Staff writer
The hands of the clock in the courthouse spire froze in place for some hours early this week.
County clerk Tina Spencer said the clock, installed in 1908 by the E. Howard Clock Co. of Boston, Maryland, was purchased with donations from citizens.
To keep it ticking and chiming, someone has to climb into the clock tower to wind both the clock and the chime mechanisms, she said.
“The clock must be wound once a week,” Spencer said.
The 1,200-pound clock has a pendulum 9 feet long and enclosed in a wooden box. Each face is 7 feet tall.
Winding the clock last week somehow got skipped, Spencer said.
The clock got a partial restoration in 1997 and a complete restoration in October 2013, Spencer said.