An architect designed custom clocks for Pennsylvania's Capitol a century ago. They're still ticking

Описание: (22 Dec 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania – 13 December 2024
1. Bethany Gill walking down steps inside the Capitol building
2. Various of Gill demonstrating clock wind process in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court chamber
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Bethany Gill, conservation technician at Johnson & Griffiths Studio:
“Clock winding is a regular part of my job. We wind clocks every week. We have eight-day movements in the Capitol so every seven days we wind them. And another part of the job with the clocks is oiling and cleaning, just maintenance in general, keeping them running. They are 120 years old, most of them, because they were designed for the Capitol in 1906 by Joseph Houston.”
4. Various of Gill demonstrating clock wind process in the Pennsylvania Senate hearing chamber
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Bethany Gill, conservation technician at Johnson & Griffiths Studio:
“Working here makes me feel a lot of pride. And I love my job. I feel elegant. I feel so happy that I get to walk around and walk through all these different offices throughout the building and meet so many different people. And I feel sorry for the people working at their desks because I would never want to do that. I like being up and around and talking to different people and handling beautiful things.”
6. Various of Gill walking with her step ladder
7. Close up of a clock
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Jason Wilson, Capitol Preservation Committee historian:
“You know, the clocks are just part of why the building's so unique and so intricate, you know, all of these custom designed, furnishings, that each of the mantles are unique in the building. The mantle surrounds the clock are all custom designed, so you have different woodworking, you have, you know, the same mantel clock in these ornate spaces.”
9. Various of Gill demonstrating clock wind process inside the governor’s office
10. Exterior of the Capitol
11. Close up of exterior sculptures at the entrance
12. Various of Gill winding clock at the governor’s office
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Jason Wilson, Capitol Preservation Committee historian:
“I think you have to have some sense when you come to the building of what it represents, you know, just in terms of an icon of Pennsylvania's history and government. And I think all of the artwork and the gold leaf and the ornamentation in the building gives you that sense of power and wonder and responsibility that you should have in terms of democratic government.”
14. Wide of Gill working inside the lieutenant governor office
STORYLINE:
Capitol buildings are almost always an imposing presence. The seat of government, they’re often elegant and stately — and frequently capped with a dome.

Visitors to Pennsylvania's Capitol are drawn to its priceless artwork, polished marble and intricate carvings, but hidden behind the doors of some of its most ornate offices and chambers are another treasure: hundreds of antique clocks that were part of its original design.
The 273 working clocks include many that are integrated into fireplace mantels and other building features.

They are not low maintenance, requiring regular oiling and occasional mechanical overhauls.

And every week, in a throwback to a time before wristwatches and cellphones, clock winders roam the halls — ensuring the century-plus-old timekeepers keep ticking.



“The clocks are just part of why the building's so unique and so intricate,” said Capitol Preservation Committee historian Jason Wilson. “The mantels surrounding the clocks are all custom designed.”



AP Video by Tassanee Vejpongsa




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