The Timexpo Museum in Waterbury, Connecticut is dedicated to the history of Timex Group and its predecessors, featuring exhibits going back to the founding of Waterbury Clock Company in 1854. The museum is located in the Brass Mill Commons shopping center and its location is marked by a 40-foot (12Â m) high replica of an Easter Island Moai statue which connects with the museum's archaeology exhibit. The museum is 14,000 square feet (1,300Â m2) with approximately 8,000 dedicated to the two main exhibits: the company's history of timepieces and archaeology.
For decades, Waterbury has been known as the Brass Capital, despite a decrease in its manufacturing history over many years. The building that houses the museum is the former executive office of the Scovill Manufacturing Company and Century Brass Company, and is the only remaining building of the 44-acre (180,000 m2) brass mill complex. Timex Group owes its origins to the Waterbury brass industry as the original clockmaking company was founded as a department of brass manufacturer Benedict & Burnham â€" a local competitor to Scovill â€" in 1854. Waterbury Clock quickly spun off as a legally incorporated business on March 27, 1857 due to its early success.
The museum focuses on important moments of Timex Group's history, including an exhibit on the U.S. Army commissioning Waterbury Clock Company in 1917 to provide wristwatch versions of the Ingersoll Ladies Midget pocketwatch for soldiers heading overseas, but the museum is not limited in scope. It includes aspects of local history, including letters from Mark Twain, who lived for a time in nearby Hartford, as well as exhibits concerning the travels of settlers across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans based on the explorations of Thor Heyerdahl.
The museum was approved to go forward in 1999 and finally opened in May 2001. Museum costs were estimated at $4.8 million, with the Naugatuck Valley Development Corporation providing approximately $500,000 and Timex funding the rest.
The final cost was $5.45 million, including $2 million from the Naugatuck Valley Development Corporation and the Connecticut Department of Economic Development and Community Development.
See also
- American Clock & Watch Museum in Bristol, Connecticut
- Timex Group USA
- American clock
- Chauncey Jerome
References
External links
- Timexpo: The Timex Museum
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