Gordon Gutteridge
Encyclopedia
Alan Gordon Gutteridge was an Australia
n civil engineer
and a founder of Gutteridge Haskins & Davey (now known as the GHD Group
).
. He was the son of a medical doctor, and one of five children. His brother Hal was an engineer and later became mayor of the City of Westminster
in London
. Gordon attended Melbourne Grammar School
and later studied engineering at Melbourne University.
. He immediately went to Calgary
, Canada, and enlisted in the Canadian army the day after war was declared. During World War 1, Gutteridge served at the battles of Ypres
and the Somme. He was seriously wounded and taken prisoner. He made two unsuccessful escape attempts.
to finish his engineering studies. He won a Rockefeller scholarship and completed his master's degree at Harvard University
.
Gutteridge was later appointed director of the Commonwealth Division of Public Health Engineering. In 1928 he resigned from that position and commenced private practice in Melbourne. He specialised in water and sewerage schemes, especially in rural Victoria
and Tasmania
, but also designed other facilities such as abattoirs and saleyards.
In 1929, Gordon Gutteridge was elected a member of the Kew City Council
, and was mayor of Kew in 1933-34.
The practice of Gordon Gutteridge merged with that of Gerald Haskins and Geoffrey Davey
to form GHD
in 1939.
After the outbreak of World War 2, Gutteridge and his firm became involved in the design and construction of military camps and training schools. He travelled widely to investigate the state of the art in these facilities in the UK, the US and Canada.
Gutteridge had always suffered poor health and the effects of his World War 1 injuries never left him. He collapsed at his desk in February 1942 and did not recover.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n civil engineer
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 a founder of Gutteridge Haskins & Davey (now known as the GHD Group
GHD Group
GHD Pty Ltd is an engineering, architecture and environmental consulting firm.Established in 1928, GHD employs more than 6000 people across five continents and serves clients in the global markets of water, energy and resources, environment, property and buildings, and transportation.The company...
).
Early life
Gordon Gutteridge was born in Launceston, TasmaniaLaunceston, Tasmania
Launceston is a city in the north of the state of Tasmania, Australia at the junction of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River. Launceston is the second largest city in Tasmania after the state capital Hobart...
. He was the son of a medical doctor, and one of five children. His brother Hal was an engineer and later became mayor of the City of Westminster
City of Westminster
The City of Westminster is a London borough occupying much of the central area of London, England, including most of the West End. It is located to the west of and adjoining the ancient City of London, directly to the east of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and its southern boundary...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Gordon attended Melbourne Grammar School
Melbourne Grammar School
Melbourne Grammar School is an independent, Anglican, day and boarding school predominantly for boys, located in South Yarra and Caulfield, suburbs of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia....
and later studied engineering at Melbourne University.
War service
Gutteridge was on holiday in the US at the declaration of World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. He immediately went to Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
, Canada, and enlisted in the Canadian army the day after war was declared. During World War 1, Gutteridge served at the battles of Ypres
Second Battle of Ypres
The Second Battle of Ypres was the first time Germany used poison gas on a large scale on the Western Front in the First World War and the first time a former colonial force pushed back a major European power on European soil, which occurred in the battle of St...
and the Somme. He was seriously wounded and taken prisoner. He made two unsuccessful escape attempts.
Career
At the end of the war he returned to Canada for demobilisation, then back to MelbourneMelbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
to finish his engineering studies. He won a Rockefeller scholarship and completed his master's degree at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
.
Gutteridge was later appointed director of the Commonwealth Division of Public Health Engineering. In 1928 he resigned from that position and commenced private practice in Melbourne. He specialised in water and sewerage schemes, especially in rural Victoria
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....
and Tasmania
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
, but also designed other facilities such as abattoirs and saleyards.
In 1929, Gordon Gutteridge was elected a member of the Kew City Council
City of Kew
The City of Kew was a Local Government Area located about east of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia, on the southeast bank of the Yarra River. The city covered an area of , and existed from 1860 until 1994.-History:...
, and was mayor of Kew in 1933-34.
The practice of Gordon Gutteridge merged with that of Gerald Haskins and Geoffrey Davey
Geoffrey Davey
Geoffrey Innes Davey CBE was an Australian civil engineer and priest.Davey was born at Double Bay in Sydney to English-born law clerk Joseph Innes Davey and Caroline, née Hurley. He attended Marist Brothers' High School in Darlinghurst and then the University of Sydney, receiving a Bachelor of...
to form GHD
GHD Group
GHD Pty Ltd is an engineering, architecture and environmental consulting firm.Established in 1928, GHD employs more than 6000 people across five continents and serves clients in the global markets of water, energy and resources, environment, property and buildings, and transportation.The company...
in 1939.
After the outbreak of World War 2, Gutteridge and his firm became involved in the design and construction of military camps and training schools. He travelled widely to investigate the state of the art in these facilities in the UK, the US and Canada.
Gutteridge had always suffered poor health and the effects of his World War 1 injuries never left him. He collapsed at his desk in February 1942 and did not recover.