Marlow’s Town Clock is to be restored to its former glory, thanks to two dedicated local people. Town Councillor Roy Cadman, who has a passion for clocks, and Sarah Dove, who runs The Assembly Room at the top of the High Street, are making sure the clock will be on display for the town to admire.
Until relatively recently the clock resided in a tower above the building that used to be the Town Hall (and then the Court and Gaol, then the Fire Station) and is now the Assembly Room above the Cook Shop at the top of the High Street.
It was presented to Marlow by local MP Pascoe Grenfell in 1805, but more recently the original was replaced with an electric version and the old mechanism almost assigned to oblivion, ending up in a great many bits in the cellar of the Cemetery Chapel.
Happily that is not the end of the story. Sarah Dove has offered the clock a permanent home adjacent to the restaurant room, and Cllr. Roy Cadman is going to restore, assemble and set the clock going.
He reports that miraculously all the parts have survived, and he has temporarily reassembled the clock. Fortunately the room is sixteen inches taller than the length of pendulum, so Cllr Cadman is designing a suitable stand to support the clock, and has started work on cleaning and restoring the mechanism.
A “Born Again” Clock Celebration is planned for 3rd April, marking the clock’s 208th birthday.
