Charles Cooper, Lebanon Pennsylvania Grandfather Clock, Circa 1800

Details

Description

This listing is for an early American tall case clock by Charles Cooper of Lebanon, Pennsylvania, circa 1800.

Cooper was … Read more This listing is for an early American tall case clock by Charles Cooper of Lebanon, Pennsylvania, circa 1800.

Cooper was born in 1779 and died in 1832. Due to his relatively short life, his clocks are quite rare. Cooper's works are of highly skilled craftsmanship. They rarely come to public market and are quite sought after.

This example features a nice cherry wood case. It has birch inlay with a crescent moon on the door.

The movement is an 8 day time and bell strike. It is complimented by a hand painted dial with a scrolling moon phase. The dial also has a 3rd hand pointing to the calendar date.

The ship depicted on the scrolling moon phase has an early American flag on its end. This design is referred to as the Grand Union Flag, the Cambridge Flag, the Continental Colors Flag, the Congress Flag, and the First Navy Ensign.

Charles Cooper's name was once painted onto the center of the dial. It has worn down, but some faint edges of some of the letters still remains. In addition, experts have determined this to be a Cooper clock due to the shape of the movement, style of dial, and case design. One defining feature of Cooper's clocks are the very narrow, plain pillars along the hood of the clock.

We do not know who first owned the clock when it was made in 1800.
However, an inscription inside indicates that the clock was later purchased by John Philip Grumbine at an auction in Fredericksburg (Lebanon County) for $6.50 (March 1854). Grumbine (1819-1895) was a saddler in Fredericksburg. Also included is a photo of the clock in the library of the Grumbine home (circa 1880s).

At some point during the first half of the 20th century, the clock came into possession of the family of Philip Lovell (born Morris Saperstein). Lovell was a naturopath and architectural patron. He is known for the Lovell House and Lovell Beach House- both architectural icons.

This clock was in the Lovell Beach House in Newport Beach for many years. It stood in the living room, overlooking the sandy beach.

The clock is in over all good condition for its age. It has been well kept. Some signs of normal wear and age present such as natural age lines in the wood, but in overall good condition, sturdy, and well kept. 1 finial on the top of the hood is a replacement. The hinges have been nicely updated.

The movement had been serviced last sometime around 2015. It ran and chimed when recently tested.


The clock measures about 91 x 20 x 10.75 inches


Please note that any mechanical clock that is moved or shipped might require adjustments upon arrival, and thus time accuracy/running cannot be guaranteed. Chairish sells clocks solely to be intended for display. The mechanical elements are not guaranteed to be in working order by Chairish See less