The Watsontown Borough Building & The Town's First Clock

 
On February 18 1914, Watsontown's New Town Clock was turned on for the first time.

May 1914

The Miller Building

The Miller building, which once housed the Watsontown National Bank, was purchased by the borough about 1913, for use as the municipal building, and to house the West Branch Fire Department.

August 1913

The building had offices for the Chief Burgess (Mayor), tax collector, the town council chamber, and the school board. The town lock up was in the basement, and the janitor and his family occupied apartments on the back of the building. The second story was a dwelling flat, and the third story was "home of the strongest fraternal societies of the town"

It was expected to be fully occupied by September of 1913.

Town Hall - The borough building, about 1916, with the clock tower added, and the doors for the firetruck installed.

The clock tower was added in 1914, an initiative of the Watsontown Civics Club.

November 1946

In November 1946, the clock was illuminated after receiving a new gear  and was "now striking up to time" for the first time in a "long time".    The clock was "dimmed immediately however, due to dim-out instructions issued as a result of the soft coal strike"

Another view of the Watsontown Borough Building

After the fire at the 8th street school in January of 1956, 5th and 6th grade students attended school at the  municipal building.  The teachers were  Mrs. Moltz and Mrs. Kramm. Mrs. Gstalder was the music teacher.  Recess, which occured even though school was only half day, was held in the yard behind the building.  

The Carson building, Chevrolet Garage, was torn down in 1963.  Today, it's the location of the Watsontown Post Office.

February 1960

In October of 1961, the VFW announced they would have find a new meeting place "since the heating in the Watsontown Borough Building is out of commission."

Rear View of the Borough Building

In June of 1961, Borough Manager Jay Gregg reported on the condition of the roof of the borough building, and of the condition of the clock tower.  He was authorized to have the necessary repairs made to both.

June 1961 - The Clock was out of order for a day or two while the tower on the borough building was repainted

October 1962

The old borough building was torn down in 1962. The new borough building was completed in early 1963.

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1956

The bell in the clock tower was used for broadcasts for civilian defense.

August 1963

The Carson building, next to the "new borough building" was torn down in August of 1963 to make way for the new post office to be built on that spot. Construction crews renewing the street 'discovered' buried fuel tanks, leftover from the garage,  in the middle of Main Street back in the 1980s.

December 1962