b l fehrenbach bishops stortford Has anyone heard of them

[Time for tea]

Hi, I have just picked this up today, i am going to restore the clock.

Made by B L fehrenbach of Bishop Stortford Weight driven clock.

Has anyone every heard of them or know anything about the clock ?

 

[Uhralt]

Your clock was made in the Black Forest area of Germany for export to the English market. Fehrenbach is the name of the person who sold the clock. He may be related to the maker, as Fehrenbach is a common name in the Black Forest area. Often the sons of clock makers were in the import/export business. The clock has wooden arbors (Holzspindeln) and was made around 1810 plus/minus a decade or so.

Uhralt

 

[Time for tea]

Your clock was made in the Black Forest area of Germany for export to the English market. Fehrenbach is the name of the person who sold the clock. He may be related to the maker, as Fehrenbach is a common name in the Black Forest area. Often the sons of clock makers were in the import/export business. The clock has wooden arbors (Holzspindeln) and was made around 1810 plus/minus a decade or so.

Uhralt

Hi Uhralt
Thank you for the all the info, i have just found this on line about the maker Guide 13: Bridge House | Bishop's Stortford & Thorley - A History & Guide

Go to the bottom of the page

 

[Uhralt]

Hi Uhralt
Thank you for the all the info, i have just found this on line about the maker Guide 13: Bridge House | Bishop's Stortford & Thorley - A History & Guide

Go to the bottom of the page

Very interesting article. Probably Berthold was the one signed on the dial of your clock. It seems that I have to revise my guess with regard to the age of the clock. It is more likely around 1850 given the dates shown in the article. Not often you can find so much information about a maker of a Black Forest clock. I still believe that the clock was built in Germany and exported to be sold by the Fehrenbach family. That was the business model of that time.

Uhralt

 

[JTD]

Yes, there were quite a number of Fehrenbachs in various parts of the UK, dealing in clocks and watches. The late and much missed Doug Stevenson and I researched a lot of German clockmakers in UK, Doug was going to write something about them but sadly he died. I still have the notes somewhere but am away from home at the moment.

As Uhralt says, Fehrenbach is a common Black Forest name and there were several branches of that name working in UK, dealing in the kind of clock which you have.

JTD

 

[Uhralt]

I have a very similar clock, signed John Rombach, 118 Old Street, St. Lukes. Rombach is also a common black Forest area name. John's real name was probably "Johannes".

Uhralt

 

[jmclaugh]

B & L Fehrenbach is listed in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire 1859. There is also a Ferhrenbach, Berthold & Co in Bishops Stortford 1866-74 so probably the successor.

Oddly enough there are about 40 makers listed with the name Fehrenbach in various parts of the UK.

 

[Time for tea]

Very interesting thank you for all the info guys

 

[cuilvona]

Yes, there were quite a number of Fehrenbachs in various parts of the UK, dealing in clocks and watches. The late and much missed Doug Stevenson and I researched a lot of German clockmakers in UK, Doug was going to write something about them but sadly he died. I still have the notes somewhere but am away from home at the moment.

As Uhralt says, Fehrenbach is a common Black Forest name and there were several branches of that name working in UK, dealing in the kind of clock which you have.

JTD

I wonder if anyone can help me identify the Fehrenbach who made this clock? It is a spring driven wall clock, very much in the Black Forest style, with the pivots running in wooden plates. It belongs to a friend who has asked me to revive it - although the case is a bit of a mess (peeling veneer & woodworm), the movement seems to work. The dial reads:
Top Line - Fehrenbach (no initial)
2nd line - 19, East Road
Bottom Line - Ho?? Town - but I can't even be sure of the number of question marks!
Apparently it used to hang in the Edinbane Inn (Isle of Skye) before migrating to my friend's grandparent's house.
Any info on the maker(or tips on touching up the dial) would be much appreciated.
Many thanks,
Arthur

 

[JTD]

I will do my best to help but I need to see what you are looking at and the JPG attachment at the bottom of you post won't open.

Pleasepost a photo of the dial.

JTD

 

[jmclaugh]

None of the many listed in Loomes have that address or a location that matches.

 

[JTD]

I will do my best to help but I need to see what you are looking at and the JPG attachment at the bottom of you post won't open.

Pleasepost a photo of the dial.

JTD

This morning it suddenly opened. I will see what I can make of it and report back.

Perhaps I should add that many, perhaps most, of the Fehrenbachs were retailers rather than clock makers. They relied on Black Forest movements, many with wooden plates, being brought to UK, often by family members, which they sold using their own names.

JTD

 

[cuilvona]

Good to hear that you can now see it & thanks for your efforts thus far. I've tried looking at the name in UV light & also looked for likely matches in road atlas indexes ..... but still have not come up with anything. A friend found a Fehrenbach in Perth which is a closer source than many of them - but the town name is obviously not that! I wish that owners were more careful when inserting their keys!! I'll keep digging.

 

[JTD]

Good to hear that you can now see it & thanks for your efforts thus far. I've tried looking at the name in UV light & also looked for likely matches in road atlas indexes ..... but still have not come up with anything. A friend found a Fehrenbach in Perth which is a closer source than many of them - but the town name is obviously not that! I wish that owners were more careful when inserting their keys!! I'll keep digging.

Yes, there were a great many Fehrenbachs, some with their own businesses and some working for other German immigrants, such as the Spiegelhalters.

I'll keep looking. It must be remembered, too, that some places had their names changed or were merged into larger towns and are no longer known as separate localities.

Has your clock got a wooden movement?


JTD

 

[cuilvona]

Has your clock got a wooden movement?


JTD
[/QUOTE]
No - wooden plates but brass wheels. The pivots appear to be running directly in the wood without brass bushings. When I wind the spring slightly it ticks away quite happily even though I haven't cleaned it at all.
Cheers,
Arthur

 

[JTD]

Has your clock got a wooden movement?


JTD

No - wooden plates but brass wheels. The pivots appear to be running directly in the wood without brass bushings. When I wind the spring slightly it ticks away quite happily even though I haven't cleaned it at all.
Cheers,
Arthur
[/QUOTE]

Yes, that's what I meant by a wooden movement, should have expressed myself better.
These are very typical of the movements brought over by the thousands from Germany, often by itinerant traders, to be cased and sold in UK.

JTD