His was a talent surpassing others of his generation. Known simply as Frédéric Houriet, he was one of the celebrated antique clock makers of his time. He was born on the 25th of February, 1743 in La Chaux-d'Abel. His father was a watchmaker; at a young age he learned to appreciate the art of clock making and would one day be famed for it. He was the apprentice of another well known clock maker, Abraham Louis Perret for quiet some time. He later moved to Paris in order to further his knowledge in the business. He was very lucky to have been trained by other famous clock makers such as the renowned Julien Le Roy. He also studied under the watch of some great French watchmakers during his era such as Louis Recordon, Antide Janvier and Jean Romilly. He even trained with fellow Swiss clock maker Ferdinand Berthoud.
In 1768, Houriet went back to Le Locle and started a couple of family-run workshops. The most famous workshop he made was with his brother-in-law David Courvoisier. It was then that Courvoisier & Houriet, which later became Le Locle’s most famous --- not to mention important --- employer, was made. Aside form watches of their own designs, they also sold time pieces ade by other watch makers from Le Locle. In addition to his growing business and reputation as an excellent clock maker, he also created several designs for his fellow clock maker friends such as Abraham-Louis Breguet and even made most of the time watches of Ferdinand Berthoud.
After making quite a name in the clock-making business in the last forty years, Houriet left his family business and decided to work on his own. Impressively, at seventy five, he began making exceptional watches such as then famous pocket chronometer. In his never ending search for perfection and precision for his time pieces, he continued studying as well as his experiments, which proved beneficial because it resulted in great contributions to the field of antique clocks. These inventions included the gold balance spring, resolving the theory and influence of magnetism with regards to the rte of chronometers, and the spherical balance spring as the answer to isochronism of the balance spring’s oscillation.
Aside from his innovations and numerous contributions to watch-making, he also published a series of essays and articles regarding his inventions, over which he won prizes and even became an honorary member of the French Academy of Sciences. He became “the father of accurate horology and marine chronometry” and was one of Switzerland’s prized and eminent watchmakers who promoted in Le Locle the idea of precision horology. Until today, only a few were celebrated and honored in the field if watch making in Switzerland, famed not just for the chocolates but for their timeless timepieces as well. Houriet proved that there is no age limit in achieving your goals, that as long as you persevere and stay on track, nothing could stop you from getting on top of your game, again, and again.