Alfred Rosling Bennett
Encyclopedia
Alfred Rosling Bennett was an English
electrical engineer.
, London. He then took a job with the India
n government telegraph
department.
He returned to Britain in 1873 and was responsible for pioneering work in incandescent electric lighting
in the early 1880s. He also patent
ed an iron-alkali battery
, a ceramic telegraph insulator and a telephone
transformer
.
In 1895 he established a telephone system in Guernsey
and later became engineer to the municipal telephone systems in Glasgow
, Tunbridge Wells
, Portsmouth
, Brighton
and Hull
. He was also the first Engineer Manager of the States of Jersey Telephone Department (now Jersey Telecom
) when it took over the system from the GPO
in 1923.
He had a lifelong interest in railways
and was vice-president of the Institution of Locomotive Engineers in 1911.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
electrical engineer.
Career
A. R. Bennett studied at Belle Vue Academy, GreenwichGreenwich
Greenwich is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.Greenwich is best known for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian and Greenwich Mean Time...
, London. He then took a job with the India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n government telegraph
Telegraphy
Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages via some form of signalling technology. Telegraphy requires messages to be converted to a code which is known to both sender and receiver...
department.
He returned to Britain in 1873 and was responsible for pioneering work in incandescent electric lighting
Incandescent light bulb
The incandescent light bulb, incandescent lamp or incandescent light globe makes light by heating a metal filament wire to a high temperature until it glows. The hot filament is protected from air by a glass bulb that is filled with inert gas or evacuated. In a halogen lamp, a chemical process...
in the early 1880s. He also patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
ed an iron-alkali battery
Battery (electricity)
An electrical battery is one or more electrochemical cells that convert stored chemical energy into electrical energy. Since the invention of the first battery in 1800 by Alessandro Volta and especially since the technically improved Daniell cell in 1836, batteries have become a common power...
, a ceramic telegraph insulator and a telephone
Telephone
The telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
transformer
Transformer
A transformer is a device that transfers electrical energy from one circuit to another through inductively coupled conductors—the transformer's coils. A varying current in the first or primary winding creates a varying magnetic flux in the transformer's core and thus a varying magnetic field...
.
In 1895 he established a telephone system in Guernsey
Guernsey
Guernsey, officially the Bailiwick of Guernsey is a British Crown dependency in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy.The Bailiwick, as a governing entity, embraces not only all 10 parishes on the Island of Guernsey, but also the islands of Herm, Jethou, Burhou, and Lihou and their islet...
and later became engineer to the municipal telephone systems in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in west Kent, England, about south-east of central London by road, by rail. The town is close to the border of the county of East Sussex...
, Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
, Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
and Hull
Kingston upon Hull
Kingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of...
. He was also the first Engineer Manager of the States of Jersey Telephone Department (now Jersey Telecom
Jersey Telecom
JT Global is the former monopoly incumbent operator in the Bailiwick of Jersey. Jersey is incorporated into the UK National Telephone Numbering Plan area codes of +44 1534 for landlines and +44 7797 for Jersey Telecom mobiles, +44 7700 for Cable and Wireless mobiles and +44 7829 for Jersey Airtel...
) when it took over the system from the GPO
GPO
-Organisations:*General Post Office **General Post Office UK*German Patent Office, *United States Government Printing Office, a federal government agency*Green Party of Ontario, a policial party in Ontario, Canada...
in 1923.
He had a lifelong interest in railways
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
and was vice-president of the Institution of Locomotive Engineers in 1911.
Books
A. R. Bennett wrote several books, including:- The First Railway in London (the London and Greenwich RailwayLondon and Greenwich RailwayThe London and Greenwich Railway was opened in London between 1836 and 1838. It was the first steam railway to have a terminus in the capital, the first of any to be built specifically for passenger service, and the first example of an elevated railway....
) - Historic Locomotives
- London and Londoners in the 1850s and 1860s
- A Saga of Guernsey
- The Telephone Systems of the Continent of Europe
- The Chronicles of Boulton's SidingBoulton's SidingBoulton's Siding was a British locomotive-hire business owned by Isaac Watt Boulton and situated alongside the Oldham branch of the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway at Ashton-under-Lyne. It operated from 1864 to 1898.-Overview:...
Sources
- Introduction by John Marshall to "The Chronicles of Boulton's Siding" by Alfred Rosling Bennett, published by David & Charles, 1971, ISBN 0-7153-5318-7