In the early 1800s, Edward Howard (1813-1904) served as an apprentice clockmaker under the supervision of Aaron Willard Jr., while David P. Davis served as a fellow apprentice.
After completing their apprenticeships, Howard and Davis formed a partnership with Luther Stephenson. They opened the firm Stephenson, Howard ScDavis in Boston and practiced their trade until the mid-1840s. Although Stephenson left the company, the remaining two partners carried on the business until the late 1850s. Then, Davis also quit, leaving Howard alone in the reorganized E. Howard & Company in Roxbury, Massachusetts.
E. Howard & Co. oak railroad regulator wall clock, 17 x 64″ h. $8,500.
Howard made banjo, regulator, and turret clocks. His reputation as a manufacturer of high quality clocks with high prices has kept his clocks in the “highly sought after” category. Some of his astronomical regulators are priced at $15,000 or more. Howard’s sidewalk or post clocks are especially rare and costly and are probably all in the hands of private collectors. As a result, they are almost never seen at public auctions or sales. If you find a Howard Clock and purchase it, keep it as is, rather them refinishing it. The clock will lose value if its finish is changed. In 1958, the company stopped producing clocks, with the exception of tower clocks, which it continued to make until 1964.
