At this moment I study horology at West Dean College in the UK. Site of the Old Westclox factory 211-201 Hunter Street, Peterborough Ontario. I know Bill Stoddards name from other publications on Westclox. Only reason I can think of and it looks pretty odd not to have minutes on a clock face. The phosphor deterioration means you can't see a glow anymore, but . These styles constitute the Read more about "Radium Girls" here. How can people be exposed to Radium? We pay his railroad fare on all orders for a dozen or more, we brand him with your name in lots of 24.. Phone: 717-684-8261. The style 7 Big Ben and Baby Ben (1956 to 1964, the first Bens with concentric alarm hand) has minute markings. Some people just want one or two that they remember from childhood in good condition, so thats just the thing for them. [3] The Radiolite series, made in various sizes and models, became a signature of the Connecticut-based company. $38.00. You just cant imagine the size of this factory its just gigantic. Radium is an almost pure white alkaline radioactive earth metal, and is found in nature in uranium ores. . Their factory in LaSalle, Illinois closed down in about 1980 when they moved all their production down south, but the building is still there. Production was back in full force and at an all-time high by 1956, with 3,000 employees on staff. Can anyone tell me the meaning or significance of this eye? On 3rd January 2099, Terry Shields asked if anyone had information regarding his clock signed G .Falconer, Hong Kong. Could you please try to help me find out what kind of clock this is. Through it all, Peru remained the companys home base, as over 3,000 employees now enjoyed the rapidly expanding space of the factory and its attached campus, with gardens, tennis courts, a bowling alley, and other things worthy of a Matthiessen estate. So you find clocks where parts have been switched, so thats one challenge, determining originality. This was a wonderful article to read. I was told it was long ago before even my aged family was servicing watches. They have meetings every two months, and educational programs, so thats a really great way to meet collectors and get all kinds of advice. We have photos of all the employees between 1927-1945 at the Peterborough Ontario Location but not much else. I have a quite a few pieces of both of them I have even one big Ben pocket watch which is still working after , I do not know how many years. Radium was even used in medical applications during the 20th century. The style 8 Big and Baby Bens were introduced in 1964. it has a picture of a huck finn type boy,carying 2 bottles of coke& a fishing pole,with his dog. When I walked along the street, Iwas aglow from the radium powder., The radium girls case was one of the first in which an employer was made responsible for the health of the companys employees. I have a Westclox Bachelor alarm clock from probably the 50s as it was always there when I was growing up. While most of our Big Ben dials are black with luminous numbers, there were also white dials with black numerals in production at the same time. I have looked high and low in my attempts to find out how any of these resproduction style 1A were produced. 7&a half X 6..desk clock. Next to the original Westcloxes I have an interesting collection of European copies by a.o. How did I get interested in clocks? You must log in or register to reply here. Origin of the eye, forklore or legends surrounding????? "[4], According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, "radioactive antiques [including watches] are usually not a health risk as long as they are intact and in good condition. 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. Copyright The other thing is reproductions. The thing I remember most is working with the people, Ristau said. $26.95. Eventually we became best friends and started researching together. They can be identified by having the modern type of flat head screws Westclox - An Identification and Price Guide, The Westclox Big Ben and Baby Ben Identification Guide, Clock Repair and Hermle Chime, Mantel and Wall Clocks for Sale at Bill's Clockworks. 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. Advertisement: Illustrates crackle green Tiny Tim, crackle blue Big Ben and crackle pink Baby Ben clocks. Stoddard: Its really hard to say. It started early in the 20th century, around 1910, when some companies began to use radium on watch dials and hands to create a "glow in the dark" effect. The work involved using luminous radium paint to make the numbers on clocks, watches and aeronautic dials glow in the dark. In this interview Bill Stoddard talks about collecting antique Westclox Big Ben and Baby Ben alarm clocks, and discusses clock collecting in general. Stoddard: The first Big Bens and Baby Bens went on the market in 1910 and they were wind ups. When did Westclox close? It is and Elias Ingraham Brass Clock with a patent stamp of September 30, 1862. 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. People will still look for a good wind up but the quality declined in the later years just because the companies tried so hard to keep the prices low. The front is in Roman Numerals with a dome shaped raised glass. The Westclox building remained there in all its glory well into the 21st century, as plans were tossed around for some sort of repurposing of the huge, historic facility. Sep 6, 2008. potz said: Afaik Radium was used right up to the 1950's. Some sources even say it was used up to 1968 in watches and 1978 in clocks. Radium paint itself was eventually phased out and has not been used in watches since 1968. Charles Stahlberg headed a group from Waterbury, Connecticut, who came to Peru in 1884 to build clocks based on a new idea by Stahlberg. 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. Both the Big and Baby Bens were housed in a newly refined bell-back clock case. When did they stop using radium for watches? I have an Pine State Ice Cream Milk clock that I would like to find out how much it may be worth. Among the rarities on display is a Westclox-made National Emergency Alarm Repeater. A radium dial clock from the 1930s. It sits on a small brass stand with Westclox on it. I think it is a clock made by Sessions. Radium dials are watch, clock and other instrument dials painted with luminous paint containing radium-226 to produce radioluminescence. Its hard to fathom in retrospect, but in the early 20th century, it was generally believed that small amounts of radium were perfectly harmless to humans, and thus, the substances natural, long-lasting glow actually made it something of an attractive novelty of the time periodnot just on clock dials, but in the worlds of quack medicine, fashion, cosmetics, and even a proto version of energy water, called Radithor.. 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? Before OSHA was set up, 14,000 people died on the job every year; today, it is just over 4,500. Its basically all forward momentum from here. In 1919 the company was incorporated as Western Clock Company, Ltd. There are variations in the lettering on the dial and back. Henry Warren invented a little synchronous motor that could go inside a clock. It has a removable bottom decorative piece as well as a top rounded top flat piece of wood with a verticle wooden slat on the back extending to become a peg-like extension to fit and secure the decorative piece into the top of the clock. and again 1243 is this an antique its gold but looks brand new but also an antique at the same time does anyone know what kind of pocket watch this is or if its gold or a replica of something or what it might be worth?? Inhaled or ingested particles may deposit a high local dose with a risk of radiation-caused lung or gastrointestinal cancer. That was the first antique clock I owned myself. Don Spayer, volunteer and former Westclox employee, said the bulk of the museums collection was built through donations. I am reading, studying, and learning more about the Westclox. They call it Shabby Chic and sell it on eBay for 60 to 80 dollars. I will be watching for more articles from Bill Stoddard Thanks, I have come across a mantle clock that has been in my husbands family for as long as he can remember He estimates his bother purchased the clock around 1950. 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. 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. $25.99. when did westclox stop using radiumcapricorn and virgo flirting. I am trying to determine the age. 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. I am a retired mechanical engineer, the quality has floored me, hats off to this company. This fall, the museum will be open more frequently and for more events. Because it was one degree removed from the radium business itself, Westclox seems to have largely dodged the controversy and lawsuits altogether. Thank you. One of the objects on display in the Benton County Historical Society's Corvallis Museum is this Westclox Radium Dial Clock. 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. Your email (will not be published) (required), The Timeless Appeal of the Westclock Big and BabyBens, The National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors, Not Your Grandmas Cuckoo: Decapitating, Rat-Eating Clocks of the Black Forest, The Care and Repair of 19th-Century American Clocks. The company later changed its name to the United States Radium Corporation. Debbie Blake, I have a small Westclox wind up clock dating around 1937. 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. It led to life-saving regulations and, ultimately, to the establishment of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which now operates nationally in the United States to protect workers. Thanks, Teri. Back then, radium wasn't considered to be dangerous in small doses. Fortunately, in the years since, theres been a noble effort to retain surviving parts of the building and some of the important local history that the empty factory once represented. its a Gold coloring and the bottom is well worn like it was slid into something regularily. The only problem is a standard size D battery does not fit. It emits alpha, beta, and gamma radiation. Thanks, Paula. In the early 1920s, when the company introduced a new series of Big Ben and Baby Ben clocks with luminous dials, the work of painting on this special, glow-in-the-dark element was outsourced to the Radium Dial Companyan independent business located just up the road in the neighboring town of Ottawa, IL. With a half-life of only 3.8 days, radon "seeds" (Rn gas contained in thin walled gold tubing, crimped and cut into units up to 1cm in length) could be left permanently implanted in the body. When did Junghans stop manufacturing Westminster Chimes, and when did Keinzle stop manufacturing Westminster chimes. Radium paint can be ingested by inhaling flaking paint particles. Style 10 is the last numbered 2023 by Andrew Clayman. If you do not expect to work hard and carefully, you are in the wrong place. credit: Northern Illinois University]. Something about them has always been ingrained in me. . If someone has restored it in the past, make sure the correct dial was put on it and the movements, which have probably been repaired a lot, have been done nicely. 0 Comments; Uncategorized newark advertiser obituaries 2021 . Gary Biolchini added more style series in his book Once I was winding it and one of the main springs broke, so I decided to take it all apart and fix the main spring. A few years later my grandma gave me one that worked, and my aunt gave me another one. During the early 1900's, the effects of radiation exposure were not well understood, and radium was frequently . The only marking I can find are the letters ST in old english style inside of a diamond thats inside of a circle, on the clock works. Contact the Webmaster for perceived copyright infringement (DMCA Registration Number 1010287). Any suggestions of where to get a replacement preferably in Canada? Based in Flora, Indiana, Bill can be reached via his website, clockhistory.com, which is a member of our Hall of Fame. Radium - The First Rolex Luminous Material. The Canadian Clock Museum (http://www.canclockmuseum.ca/) may have some information. Not everyone involved with the manufacturing of Westclox products was employed directly by Westclox, however. There are some blemishes on the wood on the right side. In 1918 the Big Ben case was improved to make it dustproof, as described in patent #1,300,278 issued to Kern on April 15, 1919. In the United States there does not seem to have ever been prohibitory legislation passed banning the use of radium in clocks and watches. 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. I always wondered why the dial of my Baby Ben clock, which I have had from late 60s, was marked off in 48ths of an hour instead of minutes. Like many East Coasters, he decides to pursue his fortune out West, but unlike many of his peers, he skips the bustling Second City in favor of a promising river & railroad region downstate; where the towns of Peru, LaSalle and Ottawa intersect. I have a sessions mantle clock duet#1. Westclox 0.9" LED Plasma Screen Alarm Clock with USB Charging Port 71014X. 514 Poplar Street Stoddard: Some of the old American pocket watches are just beautiful so I have several in my collection. Eventually, scientists and medical professionals realized that these workers' illnesses . Similarly, While the painting technique of the Ghost Girls was replaced with supposedly safer methods like silk screening, traces of radium were still used by many companies to get that desired glow effect throughout the 1940s and even as late as the 60s. In 2006 I started collecting vintage advertisements. Style 1 has three screws through the bezel visible from the front, style 1a doesnt (compare figures 3 and 7); Style 1 has two screws holding the bell back, style 1a has three. 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. Radium was also used until the early 1970s in "glow-in-the-dark" paints, e.g., for dials on clocks, and in other industrial applications such as instrument calibration. Richard Ristau Jr., former plant manager, said hes happy to see the space being used for the museum. Style 1a has four holes in the back to access the movement cap screws; Style 1 has the legs and pendant riveted to the case, on style 1a they screw on. Radium dials were produced throughout most of the 20th century before being replaced by safer tritium-based luminous material in the 1970s and finally by non-toxic, non-radioactive strontium aluminatebased photoluminescent material from the middle 1990s. Technically speaking, though, Westclox did still produce clocks during the gap years that followed. He invited us in to look around, so we got to go up and down the big freight elevator and he found some old music boxes that were never used that he gave to us (Westclox made one or two little clocks with a music box in them). Thank you. Ironically, the war that had cost them Gaston Le Roy had also stifled much of the companys European competition, opening up an even bigger share of the world marketplace in the 1920s. Then, on New Years Eve, as 2011 became 2012, the unthinkable happened. Baby Ben and other Westclox clocks and watches have been assigned styles. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register. Westclox Model 66 Movement Series Welcome to the Westclox Clock and Watch History Database. 5 17 15 is May 17, 1915 . Safety Westclox Classic Alarm Clock Full Size 47602. Helen. I have never seen this mentioned anywhere. About 1931 they made the first electric Big Ben, and they were plug ins. Dave, Your question about a Big Ben containing radium, and in fact about which clocks actually do contain radium, is a good one. Stopping this practice drastically reduced the amount of radium ingested and therefore, the incidence of malignancy. 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. By 1930, all dial painters stopped pointing their brushes by mouth. It is battery operated and takes a D battery. [Former Westclox workers Art and Mary Ann Windy (standing), 2015], This is amazing, Art said. It was discovered by Marie and Pierre Curie in 1898. All I really want to know is about the raised horizontal single eye type decoration on this top removable piece. The Westclox Big Ben Alarm Clock Vintage is an iconic timepiece that has been around since the early 1900s. I bought a 1970s Westclox pocket watch with a Hotwheels face that says authorized seller on it. UHR (CW arrow) knob sets clock time. In the comprehensive Big Ben & Baby Ben Identification Guide, organized by researchers Richard Tjarks and Bill Stoddard, they credit the original brilliant marketing of these little wonders almost entirely to one mana 28 year-old French immigrant named Gaston Le Roy. The new features, according to a synopsis from the Cooper Hewitt Design Museum, included: 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.. Westclox set up a factory in England in the 1940s and also in Scotland. My husband has a Big Ben clock that he inherited, it was took down from a mill and given to his grandma. theres the problem, there were two gears that were in backwards. For example, Big Ben Style 1 and Style 1a are the leg model, and Style 2 is the first base model. I was about 3ft high and recessed into the wall. Big Ben Style Series. Annie Moussin designer intrieur. I think we threw it away. The radium isotope (226Ra) used has a half-life of about 1,600years,[6] so radium dials remain essentially just as radioactive as when originally painted 50 or 100 years ago, whether or not they remain luminous. CAN SOMEONE TELL ME HOW TO RELEASE THE CLICK ON A WESTCLOX MANS WRISTWATCH MODEL A-201? I know very little about clocks in general. I was given an Elias Ingraham Clock many years ago and would like to know a bit more about it and its value. The clock is shielded From the glass crystal. From 1942 to 1945, Westclox ceased all production intended for domestic civilian sale and dedicated its production resources to the war effort. Any help would be appreciated. [6] Decaying radium also produces the gas radon, recognized as the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States[6] and the United Kingdom. There is a small dial inside of the clock face that has roman numerals like another clock face. Westclox Radium Dial Clock. It was a gift from him to her the year before they were married. 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. I know it was purchased in 1937 because it belonged to my elderly friends who were married in 1938. JavaScript is disabled. Thank you. Your cooperation would be greatly appreciated. [citation needed] After about 20minutes this delivers the equivalent of one whole day's worth of normal background radiation. Your response or advice would be much appreciated. Patton, had joined Charles Stahlbergs original start-up back in 1886 at the age of just 13, and he was still on board in 1936, 50 years later. Their use in prostate brachytherapy dates from 1926. 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. I am sure I can give Mr. Shields further information about his clock. Westclox closed its Peru factory 35 years ago. The internet is fantastic, you can find out anything about just any kind of clock, exchange pictures easily, correspond with people and work together on research. When did clocks stop using radium? The Forgotten Story Of The Radium Girls, Whose Deaths Saved Thousands Of Workers Lives, by Kate Moore, A Rude Awakening: The History of Alarm Clocks , Western Clock MFG Co. (Westclox), est. Stahlberg knows that no other noteworthy clock company has ever succeeded west of the Hudson, let alone smalltown Illinois, but he dives into the challenge, establishing his first factory. In fact, one of their designs for the military, the terrifying sounding WarAlarm, spurred a small shopping riot in Chicago in 1944 when a small batch of the clocks was made available for commercial purchase at a downtown store. 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.. Initially hired as a low level clerk, Le Roy worked his way up the company ladder in the early 1900s as an on-the-road sales rep, soliciting business from Chicago to New York to parts unknown. I would like to know the value of a #4 black, #321(in original cardboard Christmas box), mint condition, Baby Ben alarm clock is. Without a crystal poses a serious Health risk because the Radium paint flakes off and can become airborne. They make alarm and one-day lever clocks only, and with practically two different articles, known as the 4-inch and 2-inch movements, they have an output of in their factory at LaSalle, Ill., of nearly two million clocks a year. The women also left a legacy to science that has been termed invaluable.. They were sold in a very attractive hexagonal box which has pictures of antique items on the sides (tricycle, telephone, carriage, etc.) Underneath the #12 on the face it says: G. Falconer & Co. LTD. Hong Kong. When the Radium Dial Company moved to Ottawa in the 20s to better serve its number one client, Westclox, they were welcomed with enthusiasm, particularly by the young, working class women in the town. About 1920 the luminous dial using radium paint was introduced. Stahlbergs company goes bankrupt not once, but twice, within its first several years. Buy Now. Stoddard: The prices for larger wall clocks, three feet tall and up, have increased dramatically, while prices on some of the more common clocks have remained the same for the past 20 years. i have a large ansonia wall clock 32 1/2 x 32. In a few short years, thanks to Dr. Douglas's efforts, the amount of radium available in the US more than quintupled. I am looking to get an approxmiate value of this clock. That way I got myself another Baby Ben, bringing my collection to three by age 12. The first style 1a cases had double-hexagon legs, but after about a year they were changed to standard single hex form. Stoddard: Pay attention to quality. [Workers assembling Big Ben alarm clocks at the Westclox plant, 1910s. His bigger job was to design a system so the power companies could regulate their generator so the clock could keep time. Theres a seller on eBay now whos doing some really outstanding restorations of Big Bens. Quite a few who try to get every basic model, but fewer who get into the rarer models and do research. The only thing I found is the word Germny engraved on the back. . They arent hurting it permanently, its just kind of weird. 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. 226RA has a half life of about 1600 years and the glow of the paint used on dials and hands decreases because of the damage the alpha particles emitted by the Radium do to the ZnS . I spent many an evening here, watching him bowl.. knowledge about vintage and antique Westclox clocks and watches. 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. His ideas were patented on as US patent #326,602. Although old radium dials generally no longer produce light, this is due to the breakdown of the crystal structure of the luminous zinc sulfide rather than the radioactive decay of the radium.

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