McGraw clocked: Cornell campus time stood still

Some people say that summer days in Ithaca are so lovely it seems that time stands still. Last week, according to the famous clock on Cornell's McGraw Tower, it did.

The hands on the four clock faces that loom "far above Cayuga's waters" were frozen at 7:46 since the weekend of Aug. 9-10. While the exact cause was not determined, Cornell officials speculated that some of the clock's components were damaged during a series of heavy storms that swept through the area. Many visitors who came to campus after last week's northeast electricity blackout assumed that the power outage was responsible, according to tour guides.

Technicians from Cornell's Electric Shop, with some outside help, repaired the clock Aug. 18.

The Cornell Chimes have rung over campus, marking the hours, for more than 130 years. The bells and a Seth Thomas clock were placed in McGraw Tower when the structure was completed in 1891. Every week for 68 years, a student had to perform the arduous task of winding the clock weights, which ran the length of the tower. In 1957 the Seth Thomas clock was replaced by an electronic mechanism that ran all four clock faces independently, which often meant observers saw four different times.

Student chimesmasters perform daily concerts during the school year, making Cornell's one of the most frequently played set of chimes in the world. In 1997, the tower garnered national media attention when late-night pranksters adorned the tower's spire with what turned out to be a hollowed-out pumpkin.

The chimes were refurbished and enlarged to 21 bells during a renovation of McGraw Tower in 1998-99, making them the largest set of chimes in North America. The work included replacing the 46-year-old electronic clock with a new mechanism that links all four faces to a Global Positioning System (GPS), which communicates the exact Eastern Standard Time data via satellite, ensuring up-to-the-minute time.

The chimesmasters are still climbing the 161 tower stairs every day to perform music that ranges from Cornell's alma mater to Broadway and rock tunes. Each day begins at -- yes -- 7:45 a.m. with the playing of "Cornell Changes," known affectionately as the "Jennie McGraw Rag" in honor of the donor of the original bells. That song has heralded every morning concert since 1869, as dictated by A.D. White, Cornell's first president. Performing the "Rag," which has 549 notes that must be played in less than three minutes, is a feat of musical stamina.

Despite nature's storms and the failures of man-made power systems, students returning to campus this week will be able to set their watches to Cornell's most famous landmark.