NANTUCKET, MA.: Nantucket’s restored town clock will “celebrate” its 130th anniversary on May 28, 2011, at its permanent home in the Nantucket Historical Association’s Whaling Museum, 13 Broad Street.
In 1881, William Hadwen Starbuck presented the town of Nantucket with a Number 3 Striking Clock made by E. Howard Watch & Clock Company of Boston. Designed with wooden dials, it was installed in the tower of the Unitarian Church, 11 Orange Street, and began operations on May 28, 1881. It continued to operate the four clock faces of the South Tower and the church’s familiar bell until 1957, when the works were electrified.
Fully restored by Alain Androuais of Americlock, Inc., the specialist who installed the new mechanism that runs the present town clock, the old clock has been on permanent display in the Whaling Museum’s central stairwell since May 2005. The clock’s pendulum is viewable from the main lobby, and as visitors climb the stairs they can see the entire working mechanism from several vantage points.
Beginning May 12, the Whaling Museum will be open daily, 10 A.M.–5 P.M., and includes the restored 1847 candle factory, numerous galleries displaying some of the association’s most revered objects, the Discovery Room, and a fully accessible rooftop observation deck overlooking Nantucket Harbor.
Admission to the museum is $17 for adults, $15 seniors (65+) and $8 for youth (6–17). Tickets for the Whaling Museum and the NHA’s six historic sites are $20 for adults, $18 seniors (65+) and $10 for youth (6-17). Memberships are available on many levels, all of which include unlimited admission to the Whaling Museum and historic sites; free use of the Research Library; a subscription to the NHA’s magazine, Historic Nantucket; invitations to special events and lectures; and a 10% discount at the Museum Shop.
For further information about the Whaling Museum or membership, please visit the online calendar or call 508-228-1894, ext. 0.
