Floral Clocks

In 1970, when I was 16 years old my parents took me to Niagara Falls, Ontario. There we saw a large floral clock. This picture I took in 1970 got me to thinking about this clock and others. This clock's face is made up of plants and flowers and is changed by the Parks Department. The mechanism is kept up by Ontario Hydro who originally built the clock. The tower at the back of the clock houses the Westminster chimes that sound on every quarter. If the door to the tower is open, visitors can see the clock mechanism and see photos that show the face design going back to 1950.

I found that there are two floral clocks close to Atlanta. There is one in Birmingham, Alabama at the Botanical Gardens and one in Frankfort, Kentucky behind the state capital.

The oldest floral clock is believed to be in Edinburgh, Scotland from 1903 and is still in operation. The Edinburgh clock started out with only an hour hand but in 1904 an minute hand was added. In 1905 they also added a cuckoo sound which went off every 15 minutes. Until 1972 Edinburgh's floral clock was mechanically operated. It needed to be wound daily. Now it is run by electricity.

So if you ever get the chance to see one in person, I think you will be delighted.