A ‘YS’ investigation a decade in the making; What happened to Karl’s Klocks?

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — There’s a place in Syracuse where time seems to stand still.

We turn to a NewsChannel 9 ‘Your Stories’ investigation – a decade in the making.

NewsChannel 9’s Rachel Polansky first started reporting on Karl’s Klocks in 2014  – after several customers said they brought family heirlooms to the clock repair shop and couldn’t get them back.

Time’s been ticking but ten years later, we finally have answers to one of ‘Your Stories.’

“Even though it’s been 22 years, I’d still like that clock back,” a woman told Polansky in 2014.

For many – these clocks were more than timepieces; they were cherished links to the past.

“The clock was a wedding present to my grandmother and grandfather,” a man told Polansky in 2014.

Polansky stopped by the clock shop in July 2014 to ask the owner directly.

“Why aren’t people getting their clocks back?” Polansky asked Karl’s Klocks owner, Karl Kascha.

“That’s a good question. Because they’re irresponsible. Most people have no problems getting their clocks back,” owner Karl Kascha told Polansky in 2014.

But the customers we talked with a decade ago​ had nothing but problems after they dropped their family heirlooms at Karl’s Klocks for minor repairs.

When Polansky pressed the store’s owner, Karl Kascha, he asked her to leave.

That interview was 10 years ago. Times have changed. The city of Syracuse has foreclosed on Karl’s Klocks. And Karl Kascha has passed away. Kascha’s wife told Polansky her husband had a misdiagnosed brain tumor for many years, as well as cancer.

“The story continues,” David Haas, creator of @ SyracuseHistory said.

That’s where David Haas comes in. Through his popular social media account, @SyracuseHistory, he shines a spotlight on architectural gems in Syracuse.

With 171,000 followers on Instagram and 279,000 on TikTok , Haas gets the opportunity to explore unique buildings.

He occasionally works with Greater Syracuse Land Bank – which received the Karl’s Klocks building after the city’s foreclosure. The Land Bank gave Haas permission to enter the building. And that’s how Haas’ passion for preserving Syracuse’s history led him to a remarkable discovery.

“The first time I walked in, and each time, I was just overwhelmed and in awe,” Haas said, as he described walking into Karl’s Klocks in 2020. “They were on the ground, on the walls, on shelves, just everywhere.”

Haas discovered hundreds of clocks – mostly broken – many of which still had tags on them with customer names, dates and phone numbers. Haas had an idea.

“Honestly, I was just like I wonder if I can help now,” Haas said.

He wanted to reunite the clocks with their owners. Once the Greater Syracuse Land Bank gave him the okay, he began calling the phone numbers.

“How many people would you say you called?” Polansky asked.

“Hundreds,” Haas said. “Several hundred.”

Most numbers were disconnected. But Haas managed to reach about 50 people – half of whom wanted their clocks back.

“He was so shocked, and I was so shocked so we met up literally the next day,” Kyle Lockhart said.

Kyle Lockhart was one of those people. Lockhart’s grandfather brought a clock to Karl’s Klocks in the 1990’s. He’s since passed away so Lockhart gave the family heirloom to his mother.

“She was very excited and taken aback because she thought she had everything of his. She didn’t even know this existed,” Lockhart added.

Sharon Beacham shares a similar story.

“I actually was shocked,” Sharon Beacham said. “I was really excited because it was very important to my mother-in-law.”

Reminding us that while life moves forward, memories and connections to the past carry on, no matter how much time passes.

As for the clocks that were not reunited with their owners, we’re sorry to say they are gone.

After the foreclosure, the Karl’s Klocks building was sold – along with all of its contents.

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