"Meet me under the Clock!" The Great Clocks have been a popular Chicago meeting place for more than 100 years. The tradition began when Marshall Field was walking to work and noticed many scraps of paper that were stuck between the windows and exterior of his Marshall Field's store. These scraps of paper had times and places or departments scribbled on them to let their friends know where to find them. Known for always "giving the lady what she wants," Marshall Field installed the first Great Clock on the corner of State and Washington in 1897 to establish a meeting place.

The first Great Clock was designed by Pierce Anderson of Graham, Anderson, Probst and White. Weighing 7 ¾ tons of cast bronze and standing 17 ½ feet above the sidewalk, this first Great Clock immediately became "Chicago's new meeting place." Ten years later, Field saw the need for another Great Clock and a replica was installed on the corner of State and Randolph.

In November 1945, Norman Rockwell immortalized the Great Clocks in a painting, The Clockmender, for the cover of The Saturday Evening Post. The popularity of the magazine transformed the Great Clocks from an local Chicago meeting place to an icon.

These Great Clocks, known as the "Sentinels of State Street" with their ornamental ironwork and timeless beauty still remain a popular meeting place for Chicagoans and visitors alike, becoming city icons and making State Street, that Great Street! Over the years the Great Clocks have been dressed up to reflect city and store events. To celebrate Culinary Week the clocks were adorned with chef's hats and during Breast Cancer Awareness month, they gave off a radiant pink glow. They even donned baseball caps to celebrate the Chicago White Sox World Series Championship. These Clocks are truly a part of the flagship store and Chicago history. This is a stop on our audio tour or guided tours, and always available day and night, Macy's on State Street invites you to meet under the clock!