The Town Clock, also sometimes called the Old Town Clock or Citadel Clock Tower, is one of the most recognizable landmarks in the historic urban core

Downtown Halifax

Downtown Halifax is the city centre of the Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia. Located on the eastern-central portion of the Halifax Peninsula, on Halifax Harbour, it serves as the business, entertainment, and tourism hub of the region.- Municipal:...

 of Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...

's Halifax Regional Municipality

Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia

Halifax Regional Municipality is the capital of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The Regional Municipality had a 2006 census population of 372,679, while the metropolitan area had a 2010 estimated population of 403,188, and the urban area of Halifax had a population of 282,924...

.

The idea of a clock for the British Army

British Army

The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...

 and Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 garrison at Halifax is credited to Prince Edward, Duke of Kent

Prince Edward Augustus, Duke of Kent and Strathearn

The Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn was a member of the British Royal Family, the fourth son of King George III and the father of Queen Victoria...

, who arranged for a turret clock to be manufactured before his return to England in 1800. It is said that Prince Edward, then commander-in-chief

Commander-in-Chief

A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military...

 of all military forces in British North America

British North America

British North America is a historical term. It consisted of the colonies and territories of the British Empire in continental North America after the end of the American Revolutionary War and the recognition of American independence in 1783.At the start of the Revolutionary War in 1775 the British...

, wished to resolve the tardiness of the local garrison.

The clock tower is a three-tiered (three storey), irregular octagon tower built atop a one storey white clapboard building of classic Palladian proportions. It was erected on the east slope of Citadel Hill facing Barrack (now Brunswick) Street. The clock face is 4-sided displaying Roman numerals. As with most clocks the "4" is shown as IIII for aesthetic symmetry and not as IV.The clock mechanism was constructed by the "House of Vulliamy", respected Royal Clockmakers based in London. It is driven by three weights, gears, and a 13-foot pendulum with the mechanism being housed in a cast iron

Cast iron

Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...

 frame located in the "clock room", immediately below the belfry

Bell tower

A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...

. Its bell strikes hourly and quarterly and the durability of the mechanism (which dates to the original installation) is attributed to its slow movement.

The Town Clock began keeping time for the garrison on October 20, 1803.

The tower housing the Town Clock has been used in the past as a guard room and as a residence for the clock caretaker. Restoration work on the Town Clock has taken place at various times during the 20th century, with the property passing into the care of Parks Canada

Parks Canada

Parks Canada , also known as the Parks Canada Agency , is an agency of the Government of Canada mandated to protect and present nationally significant natural and cultural heritage, and foster public understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment in ways that ensure their ecological and commemorative...

, which has responsibility for the Citadel Hill National Historic Site. The caretaker position ceased in 1965 with its maintenance now being performed by Citadel Hill employees who wind the clock mechanism twice weekly.

A major restoration project in 1990 saw the exterior façade of the Town Clock building returned to its original Georgian appearance. Another restoration in 2005 saw the clock face undergo extensive rehabilitation.

As a Halifax icon, the Town Clock has featured in many artwork, fictional and non-fictional accounts of Halifax. One among many is a depiction of the town clock as a character named Chimey in the children's television show Theodore Tugboat

Theodore Tugboat

Theodore Tugboat is a Canadian children's television series about a tugboat named Theodore who lives in the Big Harbour with all of his friends. The show was produced in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada by the CBC , and the now defunct Cochran Entertainment, and was filmed on a model set using radio...

.