William Jacques was born in Bradford, Yorkshire, England on 24 June 1854 and was the son of the architect Plateras Lawson Jacques (1828-1870) with whom he was articled. He also studied science at the South Kensington Schools in London. In c.1874 he worked as an assistant in the office of the architect John Thomas Newman (1831-1896) in London and subsequently became a partner in the practice as Newman & Jacques. Following the death of Newman in 1896, his brother, John Henry Jacques (1868-1939) became a partner in the practice which retained its original name until 1939.
William Jacques was elected an Associate of the Royal Institute of British Architects (ARIBA) in 1880. His address was given as 2 Fen Court. 106 Fenchurch Street, London in 1879 and 1914. He died in Sutton, Surrey on 17 March 1919
Directory of British Architects 1834-1914. Compiled by Antonia Brodie, et al. Volume 2: L-Z. London; New York: British Architectural Library, Royal Institute of British Architects/Continuum, 2001
‘Obituary’. The Builder vol. 116, 28 March 1919 p. 305
‘Obituary’. Royal Institute of British Architects Journal vol. 26, April 1919 p. 141