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Friday, May. 2, 2025

Are the clockfaces on Minneapolis City Hall larger than those on Big Ben?

Winter Keefer, MinnPost
yes

The diameter of the clockfaces on Minneapolis City Hall is larger than the diameter of the clockfaces on Big Ben, the famous Elizabethan Tower in London.

Each clock has four faces, which are 24 feet, 4 inches in diameter at Minneapolis City Hall and just under 24 feet in diameter on Big Ben. 

Soon, all city staffers and City Council members will fully return to the historic Minneapolis City Hall following the completion of a two-year, multimillion dollar renovation. 

Designed by local architects Frank Long and Frederick Kees, the building at 350 S. 5th St. in Minneapolis was built between 1889 and 1906. The clock tower was built a decade later. The 345-foot-tall clock tower was the city’s tallest structure until the Foshay Tower was built in the 1920s. 

Big Ben is one of London’s most famous attractions, but local tours of Minneapolis City Hall are also offered by the city’s Municipal Building Commission.

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