Stephen Taber. New Bedford, Massachusetts. A inlaid mahogany tall clock with lunar dial. BBB-6.
This fine clock is well proportioned, with long, slender lines. The inlaid case is made of mahogany with white pine secondary woods. The case stands on four French feet, shaped or flared. The base is line-inlaid along the outer edge, framing an excellent selection of figured mahogany. The waist is long and narrow, emphasizing the case's slim proportions. The sides of the waist have brass stop-fluted quarter columns that end in brass quarter capitals. The center of this section features a rectangular waist door constructed in the same manner as the base panel. The banding in this design uses She-oak, a decorative wood commonly used and constructed in Southeastern Massachusetts. The bonnet is in a traditional fretwork style, topped by three brass ball-and-spike finials on inlaid plinths. The fully turned bonnet columns are fluted with brass-stopping. They are set in brass capitals and flank the door. The bonnet door is arched, line-inlaid, and fitted with glass. This door opens to a nicely paint-decorated dial.
This painted dial is signed by the Maker, "S. Taber," above the numeral six on the time track. The spandrel areas are colorfully decorated with floral themes. The dial's arch features a lunar calendar or moon-phase mechanism.
The movement is constructed in brass and is of good quality. It is weight-driven and designed to run for eight days. It strikes each hour on a cast-iron bell mounted above the movement on a stand attached to the backplate.
This clock was made circa 1810. Dimensions: 98 inches tall, 20 inches wide, and 10 inches deep.
Inside the case is a note. It Reads, "Biddeford, June 21st, 1833. Bought this clock of widow Donnell. Samuel Jordan. June 17th, 185?"
Inventory number BBB-6.
Stephen Taber was born on October 23, 1777, in Dartmouth, Massachusetts, and died in New Bedford on September 10, 1862, and is buried in the Acushnet Cemetery. His parents were Thomas Taber (1740-1802) and Elizabeth (Bourne) Taber (1733-1818).
His older brother Elnathan was nine years his senior and had moved North to Roxbury, where he apprenticed as a clockmaker under Simon Willard. Simon considered Elnathan a highly skilled mechanic and his best apprentice. Elnathan remained in Roxbury after his indenture and continued to build clocks for himself and others in the Roxbury Clockmakers' group. Because of Elnathan's success, it is logical to assume that Stephen was also attracted to the clockmaking community in Roxbury. Stephen was trained in Boston by Aaron Willard, Simon's younger brother. By 1798, Stephen is recorded in Roxbury's Tax Records as a Roxbury resident. This suggests that he moved to Roxbury to begin his apprenticeship sometime in 1791-92, at the age of 14. After completing his apprenticeship, he stayed in Roxbury for one year before returning to New Bedford in 1799. Here, he advertised in October of that year that "Stephen Taber, (Late apprentice to Mr. Aaron Willard, Clock-Maker in Boston) Respectfully informs the public That he carries on the Clock Making Business... at his shop in Union Street..." From this time until his death in 1862, it appears he lived and worked primarily in New Bedford. He is also listed as working in Acushnet for a short time. Over the latter part of his life, the extent of his clockmaking trickled off as the years passed. This is assumed because he was more commonly listed as a merchant or trader by 1810. He was known to be an investor in the whaling ship industry. By 1860, his personal estate was valued at over $100,000. At the time of his death in 1862, his wealth had almost doubled.
In 1824, Stephen married Elizabeth Sprague Pitcher in Fairhaven, Massachusetts. They first lived in a house on the Acushnet River in Acushnet. In 1838, they bought a home on County Street in New Bedford, near the courthouse. Elizabeth was also an active investor in the railroads. After Stephen died in 1862, their combined estate was worth more than $200,000. In 1871, Elizabeth became a philanthropist. Wanting to make a difference, she moved back to Marion, her hometown, and began to help revive it. She funded the library, a music hall, the First Congregational Church Chapel, and Tabor Academy. The school opened in 1877, and she continued to support and guide it until her death in 1888.
