styles to organize them For me its kind of an inexpensive hobby because as a boy I could find them for about a dollar a piece, sometimes in good condition. Art and Mary Ann Windy [pictured] have been married for 49 years, met as Westclox employees and were present for the open house. They worked for the United States Radium Corporation painting the numbers and hands on watch. It is a wind up. Westclox 0.9" LED Plasma Screen Alarm Clock with USB Charging Port 71014X. Credit: pinimg. We thought it was 1890 or older. Underneath the #12 on the face it says: G. Falconer & Co. LTD. Hong Kong. . . Museum Artifacts: Luminous Big Ben & Baby Ben Clock Dials (1940s) and Style 1A Big Ben Alarm Clock (1920s), Made By: Western Clock MFG Company, aka Westclox, 350 5th St., Peru, Illinois [LaSalle]. The Windys said their union confirms an old Westclox employee rumor about the long-lasting nature of a relationship struck up near a certain fountain. It has a patent June 18-1882 and says Dakota on the back,can you tell me more? Any suggestions of where to get a replacement preferably in Canada? Annie Moussin designer intrieur. What You Want To Know About Watch Luminant - aBlogtoWatch But hes taken some that are really rusty and had the backs replaced beautifully and reproduced some dials, and hes actually had some selling for several hundred dollars, so thats a totally different thing. Is Radium Lume Really That Dangerous? - WahaWatches Richard Ristau Jr., former plant manager, said hes happy to see the space being used for the museum. its about 2 inches long maybe 1/2 in thick with holes on either end to be worn on a key chain perhaps? Safety Sometimes Ive seen them for 300 to 600 dollars. Finally, with Catherine Donohue serving as a key witness from her death bed in 1938, a groundbreaking Supreme Court case finally delivered some long awaited justice to the victims. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The movement is a windup almost identical to the original. Stoddard: Its really hard to say. Then my friend and I went around the neighborhood asking people if they had anything they wanted to give away, like old clocks and cameras and tape recorders. It is in good condition and has the original pendulum and key. If you look at a Baby Ben in the 1959 Sears catalog, they sold for about nine dollars and if you go to a Wal Mart today you can still buy a Baby Ben for about nine dollars, but the quality isnt the same. I have purchased 1) Style 1 Baby and Big Ben with the Gold Leaf dial (seller stated raised letters); and, 2) a Style 1 Baby Ben with Baby Ben De Luxe on the dial. As radium luminosity came under attack in the 1930s, Westcloxs other updates to the Big Ben design were far more practical and uncontroversial. the knobs have foreign words ie wecker & UHR.would like to know about his clock Westclox Scotland produced its first clock on 21 September 1948; a spring wound alarm with a 4-inch (10cm) dial. Through a friend I purchased an apparently antique key wind up long wooden and glass cased clock. 1968 Who made westclox? They can be identified by having the modern type of flat head screws Westclox - An Identification and Price Guide, The Westclox Big Ben and Baby Ben Identification Guide, Clock Repair and Hermle Chime, Mantel and Wall Clocks for Sale at Bill's Clockworks. Hot Times in "Radium Hospital": The History of Radium Therapy at MSK In terms of my own collection, Im still trying to find some of the really early Big Bens. That summer at an antique store I came across one that wasnt even in the book, and I thought that was exciting. Did westclox stop using radioactive paint by the 1960s? When did they stop using radium on clocks? At this moment I study horology at West Dean College in the UK. Radium was also used until the early 1970s in "glow-in-the-dark" paints, e.g., for dials on clocks, and in other industrial applications such as instrument calibration. Style 1 has three screws through the bezel visible from the front, style 1a doesnt (compare figures 3 and 7); Style 1 has two screws holding the bell back, style 1a has three. At the start of the decade, the company brought in a skilled new industrial designer named Henry Dreyfuss; a true modernist. But he only comes upon receipt of signed price agreement. Any guidance or help is appreciated. As Kate Moore explains it, The radium girls case was one of the first in which an employer was made responsible for the health of the companys employees. Also Telechron, which was a big maker of electric clocks. The factory contained a bowling alley, and Ristau said his father was an excellent bowler. When radium was discovered in the early 1900s, people were fascinated by its mysterious glow and it was added to many everyday products, including paints. Copyright For example, Big Ben Style 1 and Style 1a are the leg model, and Style 2 is the first base model. [citation needed] This rate probably only represents the dose rate from gamma emission, as the alpha emission will be stopped by the lacquer, or crystal, or case; hence, the dose rate following ingestion or inhalation of the dust could be much higher. Theyll take an old Big Ben from 1930 and make a new dial that says Indian Motorcycle or Victola, and put it on eBay. The next month, Roth got a cablegram from London; his friend and valued co-worker Le Roy had died for his country. Those simple words, Roth later wrote in the November 1914 issue of the company newsletter, Tick Talk, unconsciously characterized the manunaffected, direct, devoted to his cause., [Images from a 1922 issue of the Westclox company newsletter, the very cleverly titled Tick Talk]. The aim of the Western Clock MFG Co. in entering the manufacture of alarms was to apply to nickel clocks, features which were previously found only in high-priced timepieces, and prohibited in low-priced lever clocks by the high cost of production involved. Thanks, Paula. Nowadays, Super-LumiNova, which is entirely non-radioactive and non-toxic, is the most used lume in watchmaking. I like to find the ones before that and study their history. Clocks produced in the early 1900's are particularly concerning in this regard. In all my research I can not confirm that The Style 1 models every had 1) and 2) above. the clock face is 16, ca 1900. the clock belonged to pheobe appersons family at their ranch in sunol california. Sometimes extensive casework can be more time consuming than getting the movement running. The internet is fantastic, you can find out anything about just any kind of clock, exchange pictures easily, correspond with people and work together on research. Style 1a has four holes in the back to access the movement cap screws; Style 1 has the legs and pendant riveted to the case, on style 1a they screw on. The clock can still give considerable amounts of radiation about 2-3 inches from the Crystal measured with a Geiger counter. Radium was discovered by Marie and Pierre Curie in 1898[1] and was soon combined with paint to make luminescent paint, which was applied to clocks, airplane instruments, and the like, to be able to read them in the dark.[2]. CAN SOMEONE TELL ME HOW TO RELEASE THE CLICK ON A WESTCLOX MANS WRISTWATCH MODEL A-201? I have a quite a few pieces of both of them I have even one big Ben pocket watch which is still working after , I do not know how many years. Eventually, scientists and medical professionals realized that these workers' illnesses . theres the problem, there were two gears that were in backwards. With a half-life of only 3.8 days, radon "seeds" (Rn gas contained in thin walled gold tubing, crimped and cut into units up to 1cm in length) could be left permanently implanted in the body. Not to mention theres the Big Bens so that doubles it right there. I have been purchasing these clocks as and when I got an opportunity. How do you set a manual alarm clock? - AnswersAll Theres a seller on eBay now whos doing some really outstanding restorations of Big Bens. I Have a small brass alarm clock,which is 1-3/4 Hieght Length & Width. My father (Richard Ristau Sr.) worked here for 48.. Do you have an archival dept who could give us an idea of our Western Clock which we recently acquired? Radium paint can be ingested by inhaling flaking paint particles. [Left: The first national Big Ben advertisement appears in the Saturday Evening Post in 1910: Big Ben is a thin, beautiful and punctual sleepmeter with a silent motor that will not annoy you on your lie-awake nights and a deep musical voice that will call you on your sleepiest mornings. Right and Below: A style 1A Big Ben from our museum collection, circa 1920s.]. [5] Indeed, the body treats radium as it does calcium, storing it in bone where it may cause bone degeneration and cancer.[5]. bailey oceans tide clock dated 1880, with a Fusee movement. This dustproofing is accomplished by fittings around the set knobs and winding keys and on the regulator. Thanks. when did westclox stop using radium - Trustedacquisitions.com Big Ben style 1a continued in production until its discontinuation in 1935. I recently added the Big Ben Style 1 and Baby Ben Style 1 Dial and Back types. I bought a 1970s Westclox pocket watch with a Hotwheels face that says authorized seller on it. Ive been trying to compare lots of different clocks to find out what original parts go together. Not everyone involved with the manufacturing of Westclox products was employed directly by Westclox, however. Radium - a key element in early cancer treatment - RSC Education 1980 By the early 1950s, Westclox employed thousands of LaSalle-Peru residents. The style 1a can be distinguished from style 1 in several ways: The movement was changed for style 1a so that the mounting nuts were on the back. [6] Decaying radium also produces the gas radon, recognized as the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States[6] and the United Kingdom. Many thanks. During the early 1900's, the effects of radiation exposure were not well understood, and radium was frequently . I will be watching for more articles from Bill Stoddard I am pleased that I came across your article. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. They made the most of the perk, wearing their good dresses to the plant so theyd shine in the dance halls at night, and even painting radium onto their teeth for a smile that would knock their suitors dead., When I went home and washed my hands in a dark bathroom, they would appear luminous and ghostly,, My clothes, hanging in a dark closet, gave off a phosphorescent glare. US radium dial painting factory. Was westclox ever manufactured in germany and if so when? These styles constitute the Stahlberg knows that no other noteworthy clock company has ever succeeded west of the Hudson, let alone smalltown Illinois, but he dives into the challenge, establishing his first factory. Even today, with the considerable help of a thing called Interstate 80, its still about a two-hour journey from LaSalle Street to LaSalle County. Thank to several professionals who Ive met on Ebay, I have become quite skilled with my restorations plus making dials and alarm function indicators. Its got a round brass dial and a painting in the door, really neat. Ristau said he remembered when the Westclox factory was the heart of the city, and recalled enjoying his time with Westclox. Above all else, though, the rise and fall of Westcloxand the deeper history of these Big Ben clocks, in particularis simply far too intriguing to dismiss just because of a long-distance commute. Patton, had joined Charles Stahlbergs original start-up back in 1886 at the age of just 13, and he was still on board in 1936, 50 years later. The Ghost Girls might have been the envy of the other girls in town, but no one yet realized just how much danger they were being subjected to. Charles Stahlberg had an idea for making a better, but less expensive alarm clock. Westcloxs Manual for Employees read, We expect you to work hard, and the pay is accordingly large . Big Ben: butler nickel case, gold leaf numeral dial 1930 1932. Their factory in LaSalle, Illinois closed down in about 1980 when they moved all their production down south, but the building is still there. In 1913, with help from the US government, Dr. Douglas formed the National Radium Institute, to mine radium from uranium ores recently discovered in Colorado. Am I missing something here? I love the Hamiltons in particular, probably some of the best watches made in America. The new features, according to a synopsis from the Cooper Hewitt Design Museum, included: shifting from serif to sans-serif typefaces and from slightly ornate to more streamlined minute and second hands, all of which eased legibility; setting the clock face closer to the glass, reducing shadows; and creating a slightly smaller form overall.. On April 20, 1902, Marie and Pierre Curie successfully isolate radioactive radium salts from the mineral pitchblende in their laboratory in Paris. Westclox - An Identification and Price Guide, and I added even more in 2012. I just had it repaired & it works & looks great. Westclox set up a factory in England in the 1940s and also in Scotland. Recently Ive seen people taking an old Baby Ben thats worth a few bucks or so and gluing rhinestones around the bezel on the clock. Westclox History Database Main Menu Importantly, the health risks tied to these old clocks is generally believed to be quite minimal, so long as one avoids long-term exposure or directly ingesting the paint as the Ghost Girls had. A clock without hands might seem indifferent to the passage of time, but these old Big Ben and Baby Ben dials have some serious stories to tell. Westcloxs Manual for Employees read, We expect you to work hard, and the pay is accordingly large . What replaced radium in watches? - TimesMojo It can be found with some other clocks in a case in the second floor hallway. I have a Westclox Magnet Key Part number 031723 I think was used to open a door as it has an arrow on 1 end. From 1917 to 1926, the United States Radium Corporation used radium to produce wristwatches and clocks. Leg model with ring on top, dustproof case. Despite Westcloxs deep German roots, the Illinois factory was a huge contributor to the U.S. military again during World War II, supplying upwards of a billion small parts for use in various defense products. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance that watches with radium dials should not be taken apart[5] without proper training, technique, and facilities. Among the rarities on display is a Westclox-made National Emergency Alarm Repeater. The movement was mounted to the inner case back. The end of the Great War began what was, in many respects, a halcyon time for Westclox, now arguably the best-known timekeeping brand in the world. it has a picture of a huck finn type boy,carying 2 bottles of coke& a fishing pole,with his dog. Westclox Big Ben Luminous Hands | NAWCC Forums So yes. The use of Radium changed over several years but it was not until late 1960ies when the last were made. Yet Mrs. Keane was a survivor who later conquered colon and breast cancer. I took it all apart and asked my dad to help me put it back together, but he cut his finger on the spring. That way I got myself another Baby Ben, bringing my collection to three by age 12. When did Bulova stop using radium? The only marking I can find are the letters ST in old english style inside of a diamond thats inside of a circle, on the clock works. When did they stop using radium for watches? When I went home and washed my hands in a dark bathroom, they would appear luminous and ghostly, an original Ghost Girl named Catherine Donohue (nee Wolfe) later testified. Early in the 20th century there was a medical practice that revolved around a new treatment involving the radioactive material called radium. when did westclox stop using radium - Flycloud.vn Technically speaking, though, Westclox did still produce clocks during the gap years that followed. What is Radium Used For? - WorldAtlas Westclox Model 66 Movement Series Welcome to the Westclox Clock and Watch History Database. I am sure I can give Mr. Shields further information about his clock. its a Gold coloring and the bottom is well worn like it was slid into something regularily. The incidents occurred at three different factories in United States: one in Orange, New Jersey, beginning around 1917; one in Ottawa, Illinois, beginning in the early 1920s; and a third facility in Waterbury, Connecticut, also in the 1920s. In its place, he ironically dubbed the little bedside clock Big Ben (apparently not copyrighted by the British Parliament), and introduced it to the public in early ads as a gendered he instead of an it., Big Ben is a handsome, well built, refined and bright looking fellow with a clean-cut open face and a deep cheerful voice, one ad read. The use of radium was discontinued since the 1960s. They made the most of the perk, wearing their good dresses to the plant so theyd shine in the dance halls at night, and even painting radium onto their teeth for a smile that would knock their suitors dead.. The thing I remember most is working with the people, Ristau said. In some respects, the early rise of the Western Clock MFG Co. is even more impressive considering the company didnt have all the resources of an established, major metropolis to draw from. The movement was then used with minor changes in Loud Alarm models until 1956. The other thing is reproductions. Ref comment #10 from Frank Baker. At one time they employed about 3500 people, making about 35, 000 clocks and watches per day. It was discovered by Marie and Pierre Curie in 1898. Before OSHA was set up, 14,000 people died on the job every year; today, it is just over 4,500. Stahlbergs company goes bankrupt not once, but twice, within its first several years. The Evolution Behind Rolex Luminous Material | Bob's Watches I would like to find out about this clock. Your email address will not be published. National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors Inc (A 501c3 non-profit corporation). Richard Tjarks introduced 400-day clocks are also known as anniversary clocks, they would run 400 days on one winding. My Grandmother had a Westclox in her house. Health effects of Radium radiation exposure | Mass.gov Can you help Radium: a medical treatment in the early 20th - College of Physicians A lot of the American Shelf clocks from the 1820s up to 1900 have reverse paintings in the door, on the backside of the glass. This will broaden my view in the clock. I have a collection of clocks, and amongst my collection are Westminster chime wall clocks, I have two Keinzle and two Junghans. England. When I walked along the street, Iwas aglow from the radium powder., The radium girls case was one of the first in which an employer was made responsible for the health of the companys employees. The Forgotten Story Of The Radium Girls, Whose Deaths Saved Thousands Of Workers Lives, by Kate Moore, A Rude Awakening: The History of Alarm Clocks , Western Clock MFG Co. (Westclox), est. Same as the nickel version but in a gold-plated case. The front is in Roman Numerals with a dome shaped raised glass. If you do not expect to work hard and carefully, you are in the wrong place., Big Ben is a handsome, well built, refined and bright looking fellow with a clean-cut open face and a deep cheerful voice,, A well-dressed, steady and punctual chap, up to the minute and always on the job., Big Ben always comes to you straight from home, LaSalle, Illinois,, But he only comes upon receipt of signed price agreement. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. A 'radium cow' or sample of radium would continually yield a supply of the nuclide. Can someone get back to me as to what it is and possibe age of it. The alarm mechanism was also improved as part of Kerns new patents, with an intermittent ringing that kind of acted as an archaic form of snooze alarm. Western Clock MFG Co. (Westclox), est. 1888 - Made-in-Chicago Museum Westclox also made about 5000 gold-plated reproductions. When Did Glow In The Dark Watches Stop Using Radium? But for years the majority were wind ups, they were so popular. In 1898, the Curies discovered the existence of. In clocks, as in all other lines of goods, there are two classes of consumersthe millions and the millionaires. Radium dials usually lose their ability to glow in the dark in a period ranging anywhere from a few years to several decades, but all will cease to glow at some point. The women also left a legacy to science that has been termed invaluable., shifting from serif to sans-serif typefaces and from slightly ornate to more streamlined minute and second hands, all of which eased legibility; setting the clock face closer to the glass, reducing shadows; and creating a slightly smaller form overall., three women fainted, several clerks were trampled, and four showcase windows were shattered before police untangled a jam of 2,500 women and a few stout-hearted men who converged on the store., For That Healthy Glow, Drink Radiation . So, rather than having the classic oversized bell or double-bell on top of the unit (to smash with your palm at 6am), the ringing mechanism was housed inside the back of the case, and a big winding key occupied the summit. Stoddard: Pay attention to quality. How do you set the time on a old fashioned alarm clock? Thank you They are just gorgeous watches and very well made. You do not want to open them up, lest you breath radioactive dust from old paint or spread it around. Stoddard: I was pretty much on my own until college. One employee, R.D. This practice resulted in the ingestion of radium, which caused serious jaw-bone degeneration and malignancy and other dental diseases. Contact the Webmaster for perceived copyright infringement (DMCA Registration Number 1010287). When was Westclox Big Ben made? - WhoIsWh