Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1905-10-30
KEPT TINE TWO CENTURIES
8, s. Peters Of Omaha the Owner of q
Veteran Among Clocks,
MADE IN ENGLAND IN YEAR I'M
Timepiece Has Been Passed Along
Through seven Generations in
Direct Line and IL sti1I
Keeping Good Time.

recent presentation of a magnificent
hall clock to a prominent politician in Mis-
souri, has started an item on the rounds
of the press about a clock owned by a
man at Glencoe, Kan. made in Kentucky
100 years ago. This Kansas clock is now
regarded as a family relic, which money
cannot buy.
s. S. Peters of 572 South Twenty-eighth
street Omaha. is the owner of calendar
clock which is 1914 years old and still
running. It has come down in direct line
Of descent from the original purchaser
through the oldest male member of the
Peters family through the two centuries
of its existence. There Is no flaw In It's
pedigree. The clock was built by Felix
Owen in the famous town of York, Eng
land, in I'LL, and was purchased by New
ton Peters. Seven years afterward New
ton Peters came to America, settling at
jamestown, Va. A few years later he,
with William Byrd founded the town of
Petersburg, Va. on the death of Newton
Peters in 1926 the clock became the prop
erty OF his son, Absalom, and on his death.
| in $780, Absaloms son, zachariah, came into
possession. Zach Peters was an oficer in
the American navy and when he died, his
son, Tunis-evidently named in memory of
timepiece. In 1857 Tunis Peters became
a member of colony moving to Ohio and
brought the clock with him to that then
new country. On his death. in 1902, his
son, also Tunis. became the owner OF the
old clock. He was one of the pioneers
Of Ross county. Ohio. where he lived until
1885. His successor in the ownership was
Jonathan L. Peters of Columbus, o., who
died in 1888. The clock then became the
property OF Jonathan's only surviving son.
| Samuel s. Peters. now on The Bee STAFF.
Has Served seven Generations.
1t will thus be seen that the Peters
clock has counted the hours of seven long
lived generations of the Peters family II
| was keeping time when Lexington and Con-
| cord came into imperishable history as
| battlefelds; heard the cannons' roar pre-
| ceding the close of the revolution Of York
| town, and has been the silent witness of
scenes which. II It could talk, would thrill
! the dullest mind and stir the most apa-
thetic patriotism.
The body of the Peters clock Is OF cherry
the works of brass. So well did ancient
Felix owen do his work that the only
repairs ever made on his handiwork have
been in the nature of occasionally renew.
ing the cords that support the weights
II is an eight-day clock and must be
wound once a week. The face Of the clock
shows the phases OF the moon and also
indicates the ebb and flow of the tides
II shows the days Of the month also. The
face OF the dial is of enamel and shows
marks of its great age in the shape OF
| cracks, honorable scars of useful life
The figures are Arabic characters an incl
and an eighth in length The corners oil
the face protecting the dial are painted
with quaint old English figures. The sec
ond hand is three inches in length, tn,
minute hand six inches and the hour HAND
five inches The clock frame is eight fee
high and eighteen inches wide. The pen
dulum rod is four feet and ten inches long
and the two weights tip the scales a
thirty pounds. It Is still In excellent run
ming order and correctly records the tim,
of today as Il did In the sedate days two
centuries agone.
This old clock was on exhibition at tn,
Centennial exhibition In Philadelphia ii
1876, with no other veteran Of its kinS
to dispute its precedence for age subse
quently it was exhibited in the Curti
Press club rooms at Columbus, o., for sew
eral months, when the Ohio Historical so
ciety tried in vain TO secure It for tn,
state collection OF antiquities.
Persons in Virginia, Philadelphia AMI
New York have repeatedly made fatterinl
offers In money for the clock, and othe
branches OF the Peters family have beef
anxious 10 get possession of IT, samue
S. Peters has steadily refused to part will
the honored timekeeper OF the lives OF nj
ancestors. He brought the clock to Beat
rice, Neb., from Ohio In 1855. ana has FIRE
quently loaned IL for exhibition at gather
ings OF old folks. For several years. how
ever. this has been stopped for fear o
possible injury in moving