An article about the Westclox factory in Scotland was just added to the ClockHistory.com web site. This factory produced over 50 million clocks in its lifetime. Many of these clocks are still around today, and can easily be found on Internet auction sites.
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On Sunday, August 26, my wife Kimberly and I stopped at the old Westclox factory at Peru, Illinois on our way back from my nephew’s wedding in Wisconsin.
The old factory is a huge place, 665,000 square feet on 16 acres of land. Across the street is the 57,000 square foot administration or office building. Westclox ceased operations in Peru in 1980, and the factory complex and office building were offered at auction (with no takers) on May 27, 1981. A number of companies currently occupy various parts of the building, the largest perhaps being Bakery Machinery & Fabrication Company, which has the back lower part of the complex. This part is 5 stories tall and located down the hill from the main part of the building. It still has has the name “Western Clock Co.” in the gable at each end.
The signs of several other companies are shown in the slide show below. Heritage Realty is developing part of the building and also is planning for a Westclox museum.
The pictures in the slide show below start on the east end of the factory and move across to the west end. The administration building across the street is also illustrated. The last picture is an aerial view from Google Earth. I hope to get back to the area soon for a longer visit and to see our friends the Biolchinis and Whitakers.
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