Hyde's Clock Maker
In December 2010 we did a post about John Shepley Clock Maker who was born and bred in Hyde. I have since then seen one of his clocks for sale on ebay and recently we have been contacted by Peter Wattenburg from the Netherlands. Peter says he saw our site and was pleased to see we had a story on John Shepley and he is interested in finding out more information. If you have any information to share on this matter I'd be very grateful, as of course would Peter.
Peter wrote the following: I live in the Netherlands and I've collected English Long Case Clocks for more than 30 years now, As a matter of fact I have possibly the earliest known John Shepley clocks. It as a 10inch dial with the early spandrels and signed 'John Shepley Hyde'. The engraving is amateurish, so I believe John did this himself. I think on later clocks he hired a professional engraver or he learned engraving very fast. I would date this clock to around 1695 - 1700 at the time John was working in Hyde. I know of numbered clocks by him, this one dose not have a number so perhaps this was made prior to the time he started numbering?
It looks like John tried his own engraving. Several styles of engraving are used on the dial centre. There is some sort of wriggle pattern inside the chaptering which lookes like the engraving style used by the early Quaker-clockmakers like Ogden and Gilkes family. There are some floral engraving and a nice bird. The half-hour markings on the chaptering are following the early pattern with the meeting arrow points.
The original spandrels are also the earliest provincial cherub head spandrels. The hand is original and has been well executed. The movement bears also the early features such as the finely ringed pillars, heavy plates and quite high in size. The clock did not use a chain but did run on ropes, the rope-spurs are still in place. All in all a nice interesting clockwork from the very early days of clock making in Hyde.
I'd like to thank Peter for sharing this 'gem' of a clock from Hyde past and hope it draws some attention from other who have such clocks and send in information concerning John Shepley or his clocks. It would be nice to be able to feature a few more of his clocks on here.
8 comments:
Some of the Shepley clocks are engraved Jn Shepley, Stockport. Just wondered what the link was. Also, who was Tom Shepley - as in the street?
Hi Werneth Low
John Shepley move to Stockport and then started signing them that way.. Tom Shepley was a relation... it seems the the name Thomas and John were popular forename with the Shepleys.
I have fixed the link now and it should take you to the first post we did.
Thanks Tom. I've now seen the earlier post and I had no idea that the Shepley family was associated with The Lumb. I suppose I could have guessed really because Tom Shepley St is where it is.
Thanks too for the magnificent views from Holy Trinity tower and the history of the Potts clock there. In Darlington where I live there are some splendid examples of Potts' public clocks.
Hi Werneth Low.. Thank you for taking the time to call back and follow the link..
Nancy did the post about Holy Trinity with those great pictures being sent in by email. It was very interesting to see the clock workings. I have a set of pictures coming up soon of the Town Hall clock... just need to write it up now.
Hello Tom,
Following my original posting on Hyde clockmaker John Shepley,it was nice to see further input from Peter Wattenburg on the early clock which he has in the Netherlands.I have recently found probably the first or at least the earliest Shepley clock so far discovered This clock is similar to the first type of domestic clock in Britain,the lantern clock,which is rarely found at the dawn of clock making in the North West of England.
At the moment this very early clock is being cleaned and I will forward further information and images on its return.
Thank you.. I look forward to seeing the pictures... and will gladly show it off on here if that's is OK with you... any information on the detailing would be gratefully excepted as well.. :O)
Hello Tom,
I have now had my early Shepley clock cleaned and I will shortly take some pictures and forward them to you.
I believe Thomas Shepley was the grandson of John Shepley also making clocks c1790s
Mention is made that John and Thomas were popular forenames of the Shepleys.
I wonder if my grandfather Thomas Holdsworth Shepley (Edinburgh) could be distantly related?
Thomas has been continued now through four generations of our Shepley 'clan'.
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