Ephraim Willard of Boston, Massachusetts. A fine example of modest height, measuring 7 feet 4.5 inches to the top of the center finial. EEE-18.
Ephraim Willard of Boston, Massachusetts, made this inlaid mahogany case tall clock. It is an unusual example measuring under 7 feet 5 inches. Very few Boston / Roxbury clocks are made to this diminutive scale.
This fine inlaid mahogany case features an excellent selection of mahogany wood and veneers. The design includes line inlays forming box-shaped frames and quarter-fan inlays in each interior corner. The case stands on four ogee bracket feet applied to the bottom of the double-stepped molding. The base panel shows a fine selection of mahogany with a long, sweeping grain pattern. This panel is oriented horizontally and decorated with inlay. A thin line of light wood forms a frame. The quarter fans in each of the four corners of the line framing consist of six petals. This decorative inlay pattern repeats on the rectangular-shaped waist door. The door's perimeter is trimmed with applied molding. The sides of the case have inset fluted quarter columns ending in brass quarter capitals. The hood columns are stop-fluted with brass rods. A traditional pierced and open fretwork design and three brass finials are mounted atop the molded arch. Each brass eagle finial sits on a fluted plinth that also supports the fretwork. The bonnet door is arched and glazed. Its frame is decorated with a light line inlay. Two smoothly turned brass stop-fluted bonnet columns stand on either side of the bonnet door. They are free-standing, mounted in brass capitals, and create the illusion of supporting the upper bonnet molding.
The iron dial is colorfully painted. Floral patterns decorate each of the four spandrel areas and the lunette of the dial. The maker's signature appears just below the calendar aperture and reads "E. Willard." The dial displays time in the traditional way, with large Roman numerals for the hours. Arabic numerals mark the five-minute intervals. A subsidiary seconds dial is below the Roman hour numeral XII, and the calendar date is shown on a separate dial below the center arbor.
The eight-day time-and-strike movement is brass and of fine quality. It strikes on the hour using a cast-iron bell mounted above the movement.
This clock was made circa 1795. It is manageable, standing approximately 88.5 inches, or 7 feet 4.5 inches tall to the top of the center finial.
Inventory number EEE-18.
Ephraim Willard was born in Grafton, Massachusetts, on March 18, 1755, during a period of significant change in colonial America. His parents, Benjamin Willard and Sarah (Brooks) Willard, had 12 children; four of them became clockmakers, reflecting the era’s growing demand for skilled artisans in the colonies. Little is known about Ephraim’s early life in Grafton, but he likely learned clockmaking from his older brothers, Benjamin (1743–1803) and Simon (1753–1848), at a time when the craft was central to local economies and technological advancement. Simon Willard would become America’s most prominent clockmaker, shaping the emerging identity of American craftsmanship. Ephraim also practiced clockmaking, probably working closely with Simon and their younger brother, Aaron (1757–1844), as the family contributed to New England’s reputation for fine timepieces.
Ephraim’s life intersected with major events in early American history. According to the History of the town of Sutton, Massachusetts, from 1704 to 1876, including Grafton until 1735; Millbury until 1813; and parts of Northbridge, Upton, and Auburn, Simon was hired by Joseph Rockwell to build a machine for cutting and shaping the teeth of a carding machine, an example of how New England artisans adapted to the early stirrings of the Industrial Revolution. Records also show that Ephraim marched with his brothers in response to the Lexington Alarm on April 19, 1775, serving during the opening days of the American Revolution. This direct involvement in the war highlights the Willard family’s commitment to the colonial cause.
In 1777, Ephraim moved to Medford, Massachusetts, where he was listed as a clock and watchmaker. By 1784, a lawsuit identified him as a trader living in Boston, reflecting the mobility and economic challenges many artisans faced following the Revolution. From 1795 to 1801, Roxbury tax records list him as a resident of Roxbury. In 1801, he bought land and a house on Sheaf’s Lane in Boston; the deed described him as a "Merchant." Over the next two years, he faced financial difficulties and was described as a clockmaker. In 1804, Boston tax records list him as a clockmaker on Elliot Street. In 1805, Ephraim moved to New York City, where he was occasionally recorded as a watchmaker until 1832. Like his brother Benjamin, Ephraim moved frequently, a testament to the shifting landscape of post-Revolutionary America and the challenges of maintaining a trade. He produced far fewer clocks than his three brothers, and only a small number of tall clocks bearing his signature are known to exist. Notably, the cases for his clocks range from simple and understated to examples considered among the finest made by Boston-area cabinetmakers, reflecting both the evolving tastes of the period and the influence of a changing nation.
