the bytown timeskeynote presentation bob pritzker, fnawcc and past president of the toronto chapter,...

The Bytown Times IISSN 1712—2799

INSIDE THIS ISSUE May Meeting Highlights 1-3

Lynda Janney 3

Clock Museum News 4-5

The Annual Club Picnic 6

NAWCC National Convention 7

The Eastern States Regional 8

Franklin Watch 9

Pocket Watch Database Update 9

Horological Hints and How to’s 10-11

Robert St-Louis in the NAWCC Bulletin

12

Canadian Clock Museum Recognized

12

President & Editor’s Corners 12

MAY MEETING HIGHLIGHTS

Our next meeting….

Pinecrest Recreation Centre 2250 Torquay Ave, Ottawa, ON

1:00 PM, September 22, 2019

*********** A Brief History of the Elgin

Watchmakers’ College By Gary Fox

********* Show and Tell

Summer Acquisitions and More!!

VOLUME 39 NO. 4 SEPTEMBER 22, 2019

Forty-five members and guests attended the May 26th meet-ing of the Ottawa Valley Watch and Clock Club. Keynote Presentation Bob Pritzker, FNAWCC and Past President of the Toronto Chapter, was a return visitor and welcome guest who presented his excel-lent research on the Congreve Rolling Ball Clock. Most collec-tors are familiar with this unusual clock, which doesn’t have a pen-dulum, but relies on a rolling ball travelling down an inclined table to register the time. At the end of each passage down the table, the ball triggers a lever which tilts the table in the opposite direc-tion, to keep the ball in motion and mark the passage of time. William Congreve (1772 -1828) was the son of William Con-greve Sr, the Comptroller of the Royal Arsenal at Woolwich. He was not a clockmaker, but considered himself an inventor. His inventions covered a variety of areas, including counterfeit-proof paper, pneumatic canal locks, a perpetual motion ma-chine and perhaps most famously the Congreve rocket, a weapon which was used in the Napoleonic wars and in the War of 1812 (which are the rockets alluded to in the American National Anthem.) Since Congreve was not a clockmaker, he had three clocks made to his specification by others The first was presented to the Prince of Wales in 1808, the second is in the collection of Buckingham Palace while the third was presented to the arsenal at Woolwich. While Congreve was granted a patent for the rolling ball clock in 1808, it appears that he was not the first to invent and make this type of clock. Bob’s research uncovered a a rolling ball clock made by Robert Bryson in the National Museum of Scotland which is dated 1804. Further, Bob noted another rolling ball clock made by Scottish clockmaker, James Nimmo, who was in business in 1806. Congreve most proba-bly saw one of these devices prior to creating his version and applying for his patent. Regardless, rolling ball clocks were terrible timekeepers. The Prince of Wales, later King George IV returned the clock to Congreve to have it regulated in August 1808. But it was …..

Cont’d P. 2

A typical Congreve Rolling Ball Clock

Bob Pritzker describes the history & operation of the Congreve Clock

THE BYTOWN TIMES Page 2

MAY MEETING HIGHLIGHTS (CONT’D)

President : Don Purchase [email protected]

Vice President: Kevin West [email protected]

Editor ByTown Times Gary Fox [email protected]

Secretary Paul Sonnichsen [email protected]

CHAPTER OFFICERS

Auditor: Jean Paul Tourigny

Immediate Past President: Daniel Burgoyne

Treasurer: Ray Springer

Education & Workshop Chairman:

From P. 1 able to keep reliable time. Bob explained the operation of the clock and the theory of how it should work. He pointed out the major flaws in the concept and how basic physics would ensure that the clock could never be a reliable timepiece. Nev-ertheless, as Bob pointed out, the Congreve clock is an interesting timepiece. It is a stylish clock that is very entertaining to watch. To prove the point, Bob brought a beautiful reproduction clock which was surrounded by members taking pictures throughout the meeting. Bob’s presentation was excellent and well received by those present. He answered many questions from the floor, giving evidence of his thorough research. A copy of an article written by Bob detailing the history, operation and flaws of this clock can be found on the Chapter # 111 web site at: http://ottawaclocksandwatches.ca/images/Education/The_Congreve_Clock.pdf Show and Tell The first show and tell presentation was by Jon Ruhland, speaking on behalf of a new member. This member owned a tall case clock that had belonged to his grandfather. He remembered the clock fondly from his many childhood visits to his grandparents home, fascinated by the sound of the steady beat. When his grandfather passed away, the clock was bequeathed to his father and then to him. But when he set it up at his home, it wouldn’t run. In expectation of re-creating his childhood memories, he sought help for the repair and soon found the Ottawa chapter. Taking advantage of the club’s training program, he signed up for Dan Hudon’s basic and advanced clock repair courses and, in due course, started the repair. After a thorough cleaning and some adjustments to the weights and pendulum, he got it going. Today, it has a place of honour in his basement, running reliably. Whenever there is a break in the action on his TV, he mutes the sound so he can hear his grandfather’s clock ticking!

Next, Jim Anderson presented a recent ac-quisition.. A miniature carriage clock in its original carrying case. Last but not least, Ray Springer spoke about a pocket watch he recently acquired. It was made by Longines for Thomas Russel & Son in England. The fascinating aspect of the watch is that it carried the Sir Sandford Fleming inspired 24 hour, Cana-dian Pacific Railway sticker on the dial. One wonders if the watch ever saw service on the railway. It predates the Ball railway standard for watches.

Jon Ruhland describes the saga of a family’s Grandfather’s clock

Jim Anderson shows his miniature Carriage clock

Ray Springer’s Watch with CPR 24 hour sticker

MAY MEETING PHOTOS


Tom & Paul Devey “Nice watch, Paul”

Let’s get this show on the road!!!

Jim Anderson & Don Purchase… organizing the picnic?

Ray Springer with his Thos. Russel watch

Maynard Dokken & Paul Williams...HARRUMPH”!!

J.P. Tourigny …. “What is Nick Sidor hiding ?”

Welcome, Past Pres Michael Mazur!

LYNDA JANNEY

It is with great sadness that we learned of the passing of Lynda Janney, wife of our member and frequent speaker, Doug Janney. Linda was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer and passed away on July 5, 2019.

Born in Ottawa, Lynda attended Immaculata High School and joined the Federal Public Service in 1967. She studied Human Resource Management at Algonquin College and the University of Ottawa following which she progressed through a number of HR specialist and management posi-tions in various departments, including Health and Welfare and the Solicitor General.

Lynda and Doug met in 1970. They married in 1973 so, in addition to her role in the Public Service, she became wife, Mom, and “Hockey Mom” among many other roles. She was active in the community, working as a Trustee and eventually Chairperson of the Renfrew Library Board.

Lynda was a creative artist, something she encouraged and supported in her grandchildren. Her own specialty was painting. She was an active supporter of Doug in his many interests. In May 2018, she participated in a role play as part of Doug’s presentation on The Railway Spy Clock. There will be a Celebration of Life service for Lynda at the Calvary Pentecostal Church, 56 Wrangler Road, Renfrew, Ontario at 11:00AM on Saturday September 28, 2019. On behalf of the executive and members of the club, we send our sincere condolences to Doug and the family.

Lynda & Doug presenting “The Railway Spy Clock” in May 2018

TTHE BYTOWN TIMES

A Unique 1930s Canadian ‘Tramp Art’ Clock This impressive clock was acquired by the museum in May 2019 from an Ontario antiques dealer. It was made by Harry Sykes (1911-1985) in Welland, Ontario back in 1934 and/or 1935 at age ca. 23. His unique design pays homage to the silver jubilee of King George V’s twenty-five year reign over the British Empire from 1910 to 1935. Of course. Canada was part of the British Empire back then. Harry’s creation won second prize in the craft competition at the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto in 1935. Cathy Comar at the Welland Public Library recently found the details reported in a column in the Au-gust 24, 1935 edition of the Welland Tribune newspaper. The judge noted the use of cast metal rather than carved wood animals, which apparently cost Harry first prize. In that column, Harry states that it took him many months and 986 pieces of cigar-box wood plus carved rosettes to make the case. The style of the central clock dial and hands suggests that Harry took the dial and movement from a German mantel clock imported by the Blackforest Clock Company in Toronto (1928–1930s). Tramp Art? This was a craft movement popular from the 1870s to the 1940s in North America. It typically involved using a pocketknife and pieces of cigar-box wood to create various objects such as picture frames, miniature furniture, wall shelves, and clock cases. The multitude of carved V notches is a distinguishing characteristic. A Google search will turn up hundreds of tramp art examples.

CLOCK MUSEUM NEWS

Front of Harry Sykes’ clock (38” H, 24” W, 9” D) now on display in The Canadian Clock Museum

Clock case top detail with dial, King George V photograph, and some of the cast animals

CLOCK MUSEUM NEWS (CONT’D)

This spectacular clock was on display for eighteen months in 2017 to 2018 in the No Idle Hands * The Myths & Meanings of Tramp Art exhibition at the International Folk Art Museum in Santa Fe, New Mexico. It was included in the massive book published for the exhibition, and also described in, and shown on the back of the dust jacket for, Clifford Wallach’s 2012 book about tramp art. The clock was then brought back to Canada by the dealer and subsequently offered for sale at the Bowman-ville, Ontario folk art antiques show in April 2019. Harry Sykes’ masterpiece has become one of the very special Canadian-made treasures in the collections of The Canadian Clock Museum. The Gallery link on the museum’s web site is: http://www.canclockmuseum.ca/gallery/UNIQUE_1934_CANADIAN_TRAMP_ART_CLOCK.html.


The book for the No Idle Hands

tramp art exhibition Santa Fe,

New Mexico 2017-2018

Front and back of the dust cover on the 2012 book by Clifford Wallach

Allan Symons, Curator The Canadian Clock Museum

The clock at the

No Idle Hands

exhibition 2017- 2018

in Santa Fe, New Mexico (David Field

photo)

TTHE BYTOWN TIMES

THE ANNUAL CLUB PICNIC

The Club’s Annual Picnic was held at the beautiful country home of Jim Armstrong and Lucie Gagnon. The weather was perfect: warm, not humid and with a light breeze. There was plenty of seating in Jim and Lucie’s well landscaped back yard.

Twenty-seven members and guests attended and had a great time catching up on recent horological finds and just chatting on current happenings.

The cook was Don Purchase and he handled the job with professionalism and good humour! While the burg-ers and such were excellent, the highlight was Lucie’s baked beans. Of course, the dessert was very good too—cake with strawberries and ice cream.

It was great to see Pete Graham and his son at the picnic. Pete brought along a photo album created by his late wife Judy, which included snapshots from many of the past club picnics, It was a wonderful trip down Memory Lane! Thanks for sharing that with us, Pete!

The auction, called by Don Purchase, raised a fair bit of money even though there were not many items for sale. Pete Graham bought two clocks which he was quite pleased with.

All in all a great picnic – see you next year! Thank you Jim and Lucie for being such wonderful hosts! Kevin West

NAWCC NATIONAL CONVENTION


This year I had the opportunity to attend the National Convention of the NAWCC, held in Springfield Massa-chusetts. I was unable to attend the 75th Annual Convention last year, but this year, because of the proximi-ty of Springfield to Ottawa, I decided to go. It was an easy 5 ½ hour drive around the Adirondack Mountains and following the Hudson River to the Connecticut River, before reaching Springfield. I had only been to re-gional meetings in Syracuse, NY previously and that was my frame of reference, but I wanted to experience what a National Convention might offer.

I arrived in Springfield on Friday in time for a Grand auction ( I kept my hands in my pockets this trip), a short first tour around the mart tables, my first workshop and then headed back to my hotel. I did not have time Saturday morning, to do a detail tour of the Mart, but I saw all the mart tables, I might be exaggerating, but I would think there may have been 250 to 500 vendors! Collections of every size and shape.

One of the first people I ran into Saturday morning was Rich Newman, Chair of the NAWCC Board of Direc-tors. I congratulated him on his re-election and personally thanked him for his presentation in Ottawa on watch papers.

My expectations for the National Convention was shaped in part by my experiences at the Syracuse based Eastern States Regionals in past years. I am pleased to say that the format for the National Convention is very similar to those regionals, with a mart, auction and a specialty section highlighting certain clocks and a variety of workshops. This year, the National Convention Crafts Competition included ten to twelve clocks made by individuals. I was impressed with this display (see photos below) as well as the talent of the makers.

I enjoyed the variety of presentations during the workshops and enjoyed the comradery of fellow horologists Next year the 77th Convention will be held in Toledo Ohio from June 25 to June 28, 2020. It is a little longer drive to Ohio than to Springfield, but if all is well in my life next year I hope I can get there. There is just something exciting and invigorating about rubbing shoulders with others who share the same horological pas-sions. You can immediately strike up a conversation on almost any topic and still be talking when the break is over.

Paul Sonnichsen

TTHE BYTOWN TIMES

EASTERN STATES REGIONAL

The Eastern States Regional was held very early in August this year. There seemed to be fewer mart tables than in the past, but there was plenty to see and (if the mood struck) buy! I picked up a couple of items, in-cluding a circa 1976 Texas Instruments LED wrist watch in near mint condition, with the instruction manual and original bill of sale! It is totally impractical (you have to push a button to see the time) but fun to wear! I fell in love with an early lithograph of the Elgin Watch Factory, but I couldn’t negotiate a price I was comforta-ble with! Several members of the Ottawa Chapter were on hand, including Michel Menard, Nick Sidor and Miklos Val-camas. I didn’t attend any of the numerous workshops, but did a walking tour of the excellent Masonic clock and artefact display. This was apparently the largest ever display of such clocks anywhere! The auction was a lot of fun this year despite the lack of watches, tools and ephemera. The clocks were all from the estate of the late Snowdon Taylor, so there was a lot of interest. It appeared to me that the prices of individual clocks, while very reasonable, were somewhat higher than seen in the last few years. Still, there were bargains to be had. I will be back next year and possibly attend the National. Paul’s article has gotten me very interested! Gary Fox

AA POCKET WATCH FROM THE FRANKLIN EXPEDITION


Figure 1 is a photo of one of the 20 pocket chronometers assigned to the Sir John Franklin Expedition of 1845. It was manufactured by the firm Parkinson & Frodsham, 4 Change Alley, London. It was used on a daily basis by members of the crew of the ship Terror. It was found in an abandoned life boat at Erebus Bay, King William Island, Nunavut by members of the McClintock Search Expedition 1857 (one of numerous expeditions to locate Franklin, his crew and ships over a period of several years). This watch is a symbol of the quest to find a shorter route from England to the Orient. While the Franklin Expedition was equipped with the latest and best of equipment and supplies it was faced with insurmountable environmental chal-lenges. Several decades later a Norwegian Explorer, Roald Amundsen decid-ed to continue Franklin's journey. Using smaller boats and a different ap-proach in learning survival techniques from the Inuit he succeeded in travers-ing the Northwest Passage in 1905. The Pocket Chronometer #980 is currently located in the British National Maritime Muse-um in Greenwich, England. While the watch is described as a chronome-

ter, it may not technically made to that standard. The watch in Figure 2 has a serial number just 19 higher than the Franklin watch and is likely simi-lar to the one on the Terror. It has an uncompensated balance, a spiral hair-spring (as opposed to a helical spring) and has a cylinder escapement. To read more on the Franklin Expedition see:

1) The Franklin Mystery: Life & Death in the Arctic https://www.canadianmysteries.ca/sites/franklin/home/homeIntro.en.htm

2) Nunatsiaq News 12 September, 2016: HMS Terror, Franklin's sec-ond ship, finally found in Nunavut https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/65674hms_terror_franklins_second_ship_finally_found_in_nunavut/

3) Royal Museums Greenwich https://collections.rmg.co.uk/collections/objects/2202.html

4) Department of Fisheries and Oceans articles on the Franklin Expedition http://recherche-search.gc.ca/rGs/s_r?st=s&s5bm3ts21rch=x&num=10&st1rt=0&langs=eng&cdn=mpodfo&q=Franklin+Expedition

5) PBS article 'Arctic Passage' February 28, 2006 www.pbs,org/wgbh/nova/transcripts/3307.arctic.html

If you have stories we could add to the Important Canadian Horological Connections collection on our website please contact Gary Fox . Ray Springer

Fig. 1: The Parkinson & Frodsham “Chronometer” at the British National Maritime Museum.

Serial No. 980

Fig. 2: A Parkinson & Frodsham with Serial No. 999

Photo: NAWCC Message Board

POCKET WATCH DATABASE UPDATE

Most collectors of pocket watches already know about the Pocket Watch Database, a valuable resource providing information on American made pocket watches. Key-in the maker and the serial number of your watch and the site will tell you the size, number of jewels, model and grade, production volume, date of the watch with that serial number, and much more. But, the site has been enhanced! Ray Springer noted that they are now digitizing Pocket Watch Material Catalogues and Publications. Check it out at …... https://pocketwatchdatabase.com/reference/catalogs Thanks for the “heads up”, Ray

THHE BYTOWN TIMES

HOROLOGICAL HINTS AND HOW-TO’S

The Plewes Lathe Chuck

The Plewes chuck was designed by the late John Plewes to facilitate working between cen-ters on a lathe, which is one of the most accurate methods of machining available. The beauty of this tool is its ability to handle large clock wheels, such as those found in English longcase clocks, as well as wheels with obstructions on the arbors. The chuck body, as seen in Figure 1, is comprised of a 4-inch diameter steel cylinder with adjustable clamping bars. The main accessory to the Plewes chuck is the 16-inch-long headstock center shaft with front and rear bearings shown in Figure 2. A tailstock mounted female bearing is added as the third com-ponent needed for arbor setup and is shown in Figure 5.

Figure 2 depicts the center shaft, showing the front bearing with a number 2 Morse taper which is a slip-fit into the headstock. A female bearing is located at the extreme end of the shaft. It is more convenient to have this shaft in place prior to installing the Plewes chuck. In Figure 3, the center shaft is being pulled through the head-stock spindle.

A typical English wheel is shown in Figure 4. It has a long-tapered arbor plus the wheel is at the very end of the arbor sandwiched between the pinion and the pivot thus making normal chucking difficult at both bear-ings. The arrows point to the two bearing surfaces that will be machined/polished once the Plewes chuck is completely setup. The orientation of the wheel will change depending on which bearing needs machining and how the chuck will ensure concentricity.

Fig. 3: The centre shaft is being pulled through the headstock spindle

Fig. 4: A typical English clock wheel with two bearing points that are difficult to polish

Fig. 1: The Plewes Lathe Chuck

Fig. 2: The 16 Inch long headstock centre shaft with front and rear bearings

HHOROLOGICAL HINTS AND HOW-TO’S (CONT’D)


In Figure 5, the Plewes chuck is mounted onto the front face of the three-jaw self adjusting chuck once the clock wheel is ready to be worked on. The chuck clamp is tightened and the tailstock female center holds the rear end of the arbor. Once the arbor is properly secured and held parallel to the lathe bed, the tailstock female center is withdrawn to give access to the front bearing as seen in Figure 6. In cases where a pivot bed will be used instead of a female tailstock center, the tailstock does not need to be withdrawn. A pivot bed ensures continued sturdi-ness in the setup should added force be needed during the machining process. Figure 6 also shows the clock wheel clamped in the chuck. There is un-obstructed access to the bearing once the tailstock is removed and if machining is required, the Plewes chuck holds the arbor in a fixed posi-tion.

A view inside the cylinder is presented in Figure 7. It shows the opposite end of the wheel and how it is held inside the cylinder by the adjustable floating clamps. The clock wheel was disconnected from the Plewes center shaft female bearing for photo-graphic purposes as the pivot is normally inserted into the female bearing. In this setup, the wheel remains inside the cylinder and the arbor extends beyond the clamps as seen in Figure 6 above. The arbor will be reversed in the chuck to deal with the rear bearing. It would normally show the front pivot inserted into the female center coming from the headstock.

Dan Hudon (Ed Note: The late John Plewes was a well known and re-spected restorer of antique clocks. He authored the excellent book “Repairing & Restoring Pendulum Clocks”. He made numerous curious devices to aid in his repair work . Dan Hudon, a long time admirer of John, has mastered many of his unusual tools such as the Plewes chuck. GF)

Fig. 7: The clock wheel inside the cylinder. The chuck can hold wheels that are

larger than the one shown in the image.

Fig. 6: Once the arbor is securely fastened in the Plewes Chuck, the tailstock centre is removed

Fig. 5: The Plewes Chuck mounted on the lathe’s three jaw chuck. The tailstock female centre holds the end of the arbor

TTHE BYTOWN TIMES

PRESIDENT’S CORNER

CARP FAIR PARTICIPATION NEEDED!

Our Club will be hosting a booth at this year’s Carp Fair and we need YOU to help “man the booth” over three days (Sept 27, 28, 29) 9am to 5pm. We also need items for display. The hope is to spread the word about the Club and to attract new members. Please contact me at [email protected] to identify the days and times you can support our club and whether you can provide items for display. Note that we will have six passes for you to enter the grounds without the need to pay!

Don Purchase

EDITOR’S CORNER

ROBERT ST-LOUIS IN THE NAWCC BULLETIN At Our November 2018 meeting, Robert St-Louis gave an excellent presentation on the life and times of Paris-based watchmaker, Andre Caron and his son, Pierre Au-guste Caron de Beaumarchais.

Following on the success of his talk, Robert decided to document his research in an article that he sent to the Editor of the NAWCC Watch and Clock Bulletin. His article was accepted almost immediately and was published in the July / August 2019 issue. It will be covered in two parts in separate issues

The article is well written with excellent images provided by Robert. If you wish to see the first part of the article, you can find it on our website at……. http://ottawaclocksandwatches.ca/images/Education/Andre-Charles%20Caron%20A%20watchmakers%20%20Shop%201.pdf

It’s that time again! Welcome back to a new season of the Ottawa Valley Watch and Clock Club. Why not bring your best summer acquisitions for our Show and Tell segment on September 22?? This issue has the benefit of articles and photos from both our usual supporters and a number of new con-tributors! My heartfelt thanks to Allan Symons, Dan Hudon, Kevin West, Paul Sonnichsen and Ray Springer for their excellent stories and pictures! It is that time again. The club’s Wine and Cheese Party is just around the corner—to be held in Octo-ber this year. Why not volunteer to be our host? You can do as little or as much of the preparation as you like. The club pays for the expenses and has an excellent shopping list prepared by Judy McDonald that has been used for the last three years! If you wish, the executive can buy and bring everything—you just need to provide the space! Think about it and let us know!

Gary Fox

Robert St-Louis

CANADIAN CLOCK MUSEUM RECOGNIZED On June 15, 2019, Allan Symons was presented the Ontario Historical Soci-ety’s 2018 President’s Award. A publication released by the society said…

The Ontario Historical Society is pleased to present the 2018 President’s Award, which recognizes an outstanding contribution to the preservation and promotion of Ontario’s history, to the Canadian Clock Museum in Deep River, Ontario. As President and Cura-tor of the Museum, Allan Symons has done outstanding work collecting, researching, curating, and displaying clocks manufactured in Canada, most of them made here in Ontario. As Canada’s only clock museum, it has brought national and international recognition to the history of Canadian clock-making.

Congratulations Allan! Dr. Ian Radforth & Caroline Di Coco

presenting the Award to Allan Symons

the bytown timeskeynote presentation bob pritzker, fnawcc and past president of the toronto chapter,...

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