Elnathan Taber tall case clock working in Roxbury, Massachusetts. 216085.
This is a classic New England tall clock. This mahogany case exhibits very good proportions and measures approximately 7 feet 9.5 inches tall to the top of the center finial. This clock is about 20 inches wide and 10 inches deep, measured at the upper hood or bonnet molding. The color of the mahogany is excellent.
This fine mahogany case stands on four applied ogee bracket feet. The base panel features a figured selection of mahogany wood that is laid out in a vertical orientation. The waist section of this case is long and narrow. It centers a rectangular-shaped waist door that is fitted with applied molding. The sides or front corners of the waist are fitted with brass stop-fluted quarter columns. These terminate in brass quarter capitals. The bonnet features a traditional New England-style fretwork pattern supported by fluted and capped plinths. These are fitted with brass ball and spike finials. The bonnet columns are also brass stop-fluted and terminate in brass capitals. The bonnet door is an arched form and opens to access the colorfully painted iron dial.
This dial is colorfully painted and is of English origin. The Osbourne Manufactory painted it in Birmingham, England. The four spandrel areas and the arch of this dial are decorated with colorful floral designs. The hours, minutes, seconds, and calendar days are all displayed within the time ring. This dial is signed by the Maker, "E. Taber," in large block lettering.
This fine movement is constructed in brass and is of good quality. Four-turned pillars support the two brass plates. Hardened steel shafts support the polished steel pinions and brass gearing. The winding drums are grooved. The escapement is designed in a recoil format. The movement is weight driven and designed to run for eight days on a full wind. It is a two-train or a time-and-strike design having a rack and snail striking system. As a result, it will strike each hour on the hour. This is done on a cast iron bell mounted above the movement.
This beautiful clock was made circa 1795.
It is inventory number 216085.
Elnathan Taber was born in Dartmouth, Massachusetts, on February 14, 1768, and may have died there on February 27, 1854, at the age of 86. His family roots trace back to the early colonial period in New England, a time when craftsmanship and trade were integral to the growing American identity. His grave was moved from Dartmouth to Forest Hills Cemetery in Jamaica Plain on October 29, 1870, reflecting the lasting reverence for his legacy. His parents, Thomas and Elizabeth (Swift) Taber, were part of a community that valued skilled trades and the transmission of knowledge through apprenticeship. Elnathan was the older brother of Stephen Taber, whose fortune later contributed to the founding of Taber Academy in Marion, MA, further tying the family to regional educational and social advancement.
Both brothers ventured to Roxbury, a hub for clockmaking in the late eighteenth century, where they were trained by the renowned Willard family. Elnathan began his apprenticeship at just 16, immersing himself in an era when American clockmaking was coming into its own, moving from reliance on imported English clocks to the production of distinctively American timepieces. After completing his apprenticeship, Elnathan remained in Roxbury, establishing his own shop on Union Street—later renamed Taber Street in his honor in April 1868, a testament to his influence on the community. He was the first resident of that street, which soon became a center of horological innovation. William Cummens, another accomplished clockmaker, later joined him on the block, setting up shop at the corner of Winslow. This short street, nestled between Warren Street and Winslow Street, became symbolic of the burgeoning American clockmaking tradition.
Elnathan maintained a close working relationship with his mentor, Simon Willard, a leading figure in American horology, and became one of his most celebrated apprentices. Simon authorized Elnathan to manufacture his patented timepieces during the crucial patent period, thereby making Elnathan a key figure in the spread of American-made clocks. In addition to crafting clocks, Elnathan was also a prolific repairman, and his name can be found engraved on numerous Boston-area clocks as a record of his service. His marriage to Catherine Partridge in January 1797 further connected him to the clockmaking community, as Catherine and her sisters married into several prominent clockmaking families—Elizabeth to Abel Hutchins, Mary (Polly) to Aaron Willard, and a third sister to Samuel Curtis—creating a network of artisans and innovators. Over the years, many tall case clocks, wall timepieces, including banjo and coffin clocks, and several Massachusetts-style shelf clocks crafted by Elnathan Taber have been owned and sold, each representing a piece of early American history and craftsmanship.
