Civil War Cuckoo Gets Appreciated in Atlanta

Mike Simpson shows off his Civil War-era cuckoo clock at the National Archives at Atlanta in Morrow. He plans to bring the clock to "Civil War Treasures in Your Nation's Attic, " an "Antiques Roadshow"-like event that will be filmed April 16 at the National Archives at Atlanta.

From Access Atlanta:

Michael Simpson has a clock. It was made by the American Cuckoo Clock Co. of Philadelphia. With its fluted columns, the rosewood clock is reminiscent of a Greek temple. At its peak is a small door, no larger than a playing card, that pops open to reveal a tiny wooden bird, light blue with a dappled white breast. The clock has been in his family for more than a century. It was a gift to Aaron Simpson, who was barely more than a child when he joined a New Hampshire regiment as its drummer boy. He went off to war, came back and was presented with a handsome clock from his father, no doubt relieved that the youngster made it through the conflict intact. 

 Unlike young Aaron, the clock never saw much action. For various reasons, it was hardly used from one generation to the next, though a family cat did knock it off a wall, denting the clock’s face. Simpson, 56, plans to show it Saturday. 

“You don’t see them like that anymore,” said Simpson, a retired chef who lives in Hapeville. “I’ve never seen anything like it.” 

 Its value? “It wouldn’t matter what it’s worth,” said Simpson. “This’ll go to my son, and his son, and so on.”