Edward Howard (1813-1904) was a clock maker in the early 1800s when he served an apprenticeship under the supervision of Aaron Willard Jr. With him as an apprentice was David P. Davis.
After the completion of their apprenticeships, Howard and Davis formed a partnership that also included Luther Stephenson. They were located in Boston under the firm name of Stephenson, Howard & Davis and practiced their trade until the mid 1840s. Despite the exodus of Stephenson from the company, business was carried on until the late 1850s. At this time, Davis also quit, leaving Howard alone in the reorganized E. Howard & Co. situated in Roxbury, Massachusetts.
Howard made banjo, regulator, and turret clocks. Howard''s 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 in the $15,000 plus range. Singularly rare and costly are the sidewalk or post clocks which are probably all in the hands of private collectors and as such are almost never seen at public auctions or sales.
If you find a Howard Clock and purchase it, keep it as is, rather than refinishing it. The clock will lose value if its finish is changed.
In 1958, clock production stopped with the exception of tower clocks, which were made until 1964.
