Clement Wilks
Encyclopedia
Clement Wilks was a notable Civil Engineer
and Architect in colonial Victoria, Australia
.
, Surrey, 15 February 1819, the youngest son of the Rev. Mark Wilks, of Paris. He spent most of his early years in France and Switzerland and took his degree of Bachelor of Arts at the Collège de Paris in 1836.
After being engaged for a short time on the Paris
to Saint-Germain-en-Laye
railway, which opened in 1837, he went to England and was articled to Sir Charles Fox
, then of the London works and Resident Engineer of the London and Birmingham Railway
. His professional education was continued with Messrs. Fox, Henderson and Co. until 1841. In 1842 he had the chief management of a French engineering establishment on the Garonne, where he remained for three or four years. He then returned to England and was engaged to work with Mr. George Watson Buck, M.Inst.C.E. on the Ely and Huntingdon railway, then in the course of construction. After Mr. Buck's retirement from ill-health, he was associated with Mr. John Hawkshaw
in surveying for the Manchester and Southport line
and subsequently for the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
near Heckmondwike.
In 1850 he was engaged in superintending the construction of various public buildings in London, under the direction of the Society for Improving the Dwellings of the Poor
, a model of one of which was erected in connection with the Great Exhibition of 1851.
n Public Service, as an Assistant Colonial Engineer. He was an Engineer for the Central Road Board in the colony of Port Phillip, Australia, from 1854 to 1862.
Wilks practiced as an architect and engineer, having prepared designs for the Congregational Church, 24 Lyttleton Street West, Castlemaine
in 1855 (Listed on the Register of the National Estate: Place 4203)
Clement Wilks was appointed Ballarat
Road Engineer in 1857 having initially been stationed in Barkers Creek or Castlemaine. He had originally surveyed the Ballarat-Amherst main road (now the Old Ballarat Road) on which a series of unusually well-crafted bluestone bridges survives near Glendaruel, possible also to his design. He was also responsible for maintenance of the infamous corduroy road
between Bungaree
and Ballarat on the route from Geelong
. This section of the so-called 'Plank Road
' became legendary as a yardstick for bad roads in the colony of Victoria. It would appear that prior to Wilks being stationed in Ballarat, the roads of the district were administered from Melbourne.
Wilks also served on the Ballarat Sludge Commission, which was given the role of solving the flooding and silting problems caused by damage done by gold mining along the creeks.
Wilks remained in the post until January 1860 when he took a year's leave of absence to attend to 'urgent family matters in Europe', possibly in Switzerland where his family had connections, and he visited the United States and Canada, and then returned to Australia and resumed his former duties.
He joined the Department of Roads and Bridges in 1864, and reported on the road to the River Jordan Goldfield in the same year.
Wilks was a member of the Yarra Track
Committee responsible for building this coach and dray road to the Woods Point Goldfields. He designed a number or small bridges and culverts including the Wilks Creek Bridge
, that commemorates his name, on the Marysville
Road. (Listed on the National Trust of Australia (Victoria) Register: B6439 and on the Register of the National Estate: Place 102643).
Built in 1871 as part of the historic "Yarra Track", its thrust blocks indicate an original under-strutted design; it probably originally had a single span. The timber superstructure of the Wilks Creek Bridge was rebuilt by Monash & Anderson in about 1900 and it was probably at this time that it was altered to 2 spans.
Wilks may have also been responsible for the design of The Big Culvert
also on the "Yarra Track". (Listed on the National Trust of Australia (Victoria) Register: B5804 and on the Register of the National Estate: Place 5720).
In 1865, The Victorian Government having inaugurated a scheme for supplying water to the various mining districts, appointed him as the Resident Engineer to the Department of Water Supply, the position he occupied until his death in 1871. He was elected an Associate of the Institution of Civil Engineers
on 7 Dec 1869.
A monument was erected to him in St.Kilda Cemetery:
"Clement WILKS, Esq. J.P., late resident engineer, Victorian Water Supply Dept.
Erected by brother officers Departments of Victorian Water Supply and Roads & Bridges"
Civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...
and Architect in colonial Victoria, Australia
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
.
Early days
Clement Wilks was born at Peckham RyePeckham
Peckham is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Southwark. It is situated south-east of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London...
, Surrey, 15 February 1819, the youngest son of the Rev. Mark Wilks, of Paris. He spent most of his early years in France and Switzerland and took his degree of Bachelor of Arts at the Collège de Paris in 1836.
After being engaged for a short time on the Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
to Saint-Germain-en-Laye
Saint-Germain-en-Laye
Saint-Germain-en-Laye is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris from the centre.Inhabitants are called Saint-Germanois...
railway, which opened in 1837, he went to England and was articled to Sir Charles Fox
Sir Charles Fox
Sir Charles Fox was an English civil engineer and contractor. His work focused on railways, railway stations and bridges.-Biography:...
, then of the London works and Resident Engineer of the London and Birmingham Railway
London and Birmingham Railway
The London and Birmingham Railway was an early railway company in the United Kingdom from 1833 to 1846, when it became part of the London and North Western Railway ....
. His professional education was continued with Messrs. Fox, Henderson and Co. until 1841. In 1842 he had the chief management of a French engineering establishment on the Garonne, where he remained for three or four years. He then returned to England and was engaged to work with Mr. George Watson Buck, M.Inst.C.E. on the Ely and Huntingdon railway, then in the course of construction. After Mr. Buck's retirement from ill-health, he was associated with Mr. John Hawkshaw
John Hawkshaw
Sir John Hawkshaw , was an English civil engineer.-Early life:He was born in Leeds, Yorkshire and was educated at Leeds Grammar School...
in surveying for the Manchester and Southport line
Manchester and Southport Railway
The Manchester and Southport Railway in England opened on 9 April 1855. It merged with the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway in January 1885. The line eventually formed part of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway, 59.5 km Liverpool to Manchester route via a junction with the Liverpool and Bury...
and subsequently for the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway was a major British railway company before the 1923 Grouping. It was incorporated in 1847 from an amalgamation of several existing railways...
near Heckmondwike.
In 1850 he was engaged in superintending the construction of various public buildings in London, under the direction of the Society for Improving the Dwellings of the Poor
Model dwellings company
Model Dwellings Companies were a group of private companies in Victorian Britain that sought to improve the housing conditions of the working classes by building new homes for them, at the same time receiving a competitive rate of return on any investment...
, a model of one of which was erected in connection with the Great Exhibition of 1851.
Engineer, Colonial Victoria
In 1852, Clement Wilks left England for Australia, and immediately after arriving in Melbourne joined the VictoriaVictoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
n Public Service, as an Assistant Colonial Engineer. He was an Engineer for the Central Road Board in the colony of Port Phillip, Australia, from 1854 to 1862.
Wilks practiced as an architect and engineer, having prepared designs for the Congregational Church, 24 Lyttleton Street West, Castlemaine
Castlemaine, Victoria
Castlemaine is a city in Victoria, Australia, in the Goldfields region of Victoria about 120 kilometres northwest by road from Melbourne, and about 40 kilometres from the major provincial centre of Bendigo. It is the administrative and economic centre of the Shire of Mount Alexander. The...
in 1855 (Listed on the Register of the National Estate: Place 4203)
Clement Wilks was appointed Ballarat
Ballarat, Victoria
Ballarat is a city in the state of Victoria, Australia, approximately west-north-west of the state capital Melbourne situated on the lower plains of the Great Dividing Range and the Yarrowee River catchment. It is the largest inland centre and third most populous city in the state and the fifth...
Road Engineer in 1857 having initially been stationed in Barkers Creek or Castlemaine. He had originally surveyed the Ballarat-Amherst main road (now the Old Ballarat Road) on which a series of unusually well-crafted bluestone bridges survives near Glendaruel, possible also to his design. He was also responsible for maintenance of the infamous corduroy road
Corduroy road
A corduroy road or log road is a type of road made by placing sand-covered logs perpendicular to the direction of the road over a low or swampy area....
between Bungaree
Bungaree, Victoria
Bungaree is a town in Victoria, Australia. The town is located west of the state capital, Melbourne and east of the regional centre of Ballarat, on the Western Freeway and in the Shire of Moorabool local government area. At the 2006 census, Bungaree and the surrounding area had a population of...
and Ballarat on the route from Geelong
Geelong, Victoria
Geelong is a port city located on Corio Bay and the Barwon River, in the state of Victoria, Australia, south-west of the state capital; Melbourne. It is the second most populated city in Victoria and the fifth most populated non-capital city in Australia...
. This section of the so-called 'Plank Road
Plank road
A plank road or puncheon is a dirt path or road covered with a series of planks, similar to the wooden sidewalks one would see in a Western movie. Plank roads were very popular in Ontario, the U.S. Northeast and U.S. Midwest in the first half of the 19th century...
' became legendary as a yardstick for bad roads in the colony of Victoria. It would appear that prior to Wilks being stationed in Ballarat, the roads of the district were administered from Melbourne.
Wilks also served on the Ballarat Sludge Commission, which was given the role of solving the flooding and silting problems caused by damage done by gold mining along the creeks.
Wilks remained in the post until January 1860 when he took a year's leave of absence to attend to 'urgent family matters in Europe', possibly in Switzerland where his family had connections, and he visited the United States and Canada, and then returned to Australia and resumed his former duties.
He joined the Department of Roads and Bridges in 1864, and reported on the road to the River Jordan Goldfield in the same year.
Wilks was a member of the Yarra Track
Yarra Track
The Yarra Track is the former name of the gold fields road from Healesville to the Woods Point and Jordan Goldfields, in Victoria, Australia. A direct route via the Yarra River and the Great Divide, was discovered by Reick in September 1862. This became known as the `Yarra Track’. Early in 1863,...
Committee responsible for building this coach and dray road to the Woods Point Goldfields. He designed a number or small bridges and culverts including the Wilks Creek Bridge
Wilks Creek Bridge
Wilks Creek Bridge is a former timber and bluestone road bridge on the Yarra Track just off the picturesque Black Spur route, between Narbethong and Marysville, Victoria. It was built in 1870 to the design of colonial Public Works Department engineer Clement Wilks as part of the construction of a...
, that commemorates his name, on the Marysville
Marysville, Victoria
Marysville is a small town, 34 kilometres north-east of Healesville, in the Shire of Murrindindi in Victoria, Australia. The town, which previously had a population of around 500 people, was devastated by the Murrindindi Mill bushfire on 7 February 2009. On 19 February 2009 the official death toll...
Road. (Listed on the National Trust of Australia (Victoria) Register: B6439 and on the Register of the National Estate: Place 102643).
Built in 1871 as part of the historic "Yarra Track", its thrust blocks indicate an original under-strutted design; it probably originally had a single span. The timber superstructure of the Wilks Creek Bridge was rebuilt by Monash & Anderson in about 1900 and it was probably at this time that it was altered to 2 spans.
Wilks may have also been responsible for the design of The Big Culvert
The Big Culvert
The Big Culvert is a substantial bluestone arch culvert on the historic Yarra Track near Cambarville, Victoria, Australia. It was built in the 1870s as part of the improvements to the road from Melbourne to the Woods Point and Jordan Goldfields...
also on the "Yarra Track". (Listed on the National Trust of Australia (Victoria) Register: B5804 and on the Register of the National Estate: Place 5720).
In 1865, The Victorian Government having inaugurated a scheme for supplying water to the various mining districts, appointed him as the Resident Engineer to the Department of Water Supply, the position he occupied until his death in 1871. He was elected an Associate of the Institution of Civil Engineers
Institution of Civil Engineers
Founded on 2 January 1818, the Institution of Civil Engineers is an independent professional association, based in central London, representing civil engineering. Like its early membership, the majority of its current members are British engineers, but it also has members in more than 150...
on 7 Dec 1869.
A monument was erected to him in St.Kilda Cemetery:
"Clement WILKS, Esq. J.P., late resident engineer, Victorian Water Supply Dept.
Erected by brother officers Departments of Victorian Water Supply and Roads & Bridges"