For some months now, in the village of Alne, time has stood still. The public clock at Alne Village Hall has stopped and, from inside the Hall, the familiar sounds of the clock can no longer be heard.

The clock has been part of Alne’s history dating back to the 1890’s. It is a unique double faced clock (faces on both the inside and outside of the hall) and was installed by the esteemed York clock maker GJF Newey.

The mechanism that drives the Village Hall clock was almost certainly made by the famous York-based scientific instrument maker Cook, Troughton and Simms, ‘instrument makers to the world’ (McConnell, 1992). The mechanism, described by the restorer of the Great Clock at Westminster, Keith Scobie-Youngs, as being of ‘very high quality and beautifully made’, is made of a distinctive bronze alloy. It has an A-shaped frame, reminiscent of the Cook, Troughton and Simms astronomical regulators, such as the two that are currently in the collection of The Royal Observatory at Greenwich.

Two specialist companies came to the hall to assess the clock and both were of the opinion that the mechanism of the clock was in good condition for a clock of its age and although in need of an overhaul, the historical value of the clock was such that it should be restored.

The clock is a great asset to the village of Alne. It is a connection to Greenwich and to the important advances in scientific knowledge that took place in Victorian and Edwardian-era York.

A preliminary inspection indicates that rain water has penetrated the mechanism behind the external dial, causing the clock to stop.

The restoration of the mechanism will be carried out by York-based clocks conservator, Matthew Read. Matthew’s recent clients include The National Trust, English Heritage, The Bar Convent York and York Minster. You can see some of Matthew’s recent work in episode 4 of the BBC 2 television series, ‘Hidden Treasures of the National Trust’ (see link below).

Matthew is based in York, where his grandfather worked at Cooke, Troughton and Simms. To this day, a few of his hand tools remain as a reminder of what it is like to carry forward ‘clockmaker’ to a third generation.

Post-restoration, the clock at Alne Village Hall will continue to give many decades of service to the community: keeping events on time, contributing to the soundscape of the village, and reminding residents of their links to important developments in science and engineering.

As you can imagine, this specialist work comes at a price and the cost of the work is £3,500 plus the cost of hiring scaffolding/working tower while the clock is removed and replaced. We have already received two generous grants from APC (Alne parish council) and Councillor Nigel Knapton's locality fund, therefore we have set our target at £2,000 to cover the costs. Any additional funds raised will go towards the future maintenance plan for the clock.

We are hoping the work will begin towards the end of July and be fully restored by the end of August.

Thank you for taking the time to read, let's get this important asset fully restored.

References:

Hidden Treasures of the National Trust (2024). Episode 4, Series Two. BBC2. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001yzxh/hidden-treasures-of-the-national-trust-series-2-episode-4

McConnell, A. (1992). Instrument Makers to the World: History of Cook, Troughton and Simms from 1750. York: William Sessions Ltd.

Matthew Read, Clockmaker-Conservator: https://www.clockmaker-conservator.co.uk/bio