Bryn Mawr 100: John Fish & Son Jewelers

Nestled in the heart in of Bryn Mawr lies a place where you can’t go two minutes without hearing the sound of a chiming clock. Everything from the Charlie Brown theme song to the traditional, poetic Westminster Chime can be heard any second of the day amongst the constant ticking of the clocks. The place is and it is found at 1022 W. Lancaster Ave.

Though called a jeweler, John Fish & Son Jewelers is not your run-of-the-mill jewelry shop as they specialize in the sales and maintenance of clocks—and it’s been ticking for 120 years.

John Fish emigrated from England to America in 1888 and began his watch making career. He briefly returned to England in 1891 to get married, then returned with his wife the same year and built John Fish Jewelers, just two doors up from the current location. Fish and his wife spent their lives there, raising eight children, three of which entered the clock business. In the late 1920s two sons, William and Fred, each opened their own businesses; William, in Ardmore and Fred, in Media. The son who stayed in Bryn Mawr, Walter, bought the business from his father in the early 1930s and other than the building, not much has changed. It is a family grown and family-run business now run by David Fish, Walter’s son, and Charlie Scott, David’s nephew.

With the recent recession causing many businesses to close up shop, John Fish has managed to maintain stability through not only this tough economic period, but many others, including one in the history books called the Great Depression.

“What’s kept our business healthy is that we’re very service oriented,” explained David Fish amongst the friendly and familiar chatter that is common between John Fish customers and employees. “I was just out on house calls maintaining grandfather clocks. We used to go all over to wind clocks as well,” continued Fish. “There’s always a place for our business. Babies are still being born, people are still getting married and there’s still Christmas.”

David and his father would go into different estates and houses such as Waverly Heights, a former 63-acre estate in Gladwyne now a retirement center, and the Morris household, now known as Dundale Hall, on ’s campus.

Although the art of having to wind clocks has faded with time, David still does house calls to maintain clocks everywhere from Lancaster to Maryland to Wilmington to New Jersey.

“My favorite part of the job is working in these beautiful houses,” said David.

Word of mouth and the relocation of customers is how the small shop in Bryn Mawr is referred to by households hours away.

“A lot of our customers have retired and moved over the years but they still keep in touch,” said David.

Much of the customer makeup of the shop is regulars who have been using their services for years.

“One of my favorite customers just passed away,” explained David. “But that’s where we are now. I started when I was 20 years old, and I was serving customers of my father. So now we’re taking care of third and fourth generations of families just like us who work here. I’m third generation and Charlie is fourth generation.”

When the original John Fish & Son Jewelers was built, it was one of the first shops in the area but there was a reason for its placement.

“My grandfather walked from the to the Rosemont station and picked a spot that was halfway between the two,” said David.  

In 1950, the house attached to the original shop was sold, but the Fish’s continued to rent the space for the business until 1973 when they moved two doors down to the current location. The original location is now a furniture store.

John Fish customers touch history, literally, every time they walk into the current shop as the door handle is the same door handle from the original building. Behind the counter are the original cash register and safes. The sound of the constant ticking is endearing and somewhat symbolizing as the jewelry shop keeps ticking with time with no end in sight.

“I love Bryn Mawr. I’ve lived here my whole life,” explained David. “And I love clocks. I’ve found my niche.”

Editor's Note: This is the third in a . Check back with Bryn Mawr-Gladwyne Patch for more profiles leading up to the Sept. 10 celebration.