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Box Bullock Clock goes Worldwide Photos and text Richard and JoAnn Rice Taylor November 2020 We know that the Bullock family of clockmakers lived in Box, Corsham and Melksham. But the extent to which their masterpieces travelled worldwide is only just beginning to be revealed. Despite being in the middle of moving, JoAnn Rice from USA wrote to us about the one she and her husband Richard own. Our clock is a longcase (grandfather) clock and you can see from this photo that the cabinet has been repaired over the years. Considering the clock's age, it is in decent shape and keeps excellent time. You can just make out the maker’s name on the bottom of the clock face Zeph Bullock, Box. It might be my imagination but the inscription appears somewhat tentative, perhaps that of someone starting out on their career. This person was Zephania Bullock who was born about 1725 and is first identified in Box in the early 1750s, when his children were baptised in Box church. Still alive in 1795, Zephania Bullock, clockmaker, was listed as occupying the house next door but one to the Queen's Head Inn.[1] Our clock had previously belonged to Richard’s parents. During the 1970s they lived in London, in an apartment below Lady Churchill in the Palace Gate area of Kensington. They purchased some lovely antiques while in Europe and this clock was one of the items. I found some of the original paperwork including the bill of sale showing the antique dealer’s name, De Schatkamer, in The Hague, Netherlands where the clock was purchased in 1971. The paperwork indicates the clock is reputed to have been made in about 1740. I tried finding more information on the dealer with no luck. When Richard’s parents moved back to the USA, they had the clock crated and shipped to their home. Richard’s father passed away in 2005 and his mother decided to give us the clock, since her apartment in her senior living community was too small. |
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Above: The clock case
Left: the clock full face Below: The maker’s inscription Photos courtesy Richard and JoAnn 
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JoAnn was kind enough to share some of her family details and readers will be interested in her description of life in USA especially with some of the tax-free financial matters.
JoAnn and Old Houses
I love old homes, having grown up in New England, one of the earliest areas settled by the Puritans in the decades after the 1620s and some of the loveliest areas in the States at Vermont, Maine and Massachusetts. Our family home was located about 20 miles southwest of Boston, Massachusetts. My father worked in Boston for many years and took the train from our town directly into the city every day. Although our home was not old, my mom and I would visit many of the original homes and estates around Boston, some that became museums, allowing the public to see how previous generations lived.
For many decades, I had a romantic notion of buying an old house. However, when the opportunity finally presented itself, I was busy working full time and going to graduate school at night, so the prospect of the renovation was too much. The house we looked at was reputed to be built in the late 1600s and needed considerable structural work as the roof beams had rotted out. It had the traditional central fireplace, makeshift ladder steps going to the upstairs sleeping area, access to a root cellar (underground vegetable storage area) in the kitchen floor, and many other quaint architectural details. I often think about that home and hope that someone lovingly restored it.
JoAnn and Old Houses
I love old homes, having grown up in New England, one of the earliest areas settled by the Puritans in the decades after the 1620s and some of the loveliest areas in the States at Vermont, Maine and Massachusetts. Our family home was located about 20 miles southwest of Boston, Massachusetts. My father worked in Boston for many years and took the train from our town directly into the city every day. Although our home was not old, my mom and I would visit many of the original homes and estates around Boston, some that became museums, allowing the public to see how previous generations lived.
For many decades, I had a romantic notion of buying an old house. However, when the opportunity finally presented itself, I was busy working full time and going to graduate school at night, so the prospect of the renovation was too much. The house we looked at was reputed to be built in the late 1600s and needed considerable structural work as the roof beams had rotted out. It had the traditional central fireplace, makeshift ladder steps going to the upstairs sleeping area, access to a root cellar (underground vegetable storage area) in the kitchen floor, and many other quaint architectural details. I often think about that home and hope that someone lovingly restored it.
Root cellar in Wyoming (courtesy of Wikipedia - CCC_Camp_BR-83_North_Platte_Project,_Veteran,_Wyoming,__Experimental_Plots_,_vegetables_stored_in_root_cellar._-_NARA_-_293597)
However, our new home in Tennessee is twelve years old. It only needed repainting of the interior walls and I intend to create some lovely gardens in the yard, full of flowering shrubs and perennials. The main reason we are attracted to this home is due to our hobbies. Richard writes music and the accompaniment. Then he records and mixes it mostly for recreation now that he has retired. My hobby is quilting, which is a wonderfully creative outlet but requires a great deal of space. I have a long arm quilting machine that has a footprint of 12 feet x 5 feet plus six other sewing machines, various cabinets and tons of fabric. We are planning to designate the ground floor of the house to our hobbies. My favourite sewing machine is an original 1896 Singer Treadle Machine. I had it completely refurbished last year and it sews remarkably well. I also have the original instructions and all the original sewing accessories for it.
Tennessee is a tax friendly state for retirees because there is no state income tax, no excise tax on vehicles and low property taxes. It is one of the least expensive states in the USA. Also, homes are quite affordable. We are moving to the town of Loudon which is quite small with a population under 6,000 residents. It is located about 30 minutes southwest of Knoxville, Eastern Tennessee in an area considered to be the foothills of the Smoky Mountains. When travel restrictions ease after the corona virus pandemic, we would welcome any of your readers to contact us via your website if they are travelling to this part of the USA.
We are about 90 minutes driving time from the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina, which was once owned by the fabulous Vanderbilt family. Although it is not as old as the many great estates in the UK, it is well worth a visit:
https://www.biltmore.com/our-story/
Tennessee is a tax friendly state for retirees because there is no state income tax, no excise tax on vehicles and low property taxes. It is one of the least expensive states in the USA. Also, homes are quite affordable. We are moving to the town of Loudon which is quite small with a population under 6,000 residents. It is located about 30 minutes southwest of Knoxville, Eastern Tennessee in an area considered to be the foothills of the Smoky Mountains. When travel restrictions ease after the corona virus pandemic, we would welcome any of your readers to contact us via your website if they are travelling to this part of the USA.
We are about 90 minutes driving time from the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina, which was once owned by the fabulous Vanderbilt family. Although it is not as old as the many great estates in the UK, it is well worth a visit:
https://www.biltmore.com/our-story/
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Richard Wrote about his Life around the World
I was born in Dallas Texas, the fifth generation born there from our family. My parents didn’t stay, however. They moved to Rome when I was 11. After 1 year in Rome I lived with my parents in Tripoli for 3 years, then with my great-grandmother in Dallas for 1 year while my parents lived in Nigeria and then I moved back to Rome and lived with my parents. I finished high school in Houston, Texas and after that it was Texas Technical University. My father worked for several companies during that time, hence the constant moving. After graduating, I moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in the music and entertainment industry. I started a heavy metal band called Sorcery which had some success, performing live to sell-out crowds and featured on national television and in two movies. I later moved to Arizona where JoAnn and I met and married. My father and mother moved to a small town north of Phoenix and I got to spend a great deal of quality time with my dad. He got me into clocks when we lived in London in the mid-70s and. I now have a total of seven antique clocks including the Bullock one. It is a very rewarding hobby. JoAnn and Richard on their wedding day |
Moving the Bullock Clock
We have recently completed a move from Arizona to Tennessee, 1,600 miles away. It was quite an ordeal as we are senior citizens and the clock was moved by us personally. First it arrived safe and sound in our temporary rental house where we had to disassemble it and pack it away for several months. We finally found a home to buy in Loudon, Tennessee and moved again to a retirement community.
Richard faithfully maintains the clock and keeps it wound. It is remarkable that it is in such magnificent condition, considering its age and the many moves around the world! We enjoy it so much as the craftsmanship is really extraordinary. As an aside, JoAnn’s paternal great-grandfather was a clockmaker in Boston, Massachusetts. The Bullock family would never had believed their creation would travel so far.
We have recently completed a move from Arizona to Tennessee, 1,600 miles away. It was quite an ordeal as we are senior citizens and the clock was moved by us personally. First it arrived safe and sound in our temporary rental house where we had to disassemble it and pack it away for several months. We finally found a home to buy in Loudon, Tennessee and moved again to a retirement community.
Richard faithfully maintains the clock and keeps it wound. It is remarkable that it is in such magnificent condition, considering its age and the many moves around the world! We enjoy it so much as the craftsmanship is really extraordinary. As an aside, JoAnn’s paternal great-grandfather was a clockmaker in Boston, Massachusetts. The Bullock family would never had believed their creation would travel so far.
Reference
[1] The Bath Chronicle, 14 May 1795
[1] The Bath Chronicle, 14 May 1795