In 1836, the Royal Observatory at Greenwich could compute the time accurately down to the exact second. However, in a era where there was no radio, TV, internet, or telephones, there was no way a business miles from the observatory could benefit from this information in order to set its clocks.
John Henry Belville, an astronomer and meteorologist who worked at the observatory, saw the situation as a way to make a few extra pounds. He set up a horological subscription service where he sold the exact time to patrons in London. Each week, Belville would synchronize his superbly accurate pocket chronometer (which he named "Arnold") to the observatory and then take the chronometer around to his customers, who would then use it to set their own clocks.
Belville eventually died (duh) and left his business and Arnold to his wife and then to his daughter. The family shut down the service altogether in 1940, when modern technology had made it pretty well useless.
One of the primary reasons the Royal Observatory was so obsessed with computing accurate time was that the vessels in the Royal Navy needed to know the exact time in order to calibrate a ship's chronometer before going on a voyage. A good chronometer was crucial in determining longitude while navigating.
I originally learned of John Belville from the November, 2012 issue of mental_floss magazine. If you enjoy Henry's Daily Factoids, you for sure would love the magazine version and website of mental_floss. I highly recommend them both.
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