Clock, Shelf

The E. Howard Clock Company of Boston, Massachusetts, manufactured this large shelf clock for the United States Supreme Court in 1871. The marshal of the Supreme Court ordered the clock from the Washington, D.C., retailer M. W. Galt & Bro. on December 30, 1871, and paid $104 for it the following May. E. Howard's records indicate that Galt & Bro. had previously placed an order for the same clock—a No. 30 marble dial clock with a white-wood painted frame—on November 8.

Historic 19th- and 20th-century images show the clock installed on a marble ledge in front of the east gallery of the Supreme Court Chamber (now known as the Old Senate Chamber), located on the second floor of the original north wing of the Capitol Building. It remained there until 1974, when it was de-installed in preparation for the restoration of the room as the Old Senate Chamber.

E. Howard produced several large marble dial clocks during this period. They advertised the marble dials as having "an excellent reputation" for "the ease with which they are kept clean, requiring no glass, and their fine appearance and durability." This model—No. 30—features a case made of wood painted white with decorative scrollwork on the sides. The round clockface is made of Italian marble painted with black Roman numerals. "E. Howard and Co. / Boston" is painted in red in the lower center of the dial. The original clock hands have been removed from the clockface and are stored separately for safekeeping.