The Daggett Family Clockmakers

The Daggett family came from Martha's Vineyard and settled in Barneyville are of Swansea, Massachusetts and in Pawtucket in the mid 1860s.

There are two Daggett houses still standing, the Daggett house in Slater's Park in Pawtucket Rhode Island and the Daggett house on Barneyville Road here in Swansea.

The clock on the right was made by Thomas Daggett and Sons. This clock stands in the Swansea Public Library. Below is a photo, taken in 1973 of another Daggett clock. That clock is owned by a family from Seekonk, MA.

Below is a picture of the Daggett house on Barneyville Road.

Daggett Genealogy

The following information is from the 1865 census of Rhode Island. At the time of the census, Thomas Daggett lived on Point Street in Providence Rhode Island:
     Thomas G Daggett, 70 years old, born in Massachusetts, clock maker, deaf and dumb
     Francis C. Daggett, son of Thomas Daggett, age 50, born in Smithfield, deaf and dumb
     Gilbert F. Daggett, youngest son of Thomas Daggett, age 25, born in Massachusetts, deaf and dumb

Gilbert Daggett, also a clockmaker, lived in the house on Barneyville road with his brother George. We have no information on George Daggett.

Our records show that two of Thomas Daggett's sons, Francis and Gilbert, attended School for the deaf in Rhode Island. We do not know the name or location of the school. Sadly, ur records also mention that mentioned that Gilbert Daggett spent the last year of his life in an insane asylum. Also noted is that Gilbert Daggett took his own life.

This article is from the "Bulletin of the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors, Inc.," December 1970

Record Keeping

Thomas and Gilbert were extraordinary people. They were deaf and dumb, they did not let that stop them. They made beautiful clocks in their time and kept logs of everything they did. These logs tell their story.

Whatever repairs they did to each individual piece it was documented. If they replaced a brass wheel it was drawn and documented. They documented if they dealt in wood or brass or silver. These logs are from 1852 and probably 1864.

Credit

The SHS has been working with a Mr. Ballenger, from Oregon, on the Daggetts as clockmakers. Mr Ballenger is a clock collector. He owns several Daggett clocks. He has been researching the family for many many years. Through his research, he found that they did more clock repair than the making of clocks as a whole.

The following is a paper written by Mr Bob Ballenger on the "Detailed Workings of a Special Tall Case Clock."
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