Jerry Petraglia
On May 24th, 2025, my wife Elaine and I celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary! When we first got married, we started our antique clock collection. You might ask how did we start collecting clocks? Well, the simple answer is that a coworker and his wife had a bunch of them in their Queens, NY, apartment and we were both fascinated by them!
So for our wedding present back on May 24th, 1975, my brother-in-law presented us with our first clock, the “Vienna Regulator Clock.” This beauty from the late 1800s chimes every hour and half hour ,and in the 50 years we have had it, it has NEVER given us a problem! Remarkable!
Over the years, we have added to our collection with various types, styles, etc. Our most problematic clock has been our Gustav Becker Grand Sonnerie. This German clock from the early 1900s has been to the shop a few times – most recently to have the door spring fixed. We also have had to get a heavier middle weight for it as the middle weight drives the ticking mechanism and the ticker had stopped. We love this clock because it chimes every 15 minutes followed by a different sounding chime indicating the hour. For example, if it’s 2:15pm, you would get 1 chime for the 15 minute mark and 2 chimes (of a different sound) for the 2 o’clock hour. Cool huh?
When we have company, people always ask us how can you concentrate, watch TV, etc. with all the clocks going, chiming all the time, etc. The simple answer is we don’t really hear them! They are so ingrained into our household as background noise that when they are NOT ticking, they are conspicuous by their absence. Strange huh?
One of the main issues over the years has been to find a good clock repair person or “horologist.” In my career, we have moved around a bit and finding one has always been a challenge. With our 50th wedding anniversary, we definitely need to get another one to commemorate. So I am on the hunt for one.
Wish me luck!