Home > Science Fact Finder > Time, Weights, and Measures - Where Did The Term "Grandfather Clock" Come From?
Time, Weights, and Measures - Where Did The Term "Grandfather Clock" Come From?
Where did the term "grandfather clock" come from?
The weight-and-pendulum clock was invented by Dutch scientist Christiaan Huygens (1629-1695) around the year 1656. German immigrants to the United States who settled in Pennsylvania brought the clocks with them. They considered such clocks, often called long-case clocks, to be a status symbol. In 1876 American songwriter Henry Clay Work (1832—1884) referred to long-case clocks in his song "My Grandfather's Clock," and the nickname stuck.
Source: Feldman, David. Why Do Dogs Have Wet Noses?-. And Other Imponderables of Everyday Life, p. 178.
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