Dreger Clock
Encyclopedia
Clock
A clock is an instrument used to indicate, keep, and co-ordinate time. The word clock is derived ultimately from the Celtic words clagan and clocca meaning "bell". A silent instrument missing such a mechanism has traditionally been known as a timepiece...
with 19 different dials and displays which tell the local (California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
) time, the time in 12 international cities (New York, Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Petrograd (Leningrad), Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
, Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
), the phase of the moon
Lunar phase
A lunar phase or phase of the moon is the appearance of the illuminated portion of the Moon as seen by an observer, usually on Earth. The lunar phases change cyclically as the Moon orbits the Earth, according to the changing relative positions of the Earth, Moon, and Sun...
, the date and day of the week. It was built between the years of 1928 and 1933 by Andrew Dreger, Sr., a German immigrant to the United States, who was a blacksmith
Blacksmith
A blacksmith is a person who creates objects from wrought iron or steel by forging the metal; that is, by using tools to hammer, bend, and cut...
and watchmaker
Watchmaker
A watchmaker is an artisan who makes and repairs watches. Since virtually all watches are now factory made, most modern watchmakers solely repair watches. However, originally they were master craftsmen who built watches, including all their parts, by hand...
. The clock stood in front of his home in Long Beach, California
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
for almost 20 years, until his death. It was then moved to Knott's Berry Farm
Knott's Berry Farm
Knott's Berry Farm is a theme park in Buena Park, California, now owned by Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, and a line of jams, jellies, preserves, and other specialty food, now part of The J. M. Smucker Company based in Placentia, California....
in Buena Park, California
Buena Park, California
Buena Park is a city in northwestern Orange County, California. As of Census 2010 the population was 80,530. The city is adjacent to the city of Anaheim and is 12 miles northwest of downtown Santa Ana. The Current OMB metropolitan designation for Buena Park and the Orange County Area is "Santa...
, where it was enjoyed by visitors for over 50 years. The clock underwent restoration during the years 2008 and 2009 and when restoration was complete it was placed in the Buena Park Historical District in front of the Whitaker-Jaynes house as a historical reminder of the city's early years. The clock was installed on September 25, 2009.
Clock's maker and early history
The Dreger Clock was built by Andrew Dreger Sr., whose family were pioneers to the early settlements of AnaheimAnaheim, California
Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was about 365,463, making it the most populated city in Orange County, the 10th most-populated city in California, and ranked 54th in the United States...
, Long Beach
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
and Buena Park
Buena Park, California
Buena Park is a city in northwestern Orange County, California. As of Census 2010 the population was 80,530. The city is adjacent to the city of Anaheim and is 12 miles northwest of downtown Santa Ana. The Current OMB metropolitan designation for Buena Park and the Orange County Area is "Santa...
. Andrew developed many mechanical skills during his life. He repaired bicycles and mechanical items, he worked with metal as a blacksmith and other jobs requiring mechanical and hand crafting skills. Toward the latter years of his life he took up watch and clock repair. Soon he became fascinated with the idea of building a large electrically powered clock that could tell the time in major cities around the world.
He first built a pendulum powered indoor clock with multiple clock faces. Immediately after completing it he started on the much larger, town clock version that would be electrically powered. It took him 5 years to build his masterpiece. When finished he placed it outside his home on Anaheim Street in Long Beach, CA and for almost 20 years he kept it in working order.
Unusual internal movement
The Dreger Clock has a number of unusual characteristics in regard to its internal movements. First of all, the clock is powered and regulated by a simple 110 V electrical motor. There is no pendulum in the clock, as there is in other large street clocks such as the Jessop's ClockJessop's Clock
Jessop's Clock is a large outdoor pendulum clock located in San Diego, California, USA. It was commissioned in 1905 by one of the city's noted jewelers, Joseph Jessop.The clock has been a San Diego landmark for more than 100 years...
. The movement of the clock is simple yet effective. Mechanical power is distributed to each clock face from the central location of the motor, and geared down and transferred to the various displays on the clock's three display faces. The international face of the clock uses what amounts to a bicycle chain drive to transfer mechanical power to each of the smaller international city clocks.
Another unusual feature of this clock is the fact that originally, Andrew Dreger Sr. set it to display the solar time
Solar time
Solar time is a reckoning of the passage of time based on the Sun's position in the sky. The fundamental unit of solar time is the day. Two types of solar time are apparent solar time and mean solar time .-Introduction:...
of the international cities rather than the, by then accepted, time zone times. This means the minute hands of the international cities were not always pointing to the same minute. In 1933 when the Dreger Clock was completed, the time zone standard was well established, however solar time was the setting used, as seen in early photos of the clock in some of the historical articles about the clock. When the clock was moved to Knott's Berry Farm in 1952-53, the clock faces were adjusted to the time zone standard, where all minute hands are in agreement, and only the hour hands are different.