You can set your watch by Wiscasset’s town clock — most of the time.

The clock has faithfully tolled the hour above Maine’s Prettiest Village since 1907, although on some occasions not as accurately as some would like. Still, since the demise of the old schooners, Hesper and Luther Little, the clock tower has become synonymous with Wiscasset. You’ll notice a picture of it on the newspaper’s masthead.

The clock and tower are owned and maintained by the town, but the building below is privately owned and currently for sale.

The arrangement, a little unusual by today’s standards, has been that way for over a hundred years. The building that many people still refer to as the old American Legion Hall is located on Fort Hill Street, a short walk from the post office. It was erected (minus the clock) in 1818 originally as a house of worship, Episcopal first, later Methodist.

In 1944, the building became home to the Bradford-Sortwell-Wright Post 54 of the American Legion. The Legion paid $1,000 for the property, a bargain by today’s standards!

Over the years, the clock has had a number of different caretakers, among them the late Ellsworth McPhee, a decorated World War II veteran who once resided in the home across the street from the building. McPhee cared for the clock for more than 30 years.

The current caretaker is Joe Cahoon, a former Wiscasset resident who now lives in South Portland. Cahoon maintains the building and property that is owned by Maureen Barrett of Henderson, Nevada. Barrett purchased it from the Legion years ago. After extensive remodeling, she opened an art gallery and café in the building. The business has since closed. The property is currently listed for sale at $735,000.  

Cahoon told the newspaper that people in the neighborhood keep an eye on the clock for him. He can be contacted through the town office if there’s any problem with it keeping proper time.

Recently, the clock had been running a little fast, but on Tuesday morning it was on time again right to the minute. He said the clock motor requires regular maintenance that includes lubricating the gears with oil and adjusting the hands if need be. The clock is self-winding. A weight that drives its gears slowly drops until it reaches a point near the floor where it trips an electric motor which then automatically turns-on, returning the weight to the top.

Cahoon said the clock itself is in excellent running condition and looks as good today as it did following a restoration 22 years ago by the Balzer Family Clock Works of Freeport. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for the wooden tower and belfry. Both are in need of some general maintenance, sanding, priming, caulking and painting.

The four clock faces, all painted black, could use some sprucing up as well. The one facing Fort Hill Street needs a minor repair; a piece of its molding broke off last winter and fell to the street below. This same clock face bears the name W.H. Clark, the man who gave the clock to the town. Like the numerals on the dial, his name is in gold leaf.

The tower and belfry underwent extensive repairs around the same time the clock was restored. It’s been repainted at least once since.

A gift to the town

In 1906, Captain William Henry Clark, a veteran of the Civil War, bought the clock with the sole intent of giving it to the town. Documentation on file at the Wiscasset Public Library reveals he purchased it from the E. Howard Clock Co. of Boston for the sum of $650. In its day, E. Howard & Co. was among the country’s leading tower clock manufacturers.

Capt. Clark offered the clock to the town on the condition that it be placed in a location where he could see it from his home on the waterfront. As stated in the original agreement, it was also to be “cared for, kept in good running order and insured by the town of Wiscasset.” The clock was accepted on those terms by the townspeople at the annual town meeting on March 11, 1907.

Fast forwarding to the spring of 1993, the clock underwent an $18,000 restoration paid for by the town. It was disassembled and removed from the tower by the Balzer Family Clock Works. The restoration was necessary after one of the clock’s main gears gave out and it suddenly stopped. The work included sandblasting the clock’s brass cogs and steel frame. The frame was then repainted in its original green and then trimmed in gold.

Wiscasset’s clock is the same model as the one in Portland City Hall. Its pendulum oscillates (ticks) in exactly 1½ seconds. It tolls the number of hours on the hour, 12 tolls at both noon and midnight. A hammer attached to the clock’s workings strikes an iron bell housed above it in the belfry.

Cahoon said the clock gets a yearly checkup from the Balzer Family Clock Works and keeps pretty accurate time. He hopes the newspaper story will prompt the board of selectmen to have a closer look at the clock tower and agree that some work is needed. He’s kept the molding that fell off the clockface.

“The longer they wait, the more expensive it’s going to be,” he said.