July 19, 1987
By Susan J. Dehler
Vigo County Historical Society
Clocks, watches didn’t regulate pioneer life
In an age of mass media, microwave ovens, and airline travel, it is hard to imagine a world with no clocks. Without a precise awareness of time, modern man is vulnerable. We might miss our favorite television program, burn the roast, or miss our flight to Bermuda.
Twentieth-century America is a time-conscious society, where business schools offer seminars in time management and our daily activities are measured by the house. But life has not always been so.
Historian Daniel Boorstin notes that in colonial America units of time were vague. Travelers did not depart on precise schedules. Only the wealthy carried watches, so a clock in the town square was a public utility. In the days of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, a guest was judged late, “simply by whether or not he arrived after he was expected.”
Clocks and watches were not widespread in the United States until after the 1850s. What changed the tone of American life and the availability of timepieces to the average individual was a revolution in industry. Industrialization not only made the mass production of pocket watches possible, but the new ideologies and values which came out of the factory environment dramatically affected society concept of time.
The “irregular and undisciplined work patterns” of first-generation factory workers frustrated manufacturers. Time had not been harnessed. In this pre-1840 period, industry was new and finding its place in American society.
But by the late-19th century industry was changing. Tasks were becoming specialized as parts became of uniform size and shape and production could be broken down into separate units. As technology advanced, concepts of efficiency developed. The idea that time could be calculated by the measurement of every human action entered the workforce in full stream. By the turn of the century, assembly-line production and the efficiency expert created a time conscious environment. Although clocks and watches continued to be of ornamental value, there was a greater utilitarian need for timepieces in every household because of the demand industrialization posed.
The late-19th century pot metal watch holder and jewelry case on display in the museum placed the pocket watch in the household as a utilitarian piece which was worn daily. However, the opulence of the holder almost suggests an “enthronement” of time.
The Victorian piece depicts a plump child dressed in Indian garb and holding a gong. The watch is displayed in a curved metal frame and is easily removed for daily wear. The front section contains a “stud box” for collar studs and such.
The holder was donated by Mrs. David Watson and it belonged to her father-in-law. The watch is dated June 20, 1905, and came from Charles A. Williams, a Terre Haute jeweler and music dealer near the turn of the century.
The Historical Museum of the Wabash Valley, 1411 S. Sixth St., is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.