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American Clock & Watch Museum

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The American Clock & Watch Museum (ACWM), 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 ACWM is the worlds preeminent horological museum in the area of American clocks, primarily industrial made clocks of the 18th and early 20th century.

General display of various styles of American made clocks by various manufacturers
Display of Connecticut made shelf clocks by various manufacturers
General display of various styles of American made clocks by various manufacturers

The museum is located in a 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 ACWM 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 .

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 , , 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, launched the industrial revolution .

Library

The ACWM 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.

See also

Similar museums


External links

References

  1. "American Clock & Watch Museum". AWCM. 2007. Retrieved 2008-09-17. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  2. Bailey, Chris H. (1975). Two Hundred Years of American Clocks. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall. p. 254. ISBN 0 13 935130 2. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  3. Roberts, Kenneth D. (1973). Ely Terry and the Connecticut Shelf Clock. Ken Roberts Publishing. ISBN 0 913602 71 X. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  4. Hoke, Donald (1990). Ingenious Yankees; SubTitle: The Rise of the American System of Manufactures in the Private Sector. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 0 231 06756 9. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
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