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The Mystery of the Lost Pocket Watch LbNA #62517

Owner:Adoptable
Plant date:Jul 28, 2012
Location: Timexpo Museum
City:Waterbury
County:New Haven
State:Connecticut
Boxes:8
Planted by:TimeTraveler
Found by: Eagle & Teapot (5)
Last found:Feb 25, 2014
Status:FFF
Last edited:Jul 28, 2012
The first 7 boxes are planted inside the Timexpo Museum in Waterbury, Connecticut, right off of Exit 22 on I-84. The 8th box of the series is located outside of the museum building. It takes roughly one hour to complete and you will learn about the history of the Waterbury Clock Company and Timex as you help find Walter Barry's lost pocket watch. A special bonus exhibit about Easter Island is also on display.

MUSEUM HOURS: 10AM-5PM Tuesday - Saturday

BE PREPARED TO PAY ADMISSION TO THE MUSEUM:
$6 for adults
$5 for seniors (over 65)
$4 for children (5-12)
Free for children under 5
- We accept Visa, Mastercard, and American Express
- Cash only for admission of $10 or less
- Credit cards only accepted for admission over $10
- Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult.

*We recognize that letterboxing is largely a free activity. However, we feel that the museum serves as a valuable educational experience. The letterbox is intended to enhance the tour.
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*You will collect the clues for the 8th box as you find each of the first 7. They are written on slips of paper hidden in each box. Please only take one slip per group. You will compile these clues after you find the 7th box, and together they will lead you to your ultimate goal: Walter's pocket watch!


THE MYSTERY OF THE LOST POCKET WATCH

On a brisk night in 1854, Walter Barry strolled home after working a long shift at the Waterbury Clock Company. His dear friend had given him a wonderful new pocket watch and he couldn’t wait to show his wife. As Walter neared home, he felt in his vest pocket for the little gold timepiece, but fell ill with panic when he realized it was gone!

“Where could I have lost that watch?!?” Walter exclaimed. “Surely I will find it tomorrow. I will search high and low”…

Walter looked everywhere for his lost watch but to no avail. It had been picked up by a fellow Clock Company worker who claimed it for his own. But the little watch never stayed with anyone for very long. Each new owner misplaced it shortly thereafter. In fact, it is still hiding somewhere around this building! There are clues throughout the museum that will help you find Walter’s lost pocket watch. Step into the time machine to the right of the large clock in the Timexpo Museum lobby. Press “3” to travel back to 1854.

As you step out of the time machine, follow Walter to The Clock Shop. Admire the beautifully crafted mantle clocks from a distance. Turn 120 degrees to your left, walk 15 paces, and page through the clock catalogues located on the wall. After you are done, close the catalogue on the left. Face in the same direction as the man on the cover. Walk to the white picket fence to admire the view of Waterbury in the 1800s. If you pull the red handle along the fence you can find out how long the spring coil inside Walter’s pocket watch was. At the end of the fence you will see a display case with two letters written by one author with two names. After reading these notes, turn around and search for the first clue hidden under some trees. The Clock Company employee who found Walter’s watch brought it home to his children. Unfortunately, the children lost it as they played by the hill overlooking Waterbury. ***Inside the box you will find a stack of slips of colored paper. Each slip is numbered and has a clue written on it. Take one of these slips and leave the rest in the box. This will be used to help you find the final box in the seires.***

A few weeks later, a local barber took a long walk over the hills of the town. As he sat down to admire the view, he discovered a pocket watch had fallen by a tree, and he decided to keep it. He took it to work with him the next day, but when he reached for it he found that it had slipped from his pocket. “Where could that watch have gone?” the barber wondered quietly to himself. Head back towards the watch shop to continue your search. Turn right by the computer game. Walk past the watch-making activity and enter the Clock Gallery. As you walk through the gallery, stand in front of the mirror and look for the clock that is unlike any other. Take a moment to read about this unique clock before looking under the cabinet with the double doors to find where Walter’s watch hid next.

Years later, a woman found the little pocket watch as the factory was making room for the new stock of Disney watches that had just been released. It had been tucked safely under a cabinet that hadn't been moved in years. She decided to keep it, but after a long day getting the factory ready for the new watches, she'd lost track of it. Exit the clock gallery and help produce a brand new watch. *If the materials for this are not already at the watch making station, they are at the front desk.* At the end of the assembly line take a look at the giant Mickey Mouse pocket watch mounted on the wall. Watch Mickey chase himself around the small rotating wheel until the arrow reaches 40. Head in that direction and search around the Disney watch display case for clue number 3.

Descend the stairwell to the second floor. To your left is an exhibit about Timex in the 1940s. Take some time to browse this exhibit and then continue with the clues...

By the 1960's The Waterbury Clock Company had changed names to Timex, and the watches were well known for being extremely durable. John Cameron Swayze was a T.V reporter who broadcast the "stress tests" that demonstrated the strength of these watches. One day, as he toured the Timex factory in preparation for a commercial, he noticed a bin of old character watches that had been shoved aside. Sifting through these, he pulled out a little gold antique pocket watch. "I wonder if this will stand up to our famous stress tests. Let's see if this little gem will take a licking and keep on ticking," Swayze thought to himself. He pocketed the treasure. But on the day that he planned to strap it to an outboard motor, Swayze couldn't find the watch anywhere. Like every owner before him, the TV reporter had dropped the pocket watch. Find the videos of John Cameron Swayze and try the outboard motor exhibit located on the second floor of the museum. Look at the black and white cutout of the man behind the commercials. Reach behind his left leg to find your fourth clue.

The next owner of the pocket watch was the famous Easter Island explorer, Thor Heyerdahl. He found it one morning as he strolled around the Timex factory with his friend Fred Olson (the owner of the company). Saving it as a token of good luck, Heyerdahl planned to take it to Easter Island with him during his next expedition. Turn from the image of Swayze and follow the watch on its way to Easter Island. Pass the tunnel with the feet that glow green, then pass through the time tunnel to find yourself in a different world. To your left is a large globe. Stand in front of it, facing the windows and find Easter Island. It is off the West Coast of South America. Thor Heyerdahl traveled to the island in a boat made of reeds. On the morning of his voyage, he checked that the pocket watch was safely in his luggage and headed to the water. Follow the explorer to the shore. You will find your reed boat hidden in the grass. This is your fifth clue.

Sail your reed boat across the ocean. When Thor landed on Easter Island, one of the first things he saw was a Moai statue. Dock your boat here. Later in the day, Thor climbed a banana tree to gather food for dinner. Little did he know, the pocket watch he kept close for good luck fell from the tree and was lost in the brush below. Thor didn't find the watch again, but another member of his expedition crew did. Clue number six is lying in the leaves to the right of the tree.

When the crew returned from Easter Island, the newest owner of the watch entered into a competition to predict what watches and clocks might look like in the year 2154. He planned to use the pocket watch as inspiration for his timepiece invention. A convention to demonstrate the new watches was held in Cahokia, Illinois. Unfortunately, when the young inventor attended the convention to show off his ideas, like all those before him, he found that the watch had mysteriously disappeared. Travel down the stairs to the first floor.

Walk past the mural on your left and see what Cahokia might have looked like many centuries ago. Go to the tall orange/red pillar in the center of the room. Find the winning submission for Conceptual watches that matches the one contained in the pillar. Look to the right of this display. Reach into the opening near the floor. Behind the display is your final clue to find Walter's lost watch.

Compile the slips of paper that you have collected. Follow these clues to find Walter's watch.