Town clock ticks into 127th year
BY MARY LANCASTER INDEPENDENT WRITER
For 35 years, Reggie Reed climbed 55 steps once a week to wind or reset the town clock in the tower of the Unitarian Church. For the last three years, Manny Sylvia of the Nantucket Historical Association's grounds and maintenance department, has had a far shorter ascent to wind the clock now on display in the central tower of the Whaling Museum. Today marks the 127th anniversary of one of the original clock faces installed at the church in 1881.

Manny Sylvia cranks the weights that keep one of the original town clock faces ticking in its home at the center of the Whaling Museum. Top right is Reggie Reed, who was keeper of the clock for 35 years when it was hand wound in the Unitarian Church tower. The clock was electrified in 1957.

The clock was made by the E. Howard Watch and Clock Company of Boston and given to the town by William Hadwen Starbuck. The mechanism operated the wooden dials of its four faces from May 28, 1881 until the dials were electrified in 1957. After a period in storage, the old clock was restored by Alain Androuais of Americlock, Inc., who activated the new mechanism that runs the present clock. The remaining original face was mounted in the museum's stairwell in May 2005. Its pendulum is visible from the lobby and visitors can see the works as they go up the steps.

Reed said when he first began as keeper of the clock he had to stop several times during the winding process, but eventually became proficient at it and could reach the clock and complete his work in about 25 minutes. Sylvia, who said, "I don't have to climb all those steps," explained that he works on a platform behind the clock where he inserts a handle and cranks its nine, 45-pound weights. It takes about five days before the weights drop and must be rewound.

"I'm going to estimate about 60 to 70 revolutions to get [them] up," said Sylvia. "It gets tiring, but you're lifting the weights with a pulley system so it's not that difficult. When you start getting up to about 30 to 40 revolutions you start getting winded. It takes about 10 minutes to complete the cranking. I usually go half way up and then stop if there are museum visitors - but that's not to impart knowledge to them, it gives me a little time to rest. I do like doing it. I'm glad to see it's back up, it runs and it keeps time. There's so much stuff that

gets thrown away." I