The parent company of Westclox Canada, the Western Clock Company, started up near Chicago, Illinois in the 1880s.

The first Westclox factory outside the United States was set up in Peterborough, Ontario in an empty building in 1920.  By 1923 a new factory was ready, and additions were put on regularly up to the 1950s as business continued to expand.  The Peterborough factory closed in the 1980s when the Westclox north American factories also shut down in favour of offshore locations where labour costs were lower.

The model name Big Ben was created in the U.S. around 1908 for their large nickel-plated, spring-driven  "tin can" alarm clocks.   The models Baby Ben (smaller size), Pocket Ben (watch), and Wrist Ben followed just a few years later.

In this Gallery we include many examples of Canadian-made Westclox alarm clocks dating from the early 1920s through to the early 1980s.

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