Why Liskeard’s Town Clock Won’t Need Winding by Hand Anymore

Several times a week, a member of the Town Council team climbs a set of narrow wooden staircases above Fore Street to wind a clock by hand. It is a job that has kept time for Liskeard since 1868. And it is about to stop.

A clock that has marked time since 1868

The town clock sits above Fore Street in the centre of Liskeard, reached by those narrow wooden staircases. It was made by Thomas Hale & Sons of Bristol and presented to the people of the town in 1868 by the then Mayor, John Clark Isaac, a local iron and coal merchant.

It is now believed to be one of the oldest working clocks in the country to keep this type of original mechanism. For almost 160 years it has marked the passage of time for residents and visitors.

📷Mayor and Deputy Mayor of Liskeard, Cllr David Braithwaite and Cllr Sylvia Berry. And Luke our engineer from the Cumbria Clock Company

Wound by hand three or four times a week

For most of its life the clock has been wound by hand. Members of the Town Council team climb the tower and turn the mechanism three or four times each week, a routine that has kept it running with barely a pause.

There have been only two real interruptions. One came during a major refurbishment in 1954. The other was during the Covid-19 pandemic, when access restrictions made winding impossible.

A new system from the Cumbria Clock Company

Specialists at the Cumbria Clock Company are now installing a new automatic winding and regulating system. The upgrade will reduce wear on the mechanism and improve the clock’s accuracy. The work began this week.

📷The new automatic winder mechanism

What it means for the town

The current Mayor, Councillor David Braithwaite, said the project would do two things at once.

“I am delighted that this project is finally moving forward. It will not only future-proof the clock for years to come, but also free up council staff from the task of winding it, allowing them to focus their time and resources on other important areas of the town.”

📷The new automatic winder mechanism