Posted 9 years ago
KramerGma
(6 items)
Looking for information on this Mantel Clock. It's pretty heavy, does work on occasion, it will strike 12 at 4pm. There are multiple markings on the back with letters and numbers. Does have a pendulum. My stepdad was born in 1934 and he says that he remembers it being in the house when he was a child but has no idea where it came from.
Hello KramerGma.
I think that your heirloom was manufactured by the Ingraham Clock Company (see: http://www.collectorsweekly.com/clocks/ingraham). They offered a line of Mantel Clocks which they called "Marbleite" and described in their brochures as quote "These Cases are made under our patents on black enameled wood, also two additional patents, dated August 14, 1888, on imitation stone. We guarantee them to stand equal to our well known black clocks in every particular".
Your clock is very similar (but not identical) to Ingraham's "Marbleite No. 5". Here is a photo of their Marbleite No. 4 : https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/10871609_ingraham-marbleite-no-4-8-day-mantel-clock
Here's another example I found online which is very similar (but again, not identical) to yours: http://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/c1897-ingraham-marbelite-fancy-mantle-92003054
These clocks date as far back as the late 1890s. I don't know how long Ingraham manufactured them. The partial label on the back of your clock might have given the name of the model. It seems to suggest that this clock was manufactured expressly for the Topps Chewing Gum Co., however, that would mean that the clock was manufactured no earlier than 1938 so without more information (or more of the missing label) it's really hard to say when your clock was made.
There may be a patent number and date stamped on the front brass plate of the movement but you would need to remove the hands and dial (or the movement itself) in order to see it. Even then, a patent date could only tell you the earliest the clock was made, not necessarily when it was made.
The clock's mechanism could use a good cleaning and lubrication. If it strikes "12" times when the hour hand is showing "4" you could simply, but very carefully, move the hour hand to "12" to resync the time and strike trains. These types of clocks use a "Count Wheel" which can easily get out of sync with the time shown if the clock is allowed to completely wind down before it is re-wound (should be wound weekly). While the hour hand can be moved in either direction, when moving the minute hand, only do so in a clockwise direction and pause at the strike points to let the clock finish striking the hour and half-hour.
Hope this answers some of your questions and perhaps solves your mystery to whatever extent possible with the information on hand. If so, please indicate that your mystery is "solved" in your listing. If not, ask whatever questions you may have. Someone here may have an answer for you.
Thanks for sharing your heirloom.
Bruce99 Thank you so much for finding this information for me. My parents finally have an answer.
You're very welcome KramerGma! :)