Traub decides it's time to close shop

Traub decides it's time to close shop .A little bit of old-time craftsmanship will be leaving St. James this week, as Herb Traub plans to close his clock repair shop, 57 years after he came to St. James.

On Tuesday of this week, Traub was still busy, and was willing to share some of his knowledge of clocks. Gears, clock faces, and other parts were spread out on his work bench. Picking up a loose metal coil, he said “the main spring is six feet long; if it is unwound like this, it takes me a while to fix it.” At age 83, Traub has spent countless hours at his craft, most of it in St. James.

Traub started at the Chicago School of Watchmaking, taking a two-year course and a four-year apprenticeship. He came to St. James in the spring of 1950 to work at Jim DeYoung's jewelry shop. “He was a good teacher,” said Traub. In 1957, Traub opened his own watch and jewelry shop, and ran it until his first retirement in 1990. “But I found out I couldn't just sit all day, I needed something to do,” he said. So he opened the repair shop.


When Traub first learned the business, every watch was a wind-up, and he mostly worked on pocketwatches. He hardly sees any pocketwatches any more. “Now they are all quartz, and run on batteries,” he said. “They even have throwaway watches you can get for four or five dollars.” But people still own plenty of old-fashioned house clocks, including grandfather, chime and cuckoo clocks.

Traub has learned patience from his craft. “If you get disturbed by a watch, or mad at a watch, you better quit,” he said, “or you're going to do something you're sorry for.”

Traub said he is happy to have practiced his craft for 57 years. “It's relaxing to fix watches,” he said. He also appreciates the city that has supported him for all those years. “St. James has been very good to me,” he said, “I've enjoyed it very much.”

Visit our online site for a great selection of grandfather clocks .