Jon Edwards August 2007

Our Museum acquired by donation in 2001 a large collection of more than two hundred old tools used by clockmakers and watchmakers.  Some unique tools have patent dates as far back as the mid to late 1800s.

Since 2001, other tools have been acquired through donation and purchase, plus a large ca. 1900 roll-top oak work bench.  The belt-drive lathe on the bench is operated by means of an 1895 patent flywheel and foot pedal.

During the summer of 2007 young volunteer Jonathan Edwards identified, labelled, photographed, and catalogued most of the tools.  He then designed and set up an exhibit (shown here) of representative tools for the main display case in the museum's Exhibit Room.  In the future the pictures of the tools will be shown in a gallery on the web site.

In June of 2012 summer student Nick Speranzini chose examples from the museum's many old hand watchmakers' tools to set up a display in a ca. 1940s H. Gerstner & Sons (Dayton, Ohio) wood tool chest.  The drawers are labeled and the tools numbered for identification with a legend mounted in the lid.  Visitors are invited to carefully pull the drawers open to view the tools and related horological items.