The Beale Memorial Clock Tower was given to the City of Bakersfield by Truxtun Beale in memory of his mother, Mary Edwards Beale. Dedicated on April 2, 1904, it originally stood in the center of the intersection of Chester Avenue and 17th Street in downtown Bakersfield. In the summer of 1952, a series of earthquakes in Kern County caused extensive damage, and the tower was demolished afterward. Only the original clock works, bell, iron stairway, balcony railings, and arch grillwork were saved. In 1961, local citizens formed the Beale Memorial Clock Tower Restoration Committee to build a replica, incorporating the original pieces into the new masonry. The reconstructed tower was dedicated at the Kern County Museum on December 13, 1964.