The Story Of Nehs Clock
1790: Daniel Scheitte of Sumneytown, Pennsylvania, built the clock.
1844: Frederick Nehs (1783-1865), a pioneer builder, farmer, and miller, brought the clock in a covered wagon from Bucks County, PA, to what was then a log cabin settlement which would become in 1892 the Village of Menomonee Falls. Nehs purchased 720 acres of land at $1.25 an acre. In 1845 he built the first lime kiln, enabling villagers to use the lime in mortar and plaster to build stone homes, and later a saw mill, which led to many frame houses in the Village.
The clock passed on to Nehs’ son, Jesse, who built the dam at the narrows of the Menomonee River, then erected a three-story limestone flour mill next to it. Jesse Nehs’ large stone house stood on the corner of Main Street and Grand Avenue.
The clock next passed to Bianca Barndt (wife of Dr. A.S. Barndt), mother-in-law of Henry Nehs, one of Frederick’s great-grandsons.
Finally, the clock passed to Stella Nehs Dousman of Milwaukee, daughter of Jesse. At the end of her life, Mrs. Dousman lived in Wauwatosa at the home of her nephew, Clarence Nehs.
1935: The clock was bequeathed to Menomonee Falls Public Library and moved to the Library in the Village Hall/Fire Station on Appleton Avenue (at that time, called Fond du Lac Avenue). It was brought to the Library on the back of a 1936 touring car. On the way, a piece of the case came loose and was retrieved and replaced at its new home. It sat in the upstairs reading room and was tended to by Librarian Maude Schlafer Shunk, a great-granddaughter of Frederick Nehs.
1967: The clock was moved to the new Maude Shunk Public Library adjacent to the Village Hall on Pilgrim Road, where it sat in the periodicals area.
2002: The clock was shipped to The Deller Conservation Group of Geneva, Illinois, to be restored to its original condition and working order.
2003: The clock was returned to Menomonee Falls Public Library and installed on January 29th in the new building.
About Nehs Clock
The clock is made of cherry with inlays of black walnut and maple. The works are hand-cut metal, indicating the clock was made around 1800. Before that, clockworks were made of wood. The conservators have determined that the works were replaced at some point and the case modified to accommodate the change. The keyholes on the doors are carved bone. The clock tells time, day of the month, and phases of the moon. Initially there was concern when it was installed at the Fond du Lac Avenue location that the chimes would be disturbing, but patrons found the “soft gentle tones” to be pleasing.
The top of the case (the “bonnet,” which rests at the base) was modified sometime in the 1800s and a Victorian era carving added. The feet had been cut down, leading to speculation the changes were made so the clock would fit in a particular location. The feet have been restored, the carvings rearranged, and the bonnet top had been restored to finials, in keeping with its likely original appearance. The back of the clock is rough surfaced, indicative of hand planing, and is unfinished.
This information was compiled by Library supporter, William Gay, and is taken from “The Story of the Nehs Grandfather Clock” by Marion K. Waebber, July 1937; “Grandfather Clock in Library Park of Early History of Falls” (Menomonee Falls News, November 11, 1954); “Nehs History” prepared by Mrs. Lee M. Graser, 1967; Photographs and Memories: A Pictorial History of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin (Menomonee Falls Historical Society, 1977), “Old Clock Tells Tale of a Time Long Past,” by Lee Raynor (Menomonee Falls News, November 12, 1992), Treatment Summary for Deller Conservation Group, January 8, 2003