William Prevost and His Outstanding Clocks.

In 2003 the Antiquarian Horological Society organised an exhibition of the finest 17th century clocks made by the leading clockmakers in England, which were illustrated and described in their book “Horological Masterworks”. Clocks by Ahasuerus Fromanteel, Edward East, William Clement, Joseph Knibb, Thomas Tompion, Henry Jones, Daniel Quare and Christopher Gould, were illustrated among the 53 entries, as well as some lesser-known clockmakers.
In the section of the book entitled “Perfection” was a year duration longcase clock by ‘William Prevost of Newcastle’ in a fine marquetry case, made c.1695 (also illustrated in Early Clock and Watchmakers of the Blacksmiths’ Co. Fig. 8/110). So, who was this relatively unknown clockmaker making outstanding clocks in Newcastle, as fine as the best clockmakers in England at the end of the 17th century?

When William Prevost married Margaret Baudouin at St Mary Magdalen Church, Old Fish Street, London on 1st Feb 1689/90, he was described as a 27-year-old clockmaker of Newcastle. William’s sister Francoise Prevost had married Christopher Baudouin (his wife’s brother), a silk designer of Spitalfields, on 9th May 1683 at St. James’ Church, Dukes Place, London, at which time William would have been serving his apprenticeship in London. William would have been apprenticed about 1677-85 and may have remained as a journeyman until about 1687, after which time he could have decided to try and set up his own workshop in Newcastle. The reason why he chose Newcastle instead one of the other major industrial towns, we may never know.
​While in Newcastle Prevost made a number of outstanding marquetry-cased longcase clocks including, at least three with month movements, one superb year duration clock with tidal information on the dial, and a fine three train musical clock (figs 1, 2 &3).
This musical clock with its 10 inch square brass dial, has large cherub head spandrels, a small seconds dial below XII, turning around the three winding squares and a small date aperture below the lower winding square, with some engraving. The chapter ring is signed in the minute band on the bottom edge W. Prevost New=30=castle.​

Fig. 1 William Prevost musical longcase clock

​The movement (fig.3) has an anchor escapement and rear locking-plate striking. The third train of the movement operates the musical drum with its 11 bells, made c. 1690. This musical drum arrangement is very similar to a musical clock and musical movement illustrated in Horological Masterworks, both made by Ahaseurus Fromanteel c.1665. Prevost did not just make clocks while in Newcastle c.1687-1699, but also sold other things. On 5th June 1692 Sir Thomas Haggerston of Haggerston Castle, Nd., recorded in his accounts that he purchased a fine riding mask for 10/- and had three watches repaired by ‘Mr. Prouve’, costing 8/-.

Fig. 2 William Prevost musical clock dial

​William Prevost returned to London about 1700 after his competition with Deodatus Threlkeld in 1699 to see who could make the finest clock. William and his family were living in Paternoster Row, Spitalfields when his daughter Marguerite Gabrielle, was baptised in the French Church on 3rd Nov. 1700, the godparents were Christopher Baudouin and Gabrielle Takourdin. Thanks to Mr. Nigel Prevost we now know some of the Prevost family history. ​William and his wife Margaret had at least two children born in Newcastle, William, born about 1695 who married Elizabeth De la Balle on 17th Apr. 1725 and was an  ​engraver working in St Giles and St Anne’s parish, Soho and buried there 23rd July 1761.

 A daughter Frances, born about 1698 in Newcastle who married Philip Barraud, merchant of Greenwich, about 1720 and they had two sons, Philip (b 1724), who became an engraver and Francis Gabriel(b1727-1795), who became a watchmaker. Philip Barraud senior died in January 1731/2 and was buried at St Alfege, Greenwich on 1st Feb. 1731/2.  ​

​We know that Francis Gabriel Barraud, son of Philip a deceased merchant of Greenwich, was apprenticed to John Neale, watchmaker, on 2nd Mar 1741/2 in the Skinners’ Company and freed c.1750. Francis bound five apprentices between 1755-1767 including his son Paul Philip Barraud on 7th April 1767 in the Skinners’ Co., when he was working in St Giles in the Fields parish as a watchmaker. Paul Philip Barraud was freed in 1774 and worked for his father until 1795 when he took over the business by which time the workshop was in Fleet Street. Paul Philip Barraud joined the C.C. in 1796 and ran the family business until his death in 1820. Cedric Jagger has extensively researched the Barraud family including the watches and chronometers they made but we still do not know much about William Prevost’s early life and where he was trained.

​Looking at the clocks Prevost produced one wonders if he could have been trained in the Fromanteel workshop? Brian Loomes tells us that Ahaseurus Fromanteel left London during the Plague of 1665 but was in the Hague in 1668 on business with his son Abraham Fromanteel. Abraham was in Newcastle from about 1669-1680 where he bound Deodatus Threlkeld as an apprentice from 1671-1678.

Fig. 3: William Prevost musical clock movement

​Meanwhile Ahaseurus Fromanteel returned to London in 1676 (Loomes) and William Prevost would have been apprenticed about 1677-85. The Fromanteel workshop in Southwark had not been affected by the Fire of 1666 but the Lothbury workshop had been destroyed. Abraham Fromanteel had settled in Newcastle where his wife Priscilla gave birth to a daughter Mary who was baptised on 21st April 1679. Unfortunately, Priscilla died and was buried on the 29th April 1679 and their baby daughter Mary also died and was buried on 29th Nov. 1679. Abraham was then recalled to London by his father to take over the family business there. He returned to London in 1680 and took his freedom of the C.C. on 16th Sept. 1680 (Daniels).

​William Prevost would have been almost half-way through his term of apprenticeship in 1680. The knowledge that Abraham Fromanteel had about the wealthy merchants in Newcastle would have been very useful to William when he later went there and sold his wonderful year duration clock to a merchant who needed information about the tides down the East coast for ships taking goods to London. When Abraham eventually returned to Newcastle in 1711 he must have taken a year duration clock with him because he raffled a year clock for 10/- shillings a ticket which he advertised in the Newcastle Courant on Monday 20th August 1711 (Bates). We cannot conclude that Prevost was trained in the Fromanteel workshop until we have more evidence, but it was a possibility. Meanwhile we can admire the outstanding clocks he made during his brief stay in Newcastle.
We do not know how long Prevost worked in London after 1700, his death has not been recorded, but there were at least two other William Prevost working at the same time as the clockmaker. William Prevost surgeon was buried at St. Mary Le Strand on 24 Nov., 1703. William Prevost a fan-maker of Soho, married Susanne Lienard in 1698 and later married Anne Angibaud in 1706. 

If you are interested in any of the clockmakers and watchmakers mentioned in this blog, you might consider my latest book, Early clock and watchmakers in the Blacksmith's Company.