Fred N. Day became a jeweler in 1885 in Oxford, North Carolina. When he was searching for a store site in the town of Winston, he selected a prime location on North Liberty Street. The area surrounding the courthouse was the main business area for the town, so the 406 North Liberty Street location was perfect. The nearby 3-story O’Hanlon Building, featuring the O’Hanlon Drugstore, was a popular gathering spot for town residents. And the second and third floors of the O’Hanlon Building were leased as office space.
To advertise his jewelry business, he installed a 1200 pound and 15-foot tall clock right in front of his store. Clocks such as his were popular in the town, particularly near jewelry stores.
A fire damaged the O’Hanlon Building and nearby stores in a 1913 fire. Fred N. Day had just finished repairing his store when another fire hit the O’Hanlon Building in 1914, causing even more damage to the O’Hanlon Building and nearby stores. In fact, the O’Hanlon Building was damaged to the extent that it had to be demolished. It was rebuilt as an 8-story structure.
So Fred moved his business, including his clock, to 428 N. Trade Street. In this location, the clock became a familiar landmark. In fact, downtown shoppers and workers would often “meet at the clock.” Nearly 40 years later, when Fred decided to relocate his business down the street in 1954, he was informed that the clock could not be reinstalled at his new location. Laws regarding fixtures that blocked the sidewalk had been passed, and these laws applied to the clock when it was to be moved. He could leave it in place, but he could not reinstalled the clock on the sidewalk. So he removed the clock and sold it to a friend in Salisbury.
The clock was given to the citizens of Salisbury and Rowan County in 1978. In fact, Salisbury made postcards featuring the clock (see above). If you want to see this antique timepiece, which is a part of Winston-Salem’s history, you can see it standing proudly on the corner of West Innes and Main Street in Salisbury. This area is Salisbury’s National Register Historic District.
Black and white photos courtesy of Forsyth County Public Library Photograph Collection.
Color images courtesy of Molly Grogan Rawls.
Stay tuned for the next historical post on July 1st: Do You Remember…Bocock Stroud?
