Amy Bartner

amy.bartner@indystar.com

Indiana Landmarks hoped to raise $20,000 by Nov. 7 to fix the 80-year-old bronze clock outside the former L.S. Ayres department store Downtown.

Community members, however, had different plans.

They donated three times that amount.

A higher goal of $60,000 was raised more than a week before a self-imposed deadline.

"The fundraising was going really well," Indiana Landmarks Executive Vice President Tina Connor said. "When it was going so well, we thought we’d look at the bronze to see if it needs repair. When a maintenance man went up to check on it, a piece of the case came off in his hands."

RetroIndy: L.S. Ayres & Co.

The original plan was to raise $10,000 to repair the clock itself and $10,000 for maintenance.

Indiana Landmarks will now buy four new faces with a slightly more deco appearance, fix the lighting on the inside and repair the bronze.

In all, the repairs will cost about $30,000, leaving a maintenance fund of about $25,000 to $30,000.

"We thought if people are so interested in contributing to this, and we could raise the money to repair it, why wouldn't we do it the right way and make it look like it did in 1936," Connor said. "We're glad to be able to declare success."

The initial repairs to fix the mechanical damage in the clock will be finished by mid-November, Connor said, and will be unveiled in a ceremony at that time. The bronze work will begin in spring.

The Nov. 7 deadline was intended to allow enough time for repairs before the bronze cherub is placed on the clock the night before Thanksgiving, a tradition since 1947. L.S. Ayres left the block in 1992. Today, Carson's department store is in the space at the southwest corner of East Washington and South Meridian streets.

The clock, 29 feet above the street, is bigger than it looks from ground level. It's 8 feet tall and weighs 10,000 pounds and is large enough for a person to stand up inside it. It's unknown when the clock stopped working.

Two concerned residents brought its plight to the attention of Indiana Landmarks two months ago to see what needed to happen to fix it.

So Indiana Landmarks put a donation page up on its website, and within hours money began pouring in. The organization accepted donations by mail, too.

"We've gotten everything from $2 and a Post-It note to $10,000," Connor said. "It's been great fun to be involved with something that resonated with people."

Downtown Ayres clock needs your money to tick again

And it resonated. Connor received numerous comments from donors sharing fond memories of the clock.

"My aunt worked at Ayres for 25 years in custom dress design," one wrote. "I worked there part-time in the 1960s in the men's department. My wedding dress came from Ayres. I hope enough money can be raised for the repair."

Another: "My mom used to bring me downtown to Ayres at Christmas time when I was little. I miss that store more than I could tell you."

Call IndyStar reporter Amy Bartner at (317) 444-6752. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.