Joseph Chamberlain Memorial Clock Tower

rdf:langString Joseph Chamberlain Memorial Clock Tower

rdf:langString Joseph Chamberlain Memorial Clock Tower

rdf:langString Joseph Chamberlain Memorial Clock Tower

rdf:langString University of Birmingham

rdf:langString England

rdf:langString Birmingham

rdf:langString Listed Grade II*

rdf:langString The Joseph Chamberlain Memorial Clock Tower, or colloquially Old Joe, is a clock tower and campanile located in Chancellor's court at the University of Birmingham, in the suburb of Edgbaston. It is the tallest free-standing clock tower in the world, although its actual height is the subject of some confusion. The university lists it as 110 metres (361 ft), 99 metres (325 ft), and 100 metres (328 ft) tall, the last of which is supported by other sources. In a lecture in 1945, Mr C. G. Burton, secretary of the University, stated that "the tower stands 329 ft [100 m] high, the clock dials measure 17 ft [5.2 m] in diameter, the length of the clock hands are 10 and 6 ft [3.0 and 1.8 m], and the bell weighs 5 long tons [5.1 tonnes]". The tower was built to commemorate Joseph Chamberlain, the first Chancellor of the University (with the commemoration being carved into the stone at the tower's base), although one of the original suggested names for the clock tower was the "Poynting Tower", after one of the earliest professors at the University, Professor John Henry Poynting. A prominent landmark in Birmingham, the grade II* listed tower can be seen for miles around the campus, and has become synonymous with the University itself.