Skip to content
The Encyclopedia of Horology

Clock type · Domestic

Schoolhouse Clocks

Partially verified

American wall clocks with a round dial and a short 'drop' case, commonly found in schools and offices.

Movement & mechanism

  • Spring-driven eight-day movements
  • Simple pendulum regulation
  • Usually time-only or simple striking

Identification

  • Octagonal or round dial surround
  • Short rectangular or shaped drop below the dial
  • Wood case, often oak or mahogany

Terminology

  • Drop-dial clock
  • Octagon-top
  • Short-drop

Known variations

  • Standard and 'Regulator' (advertising) versions

Collecting notes

Condition and originality are paramount. For technical clocks like regulators or atmospheric clocks, the completeness of the original mechanism is more important than case condition. For decorative clocks (Boulle, Empire), the quality of the case craft is central.

Related photographs

Wall clock in the Chambord Castle
Wall clock in the Chambord Castle — Krzysztof Golik, CC BY-SA 4.0. Wikimedia Commons file page
Wooden wall clock with massive brass weights DSG5426-1 - 2020-04-25
Wooden wall clock with massive brass weights DSG5426-1 - 2020-04-25 — Franz van Duns, CC BY-SA 4.0. Wikimedia Commons file page

No confidently matched photograph of this subject has been found yet. These photographs show a closely related record, and are not examples of the type described on this page.

Sources & references

  1. Britten, F. J., Old Clocks and Watches and Their Makers
  2. Loomes, B., The Early Clockmakers of Great Britain
  3. Roberts, D., British Skeleton Clocks
  4. Museum catalogue records

Where sources disagree, the disagreement is stated rather than resolved silently.