Joseph Smith Clockmaker of Barthomley and Chester

Joseph Smith three train turret clock for Chester Cathedral
Chester Cathedral Clock
There was already a clock in the cathedral, which was wound
and maintained by Charles Whitehead, smith and mason of the
city. In September 1724, the cathedral accounts book lists
£0 5s 0d spent ‘at Bargaining for a new Church clock’. This may
well have been a meeting between Joseph Smith and the
cathedral authorities, at which the clock was offered as a
‘master piece’. No records of any monies spent on acquiring the
clock have yet been found, which could indicate that it was
made as a gift. Towards the end of the following year James
Comberbach, timber merchant, was paid £2 11s 0d ‘for timber
for ye clock case’ and two months later Charles Whitehead
received his final payment of £0 8s 0d for ‘tending ye old clock’.
Even though religious communities relied on their clocks to
timetable their lives and services, clocks were not highly
valued. They are rarely mentioned in church histories, whereas
bells are described in detail. The cathedral archives have been
only partially indexed. The four account books contain the only
known records relating to Joseph Smith’s clock that were
written during his lifetime. All the available indexes have been
searched for other references to the clock. It was customary for
a clockmaker to commit to maintain a turret clock during his
lifetime. This was certainly the case with the cathedral clock.
Joseph Smith was paid annually, usually at Michaelmas, for
maintenance of the clock. The annual salary for the job was
£0 16s 0d and remained unchanged from 1727 until 1766.