October 13, 2015, 10:07
David BuckdenTrans-Atlantic Exports
I retain a lot of interest in the English watchmaking trade's demise during the nineteenth century. This, to a large extent, was courtesy of the new-fangled American manufacturers.
In researching a just-published post on my blog,
www.theoldwatchword.blogspot.co.uk I came across an English craftsman, George Abbott. George, against the run of play in transatlantic horological traffic, exported himself to the East Coast, where he found employment with John Bliss & Co. Whilst with this company, George won medals at the Paris exhibition of 1900.
With my focus on English watches, I was not familiar with John Bliss. I now know that he created very good chronometers having discovered the most excellent website of Norman Bliss:
http://blisschron.org/jbliss.html. If you don't already know it, I highly recommend a visit, but be prepared for an extended period of browsing as you'll be fascinated by the content!
October 14, 2015, 17:07
Robert McClellandDavid, thanks for posting the Bliss website. Very thorough and interesting. A chronometer maker that I was not familiar with.