NYT:
Barthman, along with one of his employee, Frank Homm, created the timepiece in 1896, but not as it exists today. The original clock was a mechanical jump hour clock with the numbered tablets that would flip over on the hour. It also had a little light bulb that would illuminate the clock at night. In the beginning, as passersby trampled across the clock face, it was met with surprise and delight by turn-of-the-century shoppers. Unfortunately the fatal flaw of the original contraption was that it was custom designed by Barthman and Homm, and they were the only ones who knew how to fix it. Thus when the clock began to malfunction in later years, the attraction became an embarrassment, and the operators of Barthman's store would cover it with cardboard each day to hide their shame.
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