Mullucks Wells
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Great Dunmow’s Historic Timepiece Gets a Facelift
Great Dunmow’s historic Town Hall clock has been returned to its rightful position, after three months in the workshop for refurbishment.
It’s thought to be the first time that the 1855 timepiece has been removed from its location 35 feet from the ground on the front of the Old Town Hall, since its installation. The renovation work was carried out by James Jewellers of Saffron Walden, and the clock was lifted into place by Actual Removals of Great Dunmow on Monday 9th July at 2pm.
Whilst it was possible to dismantle the clock from inside the building, putting it back had to be done from the outside, in a complex operation involving two men and a lorry-mounted access platform. The procedure was watched by the town’s Mayor Cllr Carol James, Town Clerk Owen Wilson, and Town Crier Richard Harris.
Tim Trembath from Mullucks Wells estate agents, who are based in the Grade II* listed property, said: “We really missed it whilst it was away - and so, for that matter, have the local residents. Several of them have come into the office to say that they couldn’t sleep at night without hearing its reassuring chimes!”
The Old Town Hall was built in 1556, as the offices for the Dunmow Corporation, and remained as Borough Council offices until 1885. The original 1597 clock movement is still in the possession of the building’s owner Clive Welch, whose great grandfather started trading there in 1886. The current movement, made by Thwaites and Reed of London and sold by Charles Knight, is thought to have been installed around 150 years ago and has now had the equivalent of a full service renovation – including a complete overhaul of the movement and restoration of the dial.
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