Hoosierboy Restorations donates its services to restore the clock on Beech Grove City Hall

Hoosierboy Restorations donates its services to restore the clock on 

Beech Grove City Hall

The clock on Beech Grove City Hall was pretty simple-looking. Built by Neon Clock Company in 1949, the clock had some minor restoration done to it, but otherwise the years had taken its toll.

“It was in pretty sad shape,” said Tim Showalter, Beech Grove resident and owner of Hoosierboy Restoration. “It worked but it was really dirty and corroded. The outside had been painted at least six times. Whenever they painted the building I think they just slapped a coat of paint on it. There was even paint on the lens of the clock, covering up some of the numbers.”

When Allen Whitaker, of Whiteland, stopped in Showalter’s shop a month ago, the topic of neon clocks came up. Whitaker mentioned how he’d love to see the Beech Grove clock get restored.

“So I contacted the mayor and offered to restore the clock free of charge if he would be interested,” Showalter said. “The next day the clock showed up in my office.”

Neon Clock Company went out of business in the 50s, so there aren’t a lot of parts available. Whitaker, who has more than 200 neon clocks in his Whiteland business, helped obtain those parts. They stripped the coats of paint, keeping the metal finish visible on the exterior. They also constructed a marquee, stating “Beech Grove” to sit on top of the clock as was custom in the early 50s.

Neon Express, near Keystone Ave., donated the neon. The neon is the clock’s original colors: pink and green.

“I’m excited to get the response from people, see what they have to say about it,” Showalter said. “It’s not a real iconic looking clock. Hopefully it will be a little more visible with restoration. It had a lot of potential. It should really brighten up that front entrance.”

The restored clock was hung by the Beech Grove Department of Public Works on May 11.