Old clock returns to downtown mall
2010
1908 Seth Thomas clock
Earlier this month, the 102-year-old Seth Thomas pedestal clock, which was damaged last year during the refurbishing of the pedestrian mall, made its way back to downtown Riverside. Though the clock itself dates back to 1908, it didn’t appear in Riverside until the 1920s when it was planted outside a jeweler’s store on Main Street.
The clock’s current location near the corner of Main Street and Mission Inn Avenue (near Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf), sits across the mall and about a half-block north from its previous spot near the former Westbrook’s/Imperial Hardware building.
We’re not certain when the clock was placed in front of Westbrook’s. Some say it was moved there from its original spot elsewhere on Main Street. But a postcard from the 1940s indicates it had been in front of Westbrook’s for several decades before being damaged last year by a contractor — who paid for the repair — and eventually moving to its current location near Mission Inn Avenue.
Interestingly, based upon old photos, it appears the clock had also been moved several feet toward University Avenue and placed a bit closer to the center of the pedestrian mall at some point while located near Westbrook’s.
Previous
- RaincrossSquare.com – Second phase of pedestrian mall makeover begins (Jan. 2009)
1967
On the Mall
North High School
yearbook
2009
Former mall location
2010
Current spot
2010
Refurbished
2007
Slight differences
Sources: The Press-Enterprise
