Tall Clock
Roxbury or Boston, Massachusetts, 1805-1815
Mahogany with white pine
Catalog no. 171

This clock case and movement were made in the Boston area, but the dial is inscribed “William McCabe / RICHMOND.” Although McCabe made clocks, he also sold imported English, French, and northern timepieces. That a Virginia artisan painted his own name on a movement imported from New England was neither unusual nor intended to deceive customers; rather, it was an advertisement. McCabe placed his name where the owner of the clock could see it frequently. This was logical because repairs and annual cleaning and oiling were important parts of every clockmaker's business.

Although a number of clockmakers were working in the coastal and backcountry South during this period, the public's growing demand for timepieces led to the importation of large numbers of inexpensive clocks beginning in the 1790s.