Among the extensive list of items in the Estate inventory of Cornelius Dubois, there is an object listed as “1 Sundial”. This object seemed out of place, as sundials are usually seen as an archaic method of telling time. Ironically, clocks are seen as timeless, as though they have been around forever. This is not true, and even after the invention of the clock, alternative methods of timekeeping, such as sundials, did not immediately lose their value. 

Sundials are timepieces that predate clocks. “Sundial, the earliest type of timekeeping device, which indicates the time of day by the position of the shadow of some object exposed to the sun’s rays. As the day progresses, the sun moves across the sky, causing the shadow of the object to move and indicating the passage of time.”(Sundial) They consist of a gnomon, which is a thin piece or pillar that projects out and casts a shadow onto the dial. The dial is the flat surface that the gnomon sits on. It is often marked with a circle of numbers that indicate the time of day based on the position of the shadow. While they can be made to be very complex and expensive, sundials are often inexpensive and reliable ways to tell the time. As long as the sun is shining they can be used to tell the time. 

Before 1816, clocks were expensive and hard to come by. Once the shelf clock was invented, they were able to be mass produced and more commonplace. “Eli Terry designed a shelf clock with interchangeable parts, giving birth to the Connecticut clockmaking industry”(Andrewes). Eli Terry invented shelf clocks in 1816, the same year as the estate inventory. While previously created clocks may have been used, the shelf clock was self-contained and easily installable. It could simply be placed on a shelf with no added assembly. It also was far less expensive to produce and allowed clocks to be widely available. 

Since this specific sundial was purchased before the invention of the shelf clock, it was likely less expensive and difficult to use than a mechanical clock from this time. However sundials were still useful after 1816. “Until the 19th century sundials were still used to reset mechanical clocks.”(Sundial) Even though clocks became more commonplace, they were not always accurate until more precise clocks were invented at the end of the 19th Century. Until then clocks often had to be rewound to display the correct time, and sundials were a reliable source to set them against. 

Currently watches, clocks, and computers are common ways of telling the time, but residents of New Paltz also rely on the chimes of the clocktower. There are two clock towers in town, one on top of van den Berg hall, and the other at the Reform Church of New Paltz on Huguenot Street. Van den Berg hall is one of the oldest building on campus, but its clock is one of the newer ones in town. While the original was built in 1932, it burnt down in 1990. The current clock tower was rebuilt in 2005. The Reform Church dates back hundreds of years, and its clocktower is almost as old as the Estate Inventory. “Our present church, a fine example of Greek Revival architecture with its four-column timekeeping in portico and two-stage clock and bell tower, was erected in 1839”. (Our Church History).  This clock tower was built just twenty-three years after the Estate Inventory was written. It likely affected the same people who once used the sundial to tell time. Two decades later the shift from sundial to clock created a prominent part of the town’s landscape. And it is still used today, hundreds of years later.

Reformed Church of New Paltz Clocktower, built in 1836 (Our Church History)

Rebuilding of the van den Berg Clocktower, 2005 (Van Den Berg Learning Center Clock Tower)

A Sundial from New York made in the late 18th Century, which might be the same type as listed in the inventory. (Horizontal Sundial)

Section of Estate Inventory pg. 12  

Sources:

Andrewes, William J. “A Chronicle of Timekeeping.” Scientific American: A Matter of Time, vol. 23, no. 4s, 2014, pp. 50–57., https://doi.org/10.1038/scientificamericantime1114-50. https://web.s.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail/detail?vid=9&sid=02426177-34e2-434c-87ca-5455c9f7d26b%40redis&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#AN=98843277&db=a9h

“Estate Inventory of Cornelius Dubois.” 1816.pg. 12

https://omeka.hrvh.org/scripto/transcribe/2907/3454#transcription

“Horizontal Sundial.” National Museum of American History, https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_856464

“Our Church History.” REFORMED CHURCH OF NEW PALTZ 92 HUGUENOT ST. – NEW PALTZ, NY (845) 255-6340, https://www.reformedchurchofnewpaltz.org/our-church-history.html

“Sundial.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., https://www.britannica.com/technology/sundial“Van Den Berg Learning Center Clock Tower.” SUNY New Paltz | Van Den Berg Learning Center Clock Tower | Van Den Berg Learning Center Clock Tower, https://www.newpaltz.edu/clocktower