the project clock has been well documented.

Details regarding the design of the correct

dial have been secured and a dozen or so

example photos captured. Items that remain

open are:

Column finish (wood, tortoise shell,

gild)

Correct tablet design for this date of

manufacture

Correct pendulum bob size and design.

To gather specific information about these

three items, a posting was made on the

NAWCC Clock Repair forum.

Hundreds of clock restorers regularly visit

this site and the amount of quality

information provided is outstanding.

Based on the responses received, it was

determined that all three column finishes

have been seen on early examples matching

the project clock. The lower tablet was

usually a painted design. A number of

different designs were used.

Restoration Goals: The goals established at

this point will set the direction and standard

for the work performed. It will also serve to

keep the project on track.

Considering the possible importance and

rarity of the clock, it was determined that

every effort should be made to make the

restored clock as accurate to the original of

the period as possible. The following details

the approach that will be taken. These will

be transferred to restoration worksheets in a

more component specific manner.

Correct components for missing items

such as the dial, movement, hands, tablet

and glass will be carefully sought out and

examined for accuracy and correctness.

When original components cannot be

acquired in a reasonable period, correct

reproductions will be secured while the

search continues.

To the extent possible and feasible,

correct period materials will be utilized in

every phase of restoration.

Elements such as veneer, stains and

finishes will be reproduced as closely as

possible to original. Modern finishes will

not be used.

Ornamentation such as the columns will

be refinished in the correct manner as the

original.

Case assembly will utilize original

methods and materials (epoxies and similar

adhesives will not be employed).

The target “look” for the clock will be

that of a well used, but cared for original.

Care will be exercised to avoid producing an

over-restored or “as-new” look.

Planning the Restoration: There is no right

or wrong sequence for restoration work.

Some may wish to secure all components

prior to starting. Other may want to do

movement work first. The important thing

is to have a plan and sequence that makes

sense and allows continual progress to be

made.

The general flow chosen for the project

clock will be as follows:

1. Finalize the list of missing parts and

establish a search.

2. Disassemble the case.

3. Manufacture missing case elements.

4. Secure loose and out-of-square elements

of sub-assemblies.

5. Repair/Replace veneers.

6. Apply finish to sub-assemblies prior to

case assembly.

7. Assemble case.

8. Refinish and install columns.

9. Label restoration/preservation.

10. Dial restoration.

11. Glass and tablet restorations.

12. Movement reconditioning/testing.

13. Install movement and related mechanics.

14. Install glass, hardware and door.

15. Final bench testing and rating.

16. Compile final documentation and

photography into reference package to

be retained with clock.

Worksheets: Translating the goals and

restoration activities into organized step-by-

step processes is easier if a worksheet is

created for each major sub-group.

Worksheets have been developed for the

following groups:

Overall project

Case

Movement

Glass/Tablets

Dial/Hands

These worksheets will appear at the

appropriate point in the restoration project.