The Allen-Bradley Clock Tower is a four-sided clock that sits on top of the Allen-Bradley Building (now Rockwell Automation) on the South Side of Milwaukee. Local architect Fitzhugh Scott designed the tower.[1] The clockworks were built by Allen-Bradley, which specialized in electrical controls, while the clock faces were created by Super Sky Products in Mequon.[2] From 1962 until 2010, when it was surpassed by one in Saudi Arabia, the Allen-Bradley Clock Tower was the largest four-sided clock in the world.[3]
When it was unveiled on October 31, 1962, the clock tower replaced a lower clock tower that rose above a different Allen-Bradley building.[4] The original clock, standing 160 feet above street level, was removed after the new tower was operational.[5] The current tower is 280 feet above street level. Each of the four clock faces is 40 feet, 3 inches in diameter; they are powered independently.[6] It takes about 10 minutes to reset the time by one hour.[7]
The clock tower is sometimes referred to as the “Polish Moon,” as its illuminated faces dominate the skyline of the South Side, which once had a large Polish population.[8] Harry Bradley, one of the founders of Allen-Bradley, intended the tower to become the “village clock” for the neighborhood.[9] It also became a navigational landmark, as the faces can be seen miles out into Lake Michigan on a clear night.[10]
Footnotes [+]
- ^ “Lighted 40 Foot Clock on Tower a Landmark for Lake Skippers,” Milwaukee Journal, June 8, 1963, accessed March 16, 2015, https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19630608&id=yR0aAAAAIBAJ&sjid=HicEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4164,3924544&hl=en.
- ^ “Lighted 40 Foot Clock on Tower a Landmark for Lake Skippers,” Milwaukee Journal, June 8, 1963, accessed March 16, 2015, https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19630608&id=yR0aAAAAIBAJ&sjid=HicEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4164,3924544&hl=en.
- ^ “Allen-Bradley Has Largest Four-Sided Clock in World,” Milwaukee Sentinel, November 1, 1962, accessed March 16, 2015, http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1368&dat=19621101&id=eHFRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=xBAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4632,148833; Molly Snyder, “Greetings from the Top of the Allen-Bradley Clock Tower,” OnMilwaukee.com, February 13, 2012, accessed March 16, 2015.
- ^ “Allen-Bradley Has Largest Four-Sided Clock in World,” Milwaukee Sentinel, November 1, 1962, accessed March 16, 2015, http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1368&dat=19621101&id=eHFRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=xBAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4632,148833.
- ^ “Allen-Bradley Has Largest Four-Sided Clock in World,” Milwaukee Sentinel, November 1, 1962, accessed March 16, 2015, http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1368&dat=19621101&id=eHFRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=xBAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4632,148833.
- ^ “Allen-Bradley Has Largest Four-Sided Clock in World,” Milwaukee Sentinel, November 1, 1962, accessed March 16, 2015, http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1368&dat=19621101&id=eHFRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=xBAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4632,148833.
- ^ David Kriesel, “How Do They Operate That Huge Clock at Allen-Bradley?” Milwaukee Journal, June 3, 1982, accessed March 16, 2015, https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19820603&id=umIaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=CCoEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1261,2231070&hl=en.
- ^ Molly Snyder, “Greetings from the Top of the Allen-Bradley Clock Tower,” OnMilwaukee.com, February 13, 2012, accessed March 16, 2015.
- ^ John Gurda, The Bradley Legacy: Lynde and Harry Bradley, Their Company, and Their Foundations, (Milwaukee: Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, 1992), 129.
- ^ “Lighted 40 Foot Clock on Tower a Landmark for Lake Skippers,” Milwaukee Journal, June 8, 1963, accessed March 16, 2015, https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19630608&id=yR0aAAAAIBAJ&sjid=HicEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4164,3924544&hl=en
For Further Reading
Gurda, John. The Bradley Legacy: Lynde and Harry Bradley, Their Company, and Their Foundations. Milwaukee: Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, 1992.
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