Brady Crom painted the stars on the hands when the clock was installed in the early 1980s. Back then, Crom helped his dad, Theodore Crom, repair and paint the clock that the elder Crom donated to the City. It's the clock from Gainesville's old courthouse, which dates to 1885, and which was razed in the early 1960s. It was missing one set of hands, Brady Crom says, and he made a new pair out of cypress.
The five stars represent all the major wars this country has fought since 1885. The four silver stars on the minute hand represent the Spanish American war, WWI, WWII and the Korean War. The red star on the hour hand represents the Vietnam War.
Source: Newspaper column, Gainesville Sun, 12/6/92
