Expert: David E Booth Jr, t/a Precision Repair - 7/30/2009

Question
QUESTION: A family heirloom thirty hour clock was recently passed down to me.  I was made by Brewster and Co. and is 25 inches tall by about 15 inches wide and rectangular in shape.  It has a gold column on each side, a painted mirror bottom and the face is offwhite with roman numerals.  I can not find any date on the paperwork on the back of the clock. But it does not have the E C initials on it.

ANSWER: I am doing this from memory, and may be slightly off, but as I recall, E.C. Brewster used the name "Brewster and Company" after about 1850-couple.  You can probably find the clock in one of the books on American clocks by Tran Du Ly. His books have catalog cuts from nearly all of the major American manufacturers, along with dates of manufacture, and the original retail prices.

The half-column style in your photograph was produced by many firms from about 1835 to 1865 or so. Their production followed the preferred furniture styles of the period. What is variously called "Greek Revival", "Pillar and Scroll" or "Restauration" furniture was popular from 1835 to 1870.

Many firms cut back on clock production during the Civil War, when they switched their emphasis to producing weaponry. Brewster and Company is known to have produced rifled muskets following the 1860 Springfield Pattern for the Union Army, although I do not believe they stopped clock production entirely during this period.

These are highly desireable collector items in the eight day versions; the thirty hour clocks are only slightly less so. Yours appears to be in good condition, which adds to it's desirability.

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QUESTION: The chronology I had been able to find showed Brewster and Co was about 1840 followed by EC Brewster and CO, then Brewster and Ingrahm could this be correct?  The other references were to the clock being an OG which I don't understand the meaning.  Also that it may have been a cottage clock.  Can you shed any light on this for me?  Thank you so much for your time and effort.

Answer
I double-checked in my clock notebook for notes on a few clocks I have worked on over the years. Your chronology seems to be correct. As I said, I was doing it from memory, and sometimes my memory serves me better than others.  <grin>  The references to "ogee" clocks are talking about a clock with a movement similar to yours, but cased in a square case, with ogee moulding surrounding the glass.  The terms "cottage", "kitchen" and "parlor" (or the British "parlour")clocks are applied to many different case styles, and are ill-defined, at best.  For lots more discussion on case styles, go to the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors Message Board and browse through some of the many discussions in the "clocks-general" category.  Yoou do not have to be a member to participate in the discussions.