The Old Courthouse Clock and Bell Tower - 2012 - Hempstead, TX - Signs of History on Waymarking.com

"The clock tower provides a permanent home for the 1894 bell and clock, both of which at one time were important functional adornments to the Waller County Courthouse

Arthur Osborne Watson designed the 1894 Courthouse and M. Clark of Galveston constructed the Courthouse with the help of the Seth Thomas Clock Company of Chicago and Walter Buckley, their tower clock expert, a clock tower, clock and pure bell were designed and installed atop the Courthouse. The 1000 pound bell was cast in 1894 by the McShane Bell Foundry of Baltimore, MD. For Waller County. On July 24, 1894, the County accepted the clock and bell all at a cost of $900.00

The Seth Thomas Clock had four iron dials with wood backing. The pendulum rod was eight feet long, octagonal, of rosewood, with a massive cylindrical weight. The clock mechanism was powered by 1300 pounds or weights suspended from pulleys. In 1947. The clock was electrified and a motor was installed to drive the clock and bell.

In 1954, the Courthouse was demolished, but most of the clock and bell were saved. The clock mechanism was moved to the current courthouse in 1955, where it was used to drive the bell, which continued to strike the hours from an open frame on the building's roof in 1971, the mechanism controlling the bell broke and was not repaired.

In 1991, the Waller County Historical Society, with the vision of Marjorie Senasac, authorized restoration of the clock mechanism and restoration of the bell. Susan Hopkins and Burt and Mildred Leonard chaired the first fundraiser, "One moment in time" to raise money to begin the restoration. The clock was restored in 1997 by Lloyd Larish, owner and Master Tower Clock Repairman of the House of Clocks of Faribault, MN. Construction of the clock tower began in October, 1998, and was slated to be completed by April of the next year. Construction of the tower halted for several years and during this time the clockworks were on display in the Courthouse Lobby until December, 2010.

The Tower Project was revived in 2008. The clock and bell tower construction began again in June, 2009, and included installation of the clock and new restoration of the bell. The tower was completed in July 2012.