Highbridge’s historic town clock – which was known as the ‘three-faced liar’ because its three clock faces rarely told the same time – was demolished on Thursday (April 12th) to make way for a new one.
The familiar landmark was taken down by workmen in a delicate operation that started at 10am.
A team of six contractors working on behalf of the Town Council used ropes, pulleys and scaffolding to bring the clock down exactly 40 years after it was first installed.
Town Clerk Eileen Shaw told Burnham-On-Sea.com: “The clock face came down without any problems, but the concrete pillar underneath it was in a very poor condition and was crumbling apart.”
The clock face itself is to be bought by a local collector, who is currently anonymous.
With the work to demolish the clock complete, the Council’s attention has turned to installing the new £20,000 clock in its place.
The new four-faced clock, which has been funded by donations, is due to arrive in late April and be installed in time for June’s Jubilee celebrations.
Donations and pledges amounted to £16,700 and came from around 30 residents and businesses, including one single donation of £5,000.
The Town Council will be putting the names of all those who donated cash into a hat and drawing a name who will be invited to officially open the landmark. Those who have given donations will also be acknowledged on a plaque to be sited at Highbridge Community Hall in Market Street.
The old clock was known as the ‘three-faced liar’ because its faces rarely told the same time and had needed to be replaced for several years.
The site has a long history, having been built by Rainforths of Bridgwater and unveiled at Highbridge’s Cornhill by the junction of Church Street and Market Street in 1897 to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee.
The original clock was replaced in 1965, a year after a lorry demolished it and the one demolished today was re-sited in 1972 in the gardens.
Pictured: Workmen demolishing the town clock in Highbridge on Thursday and, above, how it looked before work began
