Ridgeway Clocks
A Virginia furniture business turned grandfather clock maker, best known for the clocks handed to Martinsville Speedway winners since 1964.
From Gravely Furniture to grandfather clocks
Ridgeway's story starts in Henry County, Virginia, with a furniture company. The Martinsville-Henry County Historical Society, which held a talk on the company's history in May 2026, says R.P. Gravely and other local businessmen put up $100,000 in stock about a century earlier to start it.
The Gravely Furniture Company set up in an uptown Martinsville building that B.F. and R.P. Gravely had used to make pins and brackets for telegraph and telephone lines. According to the society, it made household furniture until the early 1960s, when it turned to grandfather clocks. The clocks were sold under the Ridgeway name, and the business later had its clock plant and headquarters in Ridgeway, Virginia.
The Martinsville Speedway clock
Ridgeway's most famous clocks never went to a showroom. Since 1964, Martinsville Speedway has given a Ridgeway grandfather clock to the winners of its major races, a tradition the historical society and Hermle both date to that year. Furniture Today's 2007 account puts the start more loosely in the mid-1960s.
Furniture Today reported in 2007 that the speedway's founder, H. Clay Earles, wanted a trophy unlike any other, and that Fred Lorenzen was the first NASCAR driver to win one. By then some drivers had collected a row of them: the same report counted 12 for Darrell Waltrip and seven for Jeff Gordon.
The clocks became so tied to the track that, by Furniture Today's account, the race had come to be called the race for the Ridgeway grandfather clock.
See also: what makes a grandfather clock tick and chime on OnlineClock.app.
Pulaski, Howard Miller and the end of Ridgeway
Pulaski Furniture Corporation bought Gravely Furniture in 1985. Furniture Today reported that Pulaski made only floor clocks under the Ridgeway name during its 19 years as owner, and that in November 2004 it sold the Ridgeway name and facilities to Howard Miller of Zeeland, Michigan. The trade paper noted that the sale left Howard Miller and Sligh as the only two American floor clock makers.
Howard Miller first ran Ridgeway as a separate company and said it would keep the Virginia plant open. By 2007, Furniture Today reported, Ridgeway clocks were being made in Zeeland, although the brand's headquarters stayed in Ridgeway, Virginia.
When Howard Miller announced in 2025 that it would wind down, Ridgeway went with it. Hermle North America, which took over the Martinsville trophy for 2026, describes Ridgeway as the Howard Miller subsidiary that originally made the clock and refers to its closure. Hermle later renamed the trophy after the speedway's founder, H. Clay Earles. Reports on Howard Miller's 2026 relaunch under new owners do not mention Ridgeway.
How to identify a Ridgeway clock and find its numbers
The model and serial number are the details that matter most for parts, manuals and history. A Ridgeway owner's manual says the label with those numbers can be on the shipping carton, on the back of the door, on the back or top of the case, inside the top back corner, or inside the case above the back of the dial. Use a flashlight and take care not to knock the weights or pendulum.
The movement is another clue. Hermle says Ridgeway had a deal with it for movements at various times over the years, so a Hermle movement in a Ridgeway case is not unusual. We could not find a reliable published guide to decoding Ridgeway serial numbers, so treat any year read from one as a guess until a repairer or catalog confirms it.
Howard Miller's help center still links to a page of Ridgeway manuals and warranties. For an older clock, a clock repairer who knows tall-case movements is the best person to confirm its age and condition.
See also: getting a stopped floor clock checked by a repairer on OnlineClock.app.
Questions people ask
Is Ridgeway still in business?
No. Ridgeway was owned by Howard Miller from 2004, and it closed when Howard Miller wound down in 2025. Howard Miller has since relaunched under new owners, but reports on the relaunch do not mention the Ridgeway brand.
How do I find out how old my Ridgeway clock is?
Start with the model and serial number label, which a Ridgeway manual says may be inside the door, on the back or top of the case, or inside above the dial. We found no reliable public guide to decoding the serial, so ask a clock repairer to read the label and movement together.
Who makes the Martinsville Speedway grandfather clock now?
Hermle North America of Amherst, Virginia, took over the trophy for the 2026 season after Ridgeway closed. It builds the cabinets at its Amherst plant, uses movements from Hermle's German headquarters and has named the trophy after the speedway's founder, H. Clay Earles.
Keep exploring
Sources
- The Right Place, The Right Time: The Story of Ridgeway Clocks (MHC Historical Society, 2026)
- Pulaski sells Ridgeway (Furniture Today, November 2004)
- Ridgeway clocks reward Martinsville race winners (Furniture Today, July 2007)
- Hermle North America proud to be clockmaker for Martinsville Speedway racing trophy (Hermle, 2026)
- Ridgeway Grandfather Clock owner's manual (online copy)
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