Now On View: John Roberts' Tall Case Clock

John Roberts, a prosperous Quaker and mill owner who lived northwest of Philadelphia, attempted to remain neutral during the early years of the Revolutionary War. But when 18 Philadelphia-area members of the Society of Friends, including Henry Drinker, were exiled in August 1777 for “aiding and abetting the cause of the enemy,” Roberts took action. He rode to the British lines and appealed to the British Army for assistance, though Roberts was ultimately unsuccessful in rescuing the exiled Friends.

In August 1778, Pennsylvania officials arrested Roberts for his alleged involvement with British forces and imprisoned him at the High Street Prison, located a block away from where the Museum is today. His ensuing trial sparked controversy for its speed and brutality. Despite calls for his pardon from hundreds of Philadelphians, John Roberts was hanged for treason on November 4, 1778.

The Pennsylvania government confiscated a tall case clock from the Roberts family in 1778 and returned it to Roberts’s widow, Jane Downing Roberts, in 1792. The clock is now on view in the gallery The War at Home.