A Pennsylvania Clock Mystery by user from Antiques & Fine Art magazine

With every good mystery there is the question of who done it. In the instance of a lavishly inlaid tall clock seemingly from Pennsylvania¹ (Fig. 1), the questions widen beyond the who to include for whom and from where. The mystery surrounding this clock is probably a more common situation than many of us realize.

While it may be ideal to imagine a craftsman working at his bench year after year in a recognizable style, the reality is that many early American artisans had to make decisions still pertinent to business today. This often meant relocating or integrating the newest fashions into their products to stay viable. This continually changing work environment is often a cause of confusion among scholars and collectors in verifying the origin of some American furniture. What follows is the unraveling of a story that demonstrates the importance of thinking beyond traditional concepts of craft practices and business.

The tall clock in Figure 1 bears two inscriptions that apparently identify the place of origin and original ownership. The painted dial is signed Jacob Klingman/Reading. A piece of paper glued to the inside of the case states the clock’s provenance: This clock was bought in the lator [sic] part of the eighteenth century by Jacob Kline who died in 1836 and through his wife who was my aunt on my Father’s side it came into my possession in 1845. Agnes C. (Welsh) Spangler, Dec. 25, 1901.

Ostensibly, it would seem that the case was made in or near Reading, the seat of Berks County, Pennsylvania, where clockworks maker Jacob Klingman operated a shop from 1781 to 1806. The walnut case, however, features inlaid stringing, quarter fans, and medallions in the style found on Baltimore, Maryland, cases (Figs. 2–4), which do not relate to the known cabinetwork from Berks County.² Furthermore, Berks County records made no mention of the Kline, Welsh, and Spangler families listed as owners of the clock.

Such contradictory evidence raised the possibility that the case and movement might be associated, or “married.” Careful examination, however, revealed no conclusive signs that the case ever housed another movement. A logical explanation was then needed to discern why a Reading clock face was in a case with no Berks County design characteristics or history.

Since the clock case did not correspond to known Berks County examples, the next step was to stylistically relate the case to a clock with a substantiated origin, thereby making a connection to a region or community by association. In all the publications on American clocks, the case that was most similar was published in 1947 by Carl W. Dreppard in American Clocks and Clock Makers³ (Fig. 5). Although a visual comparison of the cases revealed variations perhaps suggesting a different cabinetmaker, this case shares many attributes with the case of the Klingman clock. The similarities include extensive inlays usually ascribed to Baltimore manufacture, the border of the trunk or waist door, and a kylix with rectangular framing inlaid on the plinth. The dial of the clock illustrated in 1947 was marked by Jacob Hostetter, a clockmaker who worked in Hanover, Pennsylvania, from the 1780s to about 1825.⁴ Hanover, a town in southwestern York County, was important on the Baltimore trade route, thereby providing an explanation for the Baltimore-style inlays used by several craftsmen.⁵ Given the relationship of the two cases, it is very likely that both were made in or near Hanover. Hanover cabinetmaker Adam Ault (1768–1848) is the strongest candidate for having made the Klingman case, as he is known for an elaborate signed case.⁶ There are other possible artisans, however, because an unpublished clock case with a dial signed by York clockmaker John Fisher also features a case with Baltimore-type inlays, including a medallion with an animal. Both being York County craftsmen, the assumption is that the Klingman case was also from the same region.