My Grandfather's clock was too big for the shelf

During the 1950s popular songs had lyrics that made sense and indeed told a little story. They were often called ballads and have frequently left pleasant memories. One such song began with the line used for my title. Although revived by Johnny Cash and very popular during the 1950s, it was in fact written in 1876 by an American, Henry Clay Work.

After building my house at Kynsal heath which we called " The Lilacs". Anne and I commenced to rear our children. During this time I lusted after two items for my house. One was a Mahogany Banjo barometer. The other was a long case oak Grandfather clock. Both items were currently selling for sums I could not afford.

However, I wandered almost accidently into an auction sale of personal effects from the cottage adjacent to the closing Burleydam post office.

There standing rather forlorn in a corner and looking very sorry for itself was a grandfather clock. Because the cottage was low ceilinged,
a 9inch deep well had been made in the floor to accommodate it. Not only that, the base Plinth had been broken from it to further reduce the height.

The pendulum was propped disconnected and lifeless within the case. The clock mechanism was covered in a thick layer of dust and the hinged window was missing. It had been many a year since a gentle tick tock had been heard from that case.

I was on the receiving end of some very scornful looks when I had it knocked down to me for £18.

Home

How to get it home? Well it had to travel rather precariously hanging about four feet from the boot of my car and in this sorry condition it arrived at The Lilacs.

Anne's reaction was interesting. When I escorted her out to observe my prize she said "How much have you paid for that?" When I said eighteen pounds her voice went up two octaves as she exclaimed: "Good heavens, and these children need new shoes".

I gently scraped the old varnishes from the case. Then I made a new window followed by a new base plinth. Next I repaired the pendulum and placed it in store. After repairing the Mahogany cross band inlay I French polished the restored case.

Then came the hard part. I dismantled the movement piece by piece. Cleaned each cog and wheel and in doing so it was revealed to me that it had been made by Daniel Seddon of Frodsham and came out of his workshop about 1754. There were engravings showing it had been repaired several times including a repair in '42. It took some time before I realised it was 1842.

Having laid out the (now cleaned ) components I began (with some trepidation) to re-assemble it. In fact I reassembled it several times before I realised that it could not run unless it was timed rather like a petrol engine. So, now looking for timing marks on each wheel I re-assembled it once again.

This time it ran and with few exceptions it has been running ever since. That means of course that he has laboured for 261 years and still serves us well and keeps good time.

Wind Up

My first job each Sunday morning is to wind him. That is with the exception of one Sunday morning in 2004 when he stopped. I was in fact in intensive care at the North Staffs having received yet another set of spare parts. A successful outcome of this procedure was very much in doubt and now the clock had stopped. Calamity!

When I tell you that one of the lines of the song referred to earlier was as follows you will understand better why the clock was immediately re-wound and set going again by my son-in law:
"It stopped, short, never to go again when the old man died"

What is interesting to me is that this quite sophisticated machine has been present during enormous changes and innovations and inventions. Let us look at some of the things he has been witness to:

• He was built when George Third was on the throne – at four years old.
• He was present when James Watt turned his hand to the manufacture of steam engines and he therefore heard first hand of the American War of Independence.
• It was thirty-five years old when the French decided (not for the first or last time) to be revolting.
• Clive of India, Napoleon, Nelson and Wellington would be spoken of within his hearing.
• He had reached the grand old age of eighty when slavery was abolished.
• He was eighty one when the canal came to Audlem.
• Eighty three when Victoria came to the throne.
• At eighty six he gathered that 20,000 British service people had fled up the Khyber (back to India) having been obliged to leave the Afghans to it. Only one man survived the journey – Dr Brydone came alone to Jellalabad wounded and exhausted. All the others were dead. Don't learn very quick do we?
• This was about the time that our own Dr Richard Baker Bellyse began curing our ills.
• He reached a hundred when he heard of the Crimea.
• When the railway first came to Audlem.
• He reached 123 years when Dr Baker Bellyse finally threw in the towel . Those of you that have stopped to read the inscriptions on the monument will see that Dr bellyse did sterling work but in the end could not prolong his own life.
• He was present when Sir Robert Peel established the London Police force.
• He was a hundred and fifty when the Boer war occurred and the Wright brothers began to mess about with aircraft
• A hundred and sixty when the '14-18 war started.

I have often wished I could hold a conversation with him. What stories he would have to tell.

Leaping a mere hundred years we have him still, faithfully measuring the time for us. What a fantastic history of service and above all what a clever man built him without using a computer. Daniel Seddon could have had no notion of the events his creation would observe but I thank him for his work.

Footnote :- My memory stretches to several verses of the popular song referred to earlier:

The Grandfather clock was too big for the shelf so it stood ninety years on the floor,
It was taller by half than the old man himself though it weighed not a penny weight more
It was bought on the morn of the day that he was born and was always his joy and his pride
But it stopped. short. never to go again when the old man died.

It struck twentyfour when he entered at the door with his charming and beautiful bride
But it stopped. Short.never to go again when the old man died
Ninety years without slumbering Tick Tock Tick Tock
A life's seconds numbering Tick Tock Tick Tock
But it stopped. Short. Never to go again when the old man died .

P.S. Yes, I did eventually come across a Mahogany Banjo barometer.
The clock and the barometer have spent a companionable forty odd years working in harness and harmony together.

Bye for now
Geoff

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