The History of Alarm Clocks

Due to their exorbitant cost, mechanical clocks were effectively reserved for churches, royal palaces, and only the wealthiest of households through at least the 17th century. Interestingly, many of these early European clocks (and watches) had an alarm function. However, it was an American clockmaker named Levi Hutchins who built one of the first affordable alarm clocks in 1787. Hutchins created a wooden, cabinet-style clock that rang a bell each morning at 4 a.m. (his preferred time to wake up). However, he did not patent his intention. In 1847, a French clockmaker named Antoine Redier filed the first patent for an alarm clock. Then J.S. Turner patented his “Time-Alarm Clock” in the United States in 1852. “Illumination alarm clocks” that struck a match and lit an oil lamp soon became popular; they were essentially the first “sunrise alarm clocks.” But it wasn’t until 1876 that the Seth Thomas Clock Company patented the bedside alarm clock. Around the turn of the 20th century, it went into mass production and exploded in popularity. The first alarm clock featuring a snooze button was developed and released by General Electric-Telechron. Known as the Snooz-Alarm, it was released in 1956 and featured a notably futuristic design. Today, physical alarm clocks are still very popular, but smartphones and tablets have also been engineered to feature a range of easily programmable alarms that are widely utilized in the digital age.