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Eli Terry Sr (April 13, 1772 – February 24, 1852) was an influential clockmaker in Connecticut, and the first inventor to receive a United States patent for a clock mechanism. more...

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He introduced mass production to the art of clockmaking, and made clocks affordable for the average American citizen. Terry occupies an important place in the beginnings of the development of interchangeable manufacturing. Terry became one of the most accomplished mechanics in New England during the early part of the nineteenth century. The town of Terryville, Connecticut is named for his son, Eli Terry Jr.

Background

Terry was the son of Samuel and Huldah Terry, born in East Windsor, Connecticut and began his career as an apprentice under Daniel Burnap ("the forerunner of manufacturing"). It is also likely that he received limited instruction from Timothy Cheney, a clockmaker in East Hartford. Cheney specialized in the making of wooden clocks, which was fairly unusual at the time. The use of wooden components would show great influence in Terry's later career.

Terry's apprenticeship to Burnap ended in 1792, and he quickly established himself as both a clockmaker and a repairer of watches in East Windsor. His earliest clocks were fitted with silvered brass dials, which were engraved for him by Burnap. The movements of the clock were made of brass or wood, depending on the requests of his customers. Brass was more commonly used for movements, but it was also considerably more expensive and difficult to work with. Terry moved to Northbury, Connecticut in 1794, where he continued his business on a smaller scale for several years. In 1795 Northbury was incorporated as Plymouth. In 1801, Terry was granted a patent on an equation clock. This was the first patent for a clock mechanism that was ever granted by the United States Patent Office.

Career

Soon after 1800, Terry's production of wooden clocks grew considerably. He purchased a grain mill and used the water wheel and main shaft to run saws and lathes, which helped speed the production of parts. He was later able to use jigs and fixtures to produce a large number of interchangeable clock parts. This allowed for the rapid assembly of clocks, freeing Terry from the task of fitting and modifying each individual piece of each clock. Using his own ingenuity and inventiveness, Terry was able to speedily cut wheels, pinions, and other important clock parts accurately.

In the year 1808, he received and accepted an order for 4,000 wooden clock movements, a number previously unheard of by most clock manufacturers. He spent the better part of the first of four years setting up the equipment and gathering the raw materials and then knocked out the bulk of the work the last year of the four year contract. For many years after this commission he was occupied with the large scale manufacture of affordable clocks.

Read more at Wikipedia.org