Terry clocks and more to be sold by Tim's, Inc., May 2 Possibly the most important collection of rare, early American Terry clocks ever sold at auction will be sold on Saturday, May 2, by Tim's, Inc., in Terryville, Conn. Other antiques will also be sold.
News-Antique.com - Apr 15,2009 - (TERRYVILLE, Conn.) - Quite possibly the most important collection of rare, early American Terry clocks ever to cross the block will be auctioned on Saturday, May 2, by Tim's, Inc., of Bristol, Conn. The sale will be held on-site, at the home of Richard T. Baldwin, a direct descendant of Eli Terry, who patented his first clocks in the state in 1816. The auction address is 278 Main Street in Terryville.
Mr. Baldwin, who passed away in 1986, had been a member of the National Association of Watch & Clock Collectors. Upon his death, his wife became the custodian of his vast collections, presiding over a home that was a veritable museum of Terry clocks and other antique objects. Mrs. Baldwin passed away last year. Everything to be sold will be fresh to the market, never before offered.
“This auction will feature the most important and rarest collection of Terry clocks in our thirty years of business,” said Tim Chapulis of Tim's, Inc. “Mr. Baldwin's family collection represents a wide variety of fresh-to-the-market Terry clocks in all sizes and types, some we've never seen before. There will also be some early clocks by Seth Thomas, who worked with the Terrys, plus other rare examples.”
The day will actually be broken up into three sessions, preceded by a preview that begins at 10 a.m. The first session, starting at 11:30 a.m., will be an early bird pre-auction garage and basement sale. Then, at noon, Mr. Baldwin's property will come up for bid. His vintage six-room home features a detached garage and has commercial potential, zoned C-1 Commercial on busy Main Street (Rte. 6).
At about 12:15 p.m., the clocks will come up for bid, each one as an individual lot. But there is more to the Baldwin estate that will pique bidder interest. Mr. Baldwin was also an avid collector of art pottery (to include Rookwood, Roseville, Bennington and Van Briggle). All of it will be sold, as will an early lock collection (including local Eagle locks) and a massive collection of about 1,000 cup plates.
In addition, Mr. Baldwin also amassed a large marble collection (to include sulfide marbles); glass paperweights; glass insulators; early inkwells and bottles; pocket watches; and master salts. Stack-on bookcases and furnishings from the home will also be sold, as will items of local historical significance, to include early Plymouth, Conn., school records and documents from the 1830s-1860s, possibly to include Terry family children; a large daguerreotype of a gentleman (4-1/2 inches by three inches, possibly a Terry family member) in a beautiful leather case; and early school autograph books.
But the Terry clocks (and yes, Terryville was named after the Terry family) promise to be the undisputed heavyweight lots in the sale. Some of the expected stars of the group include the following:
A Silas B. Terry 30-hour tandem wind time-and-strike “Steeple” shelf clock (circa 1845) in mahogany, with four spiers, an excellent case and painted wood dial.
A Silas B. Terry keyhole-shaped mahogany wall
