The largest clock and watch museum on the West Coast resides on the grounds of the 

Vista Antique Gas and Steam Engine Museum. 

National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors (NAWCC) Chapter 180-Friends of the West Coast Clock & Watch Museum was formed to grow and maintain WCCWM. Members come from the USA and Canada. They provide the financial, educational, and volunteer support that brings this unique and amazing museum to the public.

The West Coast Clock and Watch Museum (WCCWM) was founded as an American non-profit organization in September 2000.

The Northwest Coast Council of Chapters and Pacific Northwest National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors (NAWCC) members founded the museum, which was originally located on the third floor of the Bellingham, WA Old City Hall. The city offered support to get the museum started. The exhibits comprised less than 150 square feet and were designed as three department store windows. The museum stayed in that location for 15 years. Then Bellingham city government informed the museum that earthquake refitting and pressing funding shortfalls required that the city hall be closed for more than a year.

Museum officers started a search for a new home in the spring of 2015 and the Antique Gas & Steam Engine Museum (AGSEM) (a non-profit corporation and living history museum) offered to collaborate with the WCCWM. WCCWM became part of AGSEM’s “family” of museums and organizations. The museum is located on San Diego County Department of Parks and Recreation land, located at 2040 North Santa Fe Avenue, Vista, CA.

The horological collection was moved into a much larger space in AGSEM’s History of Local Agriculture building and equipped with satellite partitions for display. All of the timepieces were installed in only three days. The grand opening was on June 18, 2016. Members of the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors Association Chapter 180, Friends of the West Coast Clock and Watch Museum, from all around the US serve as museum docents, provide financial support and artifact donations, and maintain the clocks and watches. The members also volunteer by providing docent and museum maintenance assistance as well as staffing for public educational programs and events. The museum is a major West Coast facility specializing in horological display and history featuring clocks and watches from US and European makers.

The museum vision is for a building with a four-dial clock tower, more display space, administrative and work areas, and storage. Museum publications include a quarterly online newsletter, and a website. The museum is open on the weekends from 10am-4pm and conducts regular educational programs for enthusiasts including classes on repair and evaluations of timepieces.