ID Your Revere or GE Clock

The Internets Largest and Most Detailed Catalog of Both Revere and General Electric (GE) Westminster Clocks from 1928 forward!

Completely Updated! - More Clocks! - More Details! - New, Easier Format!
Thanks to viewer participation, we have now been able to document some of the rarest and most interesting Revere and GE Westminster Clocks you'll ever see on the internet!

A very special Thanks is extended to Tom P. out of Pennsylvania. We consider his collection of Revere and GE clocks to be the finest in the country. Many of the photos you are about to view were made possible by Tom. Thanks to his collective efforts, we have been able to put his information together with ours in order to fill in many blanks concerning the relationships between Revere, GE and Telechron. Without his help, much of what you are going to view may have gone undiscovered for many, many years.

FACTS AND FIGURES CONCERNING THE DEVELOPMENT OF BOTH REVERE AND GENERAL ELECTRIC WESTMINSTER CLOCKS.

Updated July 31, 2010

The Telechron Clock Company was founded in 1912 by Henry Warren who is officially considered to be the "Father of Electric Time". Early clocks were battery driven.

General Electric purchased 49% interest in the company in 1917.

It was in 1918 that Henry Warren was granted a patent for a synchronous motor which would later become the main power system in every GE and Revere Westminster Clock

Clocks produced between 1912 and 1918 failed either to short battery life, or, fluctuations in the electric current which caused the clocks to lose time.

By 1918 with electrical currents becoming more stable, Telechron released a line of wooden wall clocks mainly for commercial use.

We "Unoffficially" classify 1925 as the dawn of mass-produced, electrical clocks for the home, and the start of the era.

Walter Herschede, owner of the famous Herschede Clock Company, founded the Revere Clock in 1927. He was under the impression that if the idea of electric clocks failed, he could close Revere and not damage the good name of Herschede.

The earliest Revere clock we have seen using Telechron Powered rotors is 1928. Earlier clocks running Telechron parts were Herschede. Revere built all their own movements for both their clocks and General Electric. This technology was borrowed from Herschede.

Much like paying $600 for a Hi-Fi VCR back in 1981, early 1928-1930 Revere and GE Westminster clocks were very expensive. They were of the highest quality, but certainly targeted toward the Well-to-Do. New movment designs, both better and less expensive to make, began to appear in 1931. The model R-300 "Loyal" debuted as the first Promotional Westminster clock at $29.75. By 1933, the movements were perfected and never changed until 1960 when economic hardships forced Revere to design an even small, cheaper movement. Other clock companies attempted to compete, but none were able to even come close to the reliability and design of the Revere movement.

Without a doubt, Revere was producing clocks for General Electric. This partnership can be traced back to 1930. Many of the designs were distinctive for GE, some were spin-offs of Revere clocks. By 1940, marketing strategies began to change. GE leaned more toward less-elaborate, lower-priced clocks aimed for the masses, while Revere still churned out some rather fancier designs. Ironically, the quality between the two brands were identical.

General Electric produced both Time-Only and Westminster Clocks. Telechron produced Time-Only Clocks and a few Strike Clocks. Revere produced Westminster clocks. Early clocks also came in strike, dual-chime, and ships bell configurations. Top-of-the-Line Hall Clocks came in triple-chime options. Two ironic notes to this 3-way relationship. Telechron NEVER produced a Westminster Clock, and Revere NEVER produced a time-only clock.

Revere Movement Production peaked in 1930. The Great Depression literally destroyed production thereafter. Despite the fact that a 1929 or 1930 clock is one the earliest Reveres, those two years are the most common and clocks are easy to find.

HOW TO IDENTIFY YOUR REVERE OR GE WESTINSTER CLOCK

Finding your Model Number.
Most Revere and GE Westminster clocks can be identified by the use of a small metal dog tag located on the back of the clock. HOWEVER! Early clocks and even some later clocks can be identified by a 3 (or sometimes 4) digit number stamped into the bottom of the clock.

General Electric always seemed to give their clocks names, even though they were identified with numbers. Revere, on the other hand, rarely did. Even though it never appears on the bottom of a clock, the letter "R" (meaning Revere) was used as a prefix to the model number. For example. If your clock is stamped 106, the correct model number is R-106. This little trick was used to tell the difference between Revere and GE.

GE never used a prefix, well, at least a prefix that was stamped on any of the clocks! The earliest 1930-1931 clocks were designated as ABR. The "AB" actually stood for "General Electric", while the "R" designated "Revere". Therefore, even though it may not be marked on your clock, Early General Electric clocks were recorded as ABR. For example, if our clock is stamped 310, the actual proper designation is ABR-310. Look at it like adding the Mr, Mrs, or Miss in front of your name. The ABR is the same, formal prefix.

Uncataloged, scarce and rare clocks.
Revere produced sales catalogs up until 1930. During the dark years (shown on the graph below), very few, if any catalogs were produced. Many models made during these years were single year models. This means that they were produced in very small numbers, for a very short period, and not carried over into the next model year. Our research indicates that since no catalogs were produced, model numbers were NOT stamped onto the bottom of the clock. In short, there is no reference at all to the clock. These clocks are deemed scarce-to-rare and are labled as "Unknown" or "Uncataloged".

Total Movement Production by Year for all Electric Revere, Herschede, and General Electric Westminster Clocks.

To view the Model Numbers of the clocks shown, roll your mouse right over the picture.

Model numbers are displayed right after the 12-digit picture ID

Early 1928 to 1930 Revere and GE Clocks

Uncataloged and Rare Reveres 1931 to 1940

Undocumented Clocks from the 1930 Catalog

Despite the fact 1930 was Reveres highest production date and many of the clocks from this year seen more than once, many were not. After years of researching these clocks, there are many we may never see for one reason or another. The Mantle clocks shown below represent some of the rarest and most valuable from 1930. Descriptions are taken from the catalog.

Due to the fact that we do not have tall clocks passing our way, we cannot determine rarity of any of the tall clocks shown. They are here for ID purposes only. We can assume that due to their high selling prices in 1930, Triple-Chime versions are few-and-far between and would be considered true prizes. Interesting to note that Triple-Chime Movements were not found in Mantle clocks. If any individual out there has one of these clocks and interested in having it documented, we'd love to hear from you!

Undocumented Clocks from the 1941 Catalog

Thanks to our good friend and collector Tom, from out in Pennsylvania, we were able to acquire a 1941 Revere catalog. This catalog filled in many empty spaces concerning the development of Revere after the "Dark Period" of 1931-1940. In addition, we now have the opportunity to show some of the tall clocks of that period.

Please remember that we cannot account for the rarity of the tall clocks. However, the mantle clocks shown are a different story. The clocks shown below are models that we have yet to see or document. We speculate that these particular clocks were made only for the 1941 year, and in very limited numbers. The descriptions are from the catalog. Until we can find more conclusive evidence, we are classifying the mantle clocks below from Very-Hard-to-Find up to Scarce.

The first picture in this set is the wholesale/Retail Prices for all the clocks made in 1941.