Tavern Clocks were hung in every pub and tavern throughout the British Isles as a result of an Act of the English Parliament in 1797 which declared that a tax would be collected on every clock in the realm.
The result was that a lot of private clock owners either hid their clocks or got rid of them altogether. Thus taverns and pubs became the preferred locus for obtaining the correct time.
Leaving the tavern owner to pay the tax on his clock which the townspeople used for their purposes also.
A secondary benefit to tavern owners resulted from the additional visitors coming into the pubs to see what the correct time was. |
