John Rennie (father)
Encyclopedia
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...
who designed many bridge
Bridge
A bridge is a structure built to span physical obstacles such as a body of water, valley, or road, for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle...
s, canal
Canal
Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
s, and dock
Dock (maritime)
A dock is a human-made structure or group of structures involved in the handling of boats or ships, usually on or close to a shore.However, the exact meaning varies among different variants of the English language...
s.
Early years
Rennie, a farmer's younger son, was born at Phantassie, near East LintonEast Linton
East Linton is a town in East Lothian, Scotland, situated on the River Tyne and A199 road five miles east of Haddington, with a population of 1,774...
, East Lothian
East Lothian
East Lothian is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and a lieutenancy Area. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Scottish Borders and Midlothian. Its administrative centre is Haddington, although its largest town is Musselburgh....
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, and showed a taste for mechanics at a very early age, and was allowed to spend much time in the workshop of Andrew Meikle
Andrew Meikle
Andrew Meikle was an early mechanical engineer credited with inventing the threshing machine, a device used to remove the outer husks from grains of wheat. This was regarded as one of the key developments of the British Agricultural Revolution in the late 18th century...
, millwright
Millwright
A millwright is a craftsman or tradesman engaged with the construction and maintenance of machinery.Early millwrights were specialist carpenters who erected machines used in agriculture, food processing and processing lumber and paper...
, the inventor of the threshing machine, who lived at Houston Mill on the Phantassie
Phantassie
Phantassie is an agricultural hamlet near East Linton, East Lothian, Scotland. It is close to the River Tyne, Preston Mill, and Prestonkirk Parish Church....
estate. After receiving a rudimentary education at the parish school of Prestonkirk Parish Church
Prestonkirk Parish Church
Prestonkirk Parish Church is a Church of Scotland parish church at East Linton, in the parish of Traprain, East Lothian, Scotland, UK, close to Preston Mill, Smeaton, Phantassie, and the River Tyne.-Building:...
, he was sent to the burgh school at Dunbar
Dunbar
Dunbar is a town in East Lothian on the southeast coast of Scotland, approximately 28 miles east of Edinburgh and 28 miles from the English Border at Berwick-upon-Tweed....
, and in November 1780 he matriculated at the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
, where he remained until 1783. His older brother George
George Rennie (agriculturalist)
George Rennie , agriculturist, son of James Rennie, farmer, of Phantassie, Haddingtonshire , and elder brother of John Rennie, the engineer, was born on his father's farm in 1749....
remained to assist in the family agricultural business, achieving notability in this arena.
He seems to have employed his vacations in working as a millwright, and so to have established a business on his own account. At this early date the originality of his mind was exhibited by the introduction of cast iron
Cast iron
Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...
pinions instead of wooden trundles. In 1784 he took a journey south for the purpose of enlarging his knowledge, visiting James Watt
James Watt
James Watt, FRS, FRSE was a Scottish inventor and mechanical engineer whose improvements to the Newcomen steam engine were fundamental to the changes brought by the Industrial Revolution in both his native Great Britain and the rest of the world.While working as an instrument maker at the...
at Soho, Staffordshire. Watt offered him an engagement, which he accepted, and after a short stay at Soho he left for London in 1784 to take charge of the works at the Albion Flour Mills, Blackfriars, for which Boulton & Watt were building a steam-engine. The machinery was all designed by Rennie, a distinguishing feature being the use of iron instead of wood for the shafting and framing. About 1791 he started in business as a mechanical engineer on his own account in Holland Street, Blackfriars, whence he and his successors long conducted engineering operations of vast importance. (In the same year, the Albion Flour Mills were destroyed by arson).
Canals and waterways
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...
and set up his own engineering business, having by then begun to expand into civil engineering
Civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings...
, particularly the construction of canal
Canal
Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
s. His early projects included the Lancaster Canal
Lancaster Canal
The Lancaster Canal is a canal in the north of England, originally planned to run from Westhoughton in Lancashire to Kendal in south Cumbria...
(started 1792), the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation
Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation
The Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation is the canalisation of the Rivers Chelmer and Blackwater in Essex, in the east of England. The navigation runs for from Springfield Basin in Chelmsford to the sea lock at Heybridge Basin near Maldon. It was opened in 1797, and remained under the control of...
(1793), the Crinan Canal
Crinan Canal
The Crinan canal is a canal in the west of Scotland. It takes its name from the village of Crinan at its westerly end. Nine miles long, it connects the village of Ardrishaig on Loch Gilp with the Sound of Jura, providing a navigable route between the Clyde and the Inner Hebrides, without the need...
(1794), Rudyard Lake
Rudyard Lake
Rudyard Lake is a reservoir in Rudyard, Staffordshire constructed by the engineer John Rennie, for the Trent and Mersey Canal company in 1797/98 to feed the Caldon Canal....
(1797) and the Dundas Aqueduct
Dundas Aqueduct
Dundas Aqueduct carries the Kennet and Avon Canal over the River Avon and the Wessex Main Line railway from Bath to Westbury, near Limpley Stoke in Wiltshire, England....
on the Kennet and Avon Canal
Kennet and Avon Canal
The Kennet and Avon Canal is a waterway in southern England with an overall length of , made up of two lengths of navigable river linked by a canal. The name is commonly used to refer to the entire length of the navigation rather than solely to the central canal section...
(1800). This was followed by the Rochdale Canal
Rochdale Canal
The Rochdale Canal is a navigable "broad" canal in northern England, part of the connected system of the canals of Great Britain. The "Rochdale" in its name refers to the town of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, through which the canal passes....
, which passes through difficult country between Rochdale
Rochdale
Rochdale is a large market town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the foothills of the Pennines on the River Roch, north-northwest of Oldham, and north-northeast of the city of Manchester. Rochdale is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan...
and Todmorden
Todmorden
Todmorden is a market town and civil parish, located 17 miles from Manchester, within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, in West Yorkshire, England. It forms part of the Upper Calder Valley and has a total population of 14,941....
. He subsequently in 1802 revised the plans for the Royal Canal of Ireland
Royal Canal of Ireland
The Royal Canal is a canal originally built for freight and passenger transportation from the River Liffey at Dublin to the River Shannon at Cloondara in County Longford in Ireland. It fell into disrepair, but since has been restored for navigation...
from Dublin to the Shannon
River Shannon
The River Shannon is the longest river in Ireland at . It divides the west of Ireland from the east and south . County Clare, being west of the Shannon but part of the province of Munster, is the major exception...
near Longford
Longford
Longford is the county town of County Longford in Ireland. It has a population of 7,622 according to the 2006 census. Approximately one third of the county's population resides in the town. Longford town is also the biggest town in the county...
. For many years he was engaged in extensive drainage operations in the Lincolnshire and Norfolk fens (1802–1810), and in the improvement of the River Witham
River Witham
The River Witham is a river, almost entirely in the county of Lincolnshire, in the east of England. It rises south of Grantham close to South Witham, at SK8818, passes Lincoln at SK9771 and at Boston, TF3244, flows into The Haven, a tidal arm of The Wash, near RSPB Frampton Marsh...
. The Eau Brink Cut, a new channel for the River Ouse
River Great Ouse
The Great Ouse is a river in the east of England. At long, it is the fourth-longest river in the United Kingdom. The river has been important for navigation, and for draining the low-lying region through which it flows. Its course has been modified several times, with the first recorded being in...
, was completed just before his death.
Bridges
Over the next few years Rennie also attained a deserved reputation as a builder of bridges, combining stone with new cast-iron techniques to create previously unheard-of low, wide, elliptical arches, at Leeds BridgeLeeds Bridge
Leeds Bridge is a historic river crossing in Leeds, England. The present cast iron road bridge dates from 1730. It is Grade II listed.The medieval town of Leeds centred on 13th century burgess building plots either side of a wide road from the river crossing called Bridge Gate, now Briggate...
, and in London at Waterloo Bridge
Waterloo Bridge
Waterloo Bridge is a road and foot traffic bridge crossing the River Thames in London, England between Blackfriars Bridge and Hungerford Bridge. The name of the bridge is in memory of the British victory at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815...
(1811–1817), with its nine equal arches and perfectly flat roadway (thought to be influenced by Thomas Harrison
Thomas Harrison (architect)
Thomas Harrison was an English architect and engineer. He built a number of bridges, including Grosvenor Bridge in Chester. He also rebuilt parts of Chester and Lancaster castles...
's design of Skerton Bridge
Skerton Bridge
Skerton Bridge is a road bridge carrying the southbound lanes of the A6 road over the River Lune in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The bridge has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building.-History:...
over the River Lune
River Lune
The River Lune is a river in Cumbria and Lancashire, England.It is formed at Wath, in the parish of Ravenstonedale, Cumbria, at the confluence of Sandwath Beck and Weasdale Beck...
in Lancaster). His later efforts in this line also show that he was a skilful architect, endowed with a keen sense of beauty of design. Waterloo Bridge, London Bridge
London Bridge
London Bridge is a bridge over the River Thames, connecting the City of London and Southwark, in central London. Situated between Cannon Street Railway Bridge and Tower Bridge, it forms the western end of the Pool of London...
– built from his design, though not completed until 1831, after his death – and Southwark Bridge
Southwark Bridge
Southwark Bridge is an arch bridge for traffic linking Southwark and the City across the River Thames, in London, England. It was designed by Ernest George and Basil Mott. It was built by Sir William Arrol & Co. and opened in 1921...
(1815–1819) best attest his skill. He also designed the Old Vauxhall Bridge.
Docks and harbours
Rennie was also responsible for designing and building docks at HullKingston 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...
, Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, Greenock
Greenock
Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
, London (London
London Docks
The London Docks were one of several sets of docks in the historic Port of London. They were constructed in Wapping downstream from the City of London between 1799 and 1815, at a cost exceeding £5½ million. Traditionally ships had docked at wharves on the River Thames, but by this time, more...
, East India
East India Docks
The East India Docks was a group of docks in Blackwall, east London, north-east of the Isle of Dogs. Today only the entrance basin remains.-History:...
and West India
West India Docks
The West India Docks are a series of three docks on the Isle of Dogs in London, the first of which opened in 1802. The docks closed to commercial traffic in 1980 and the Canary Wharf development was built on the site.-History:...
docks), and Leith
Leith
-South Leith v. North Leith:Up until the late 16th century Leith , comprised two separate towns on either side of the river....
and improving the harbours and dockyards at Chatham
Chatham Dockyard
Chatham Dockyard, located on the River Medway and of which two-thirds is in Gillingham and one third in Chatham, Kent, England, came into existence at the time when, following the Reformation, relations with the Catholic countries of Europe had worsened, leading to a requirement for additional...
, Devonport
HMNB Devonport
Her Majesty's Naval Base Devonport , is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy . HMNB Devonport is located in Devonport, in the west of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England...
, Portsmouth
HMNB Portsmouth
Her Majesty's Naval Base Portsmouth is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the British Royal Navy...
, Holyhead
Holyhead
Holyhead is the largest town in the county of Anglesey in the North Wales. It is also a major port adjacent to the Irish Sea serving Ireland....
, Ramsgate
Ramsgate
Ramsgate is a seaside town in the district of Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century and is a member of the ancient confederation of Cinque Ports. It has a population of around 40,000. Ramsgate's main attraction is its coastline and its main...
and Sheerness
Sheerness
Sheerness is a town located beside the mouth of the River Medway on the northwest corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 12,000 it is the largest town on the island....
. He devoted much time to the preparation of plans for a government dockyard at Northfleet
Northfleet
Northfleet is a town in the Borough of Gravesham in Kent, England. Its name is derived from North creek , and the settlement on the shore of the River Thames adjacent to Gravesend was known as Norfluet in the Domesday Book, and Northflet in 1201...
, but they were not carried out. Rennie's last project was London Bridge, still under construction when he died in 1821 but completed by his son, also John Rennie.
Dunleary harbour of 'Asylum' was a very difficult and important project, because it was critical to maintain an effective communication link between Ireland and London, the seat of Government. An Act of Parliament of 1816 (56 Geo.III. Cap 62) authorised the commencement of work building the harbour. Originally it was intended that only one pier (the East Pier) would be built (3,500 feet long), and when John Rennie was appointed Directing Engineer for the work, he insisted that a single pier would result in sand drifting behind the pier and that a second West Pier ( 4,950 feet long.) would prevent this from occurring. He was correct as the sand has built up behind the west pier. The harbour once built was renamed 'The Royal Harbour of Kingstown' in 1821 on the occasion of the visit of George IV. The material for the harbour is Dalkey Hill granite. The granite was provided by Richard Toucher (a long time campaigner for the new harbour) at no cost to the construction team. The foundations of the piers are 300'-0" wide and 24'-0" below low water level. Many options were considered for the width of the space between the two pier heads. Rennie Snr. wrote to the Harbour Commissioners that the opening should be 430'-0" wide with the pier heads turned into the harbour to control swells within the harbour. His demands were never met and the harbour opening was built at 1,066'-0". This was clearly too wide and was subsequently reduced to 760'-0".
It is worth noting that the Bay formed between Kingstown Harbour and The Forty Foot is still known as Scotsman's Bay after the great John Rennie.
Bell Rock Lighthouse
The Bell Rock LighthouseBell Rock Lighthouse
Bell Rock Lighthouse is the world's oldest surviving sea-washed lighthouse and was built on Bell Rock in the North Sea, off the coast of Angus, Scotland, east of the Firth of Tay...
, near the entrance to the Firths of Forth
Firth of Forth
The Firth of Forth is the estuary or firth of Scotland's River Forth, where it flows into the North Sea, between Fife to the north, and West Lothian, the City of Edinburgh and East Lothian to the south...
and Tay
Firth of Tay
The Firth of Tay is a firth in Scotland between the council areas of Fife, Perth and Kinross, the City of Dundee and Angus, into which Scotland's largest river in terms of flow, the River Tay, empties....
, was built during 1807 and 1810. Rennie was, by some, credited with the design and execution, but there seems little doubt that he was only nominally responsible for the great undertaking. Robert Stevenson
Robert Stevenson (civil engineer)
Robert Stevenson FRSE MInstCE FSAS MWS FGS FRAS FSA was a Scottish civil engineer and famed designer and builder of lighthouses.One of his finest achievements was the construction of the Bell Rock Lighthouse.-Early life:...
, surveyor to the Commissioners of Northern Lights
Northern Lighthouse Board
The Northern Lighthouse Board is the General Lighthouse Authority for Scotland and the Isle of Man. It is a non-departmental public body responsible for marine navigation aids around coastal areas.-History:...
, drew the original plans and, at his suggestion, the commissioners called Rennie into counsel when the works were begun, bestowing on him the honorary title of chief engineer. Stevenson did not accept the modifications proposed by Rennie, but the two men remained on friendly terms. Rennie visited the lighthouse while it was being built. According to Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer. His best-known books include Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde....
, Stevenson's grandson, the Commissioners of Northern Lights paid Stevenson alone when the lighthouse was completed. When Stevenson died in 1850, the Commissioners put on record in their minutes that to him was 'due the honour of conceiving and executing the Bell Rock lighthouse'. But Rennie and his friends always claimed that the general advice which Rennie gave Stevenson entitled him to rank the building among his own achievements.
Plymouth breakwater
Of all Rennie's works, that which appeals most strongly to the imagination is perhaps the breakwaterPlymouth Breakwater
Plymouth Breakwater is a stone breakwater protecting Plymouth Sound and the anchorages therein. It is wide at the top and the base is . It lies in about of water. Around 4 million tons of rock were used in its construction in 1812 at the then-colossal cost of £1.5 million .-History:In 1806, as...
at Plymouth Sound
Plymouth Sound
Plymouth Sound, or locally just The Sound, is a bay at Plymouth in England.Its southwest and southeast corners are Penlee Point in Cornwall and Wembury Point on Devon, a distance of about 3 nautical miles . Its northern limit is Plymouth Hoe giving a north-south distance of nearly 3 nautical miles...
, consisting of a wall a mile in length across the Sound, in deep water, and containing 3,670,444 tons of rough stone, besides 22149 cubic yards (16,934.1 m³) of masonry on the surface. It was constructed in order to provide safe passage for naval vessels entering the river Tamar (Hamoaze) at Devonport. This colossal work was first proposed in a report by Rennie, dated 22 April 1806; an order in council authorising its commencement was issued on 22 June 1811, and the first stone was deposited on 12 August following. The work was completed by his son, Sir John Rennie, and by Joseph Whidbey
Joseph Whidbey
Joseph Whidbey was a member of the Royal Navy who served on the Vancouver Expedition 1791–1795, and later achieved renown as a naval engineer. He is notable for having been the first European to discover and chart Admiralty Island in the Alexander Archipelago in 1794.Little is recorded of...
.
Technical innovator
Rennie was a man of unbounded resource and originality. During the improvement of Ramsgate harbour he made use of the diving-bell, which he greatly improved. He is generally credited with the invention of a form of steam-dredging machine with a chain of buckets, but in this he seems to have been anticipated by Sir Samuel BenthamSamuel Bentham
Sir Samuel Bentham was a noted English mechanical engineer and naval architect credited with numerous innovations, particularly related to naval architecture, including weapons...
. But he was certainly the first to use it on an extensive scale, which he did during the construction of the Hull docks (1803-9), when he devised a steam dredger to overcome the difficulties of that particular work, and apparently without any knowledge of Bentham's invention. Another expedient was the use of hollow walls, which was suggested by the necessity of providing an extensive bearing surface for the foundations of a wall in loose ground. Walls built upon this plan were largely used by Rennie.
Distinguishing characteristics
The distinguishing characteristics of Rennie's work were firmness and solidity, and it has stood the test of time. He was most conscientious in the preparation of his reports and estimates, and he never entered upon an undertaking without making himself fully acquainted with the local surroundings. He was devoted to his profession, and, though he was a man of strong frame and capable of great endurance, his incessant labours shortened his life. He was elected Fellow of the Royal Society on 29 March 1798, and in 1815 he served as a Manager of the newly built London InstitutionLondon Institution
The London Institution was an educational institution founded in London in 1806...
.
He died, after a short illness, at his house in Stamford Street, London, on 4 Oct. 1821, and was buried in St. Paul's Cathedral. He married early in life Martha, daughter of E. Mackintosh, who predeceased him; by her he left several children, two of whom, George
George Rennie (engineer)
George Rennie was an engineer born in London, England. He was the son of the Scottish engineer John Rennie and the brother of Sir John Rennie.-Early life:...
and Sir John, went on to notability in their own rights.
Ruislip Lido Railway
The Ruislip Lido RailwayRuislip Lido Railway
The Ruislip Lido Railway is a gauge miniature railway around Ruislip Lido in Ruislip, west of central London. Running from the main station at Woody Bay by the lido's beach, on a track around the reservoir, the railway passes through Ruislip Woods to Ruislip Lido station near the Water's Edge...
, based at Ruislip Lido
Ruislip Lido
Ruislip Lido is a reservoir and artificial beach in Ruislip, within the London Borough of Hillingdon, situated between Ruislip Common, Ruislip Woods , and Poors Field....
(one of the dams John Rennie built), has named one of its locomotives after him. The Bo-Bo type diesel, 'John Rennie' was built in 2004 and is one of the main engines of the line.
List of projects
- Lune AqueductLune AqueductThe Lune Aqueduct is a navigable aqueduct that carries the Lancaster Canal over the River Lune, on the east side of the city of Lancaster in Lancashire, England. It is was completed in 1797 at a total cost of £48,320.18s.10d.It is a Grade I listed building....
(1794-97) - Dundas AqueductDundas AqueductDundas Aqueduct carries the Kennet and Avon Canal over the River Avon and the Wessex Main Line railway from Bath to Westbury, near Limpley Stoke in Wiltshire, England....
(1797) - KelsoKelso, ScotlandKelso is a market town and civil parish in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. It lies where the rivers Tweed and Teviot have their confluence...
Bridge, of five arches (1798) - Boston bridge, a cast iron arch (1800)
- London DocksLondon DocksThe London Docks were one of several sets of docks in the historic Port of London. They were constructed in Wapping downstream from the City of London between 1799 and 1815, at a cost exceeding £5½ million. Traditionally ships had docked at wharves on the River Thames, but by this time, more...
(1800-05) - MusselburghMusselburghMusselburgh is the largest settlement in East Lothian, Scotland, on the coast of the Firth of Forth, six miles east of Edinburgh city centre.-History:...
bridge (1803) - East India DocksEast India DocksThe East India Docks was a group of docks in Blackwall, east London, north-east of the Isle of Dogs. Today only the entrance basin remains.-History:...
joint project with Ralph Walker (1803-06) - LeithLeith-South Leith v. North Leith:Up until the late 16th century Leith , comprised two separate towns on either side of the river....
Dock (1804) plan not executed - GreenockGreenockGreenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
Docks (1806) - West India DocksWest India DocksThe West India Docks are a series of three docks on the Isle of Dogs in London, the first of which opened in 1802. The docks closed to commercial traffic in 1980 and the Canary Wharf development was built on the site.-History:...
(consultant to William JessopWilliam JessopWilliam Jessop was an English civil engineer, best known for his work on canals, harbours and early railways in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.-Early life:...
) extension to docks (1809) - LiverpoolLiverpoolLiverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
Docks, two new docks including Prince's, estimated cost £929,878 (1809) - Waterloo BridgeWaterloo BridgeWaterloo Bridge is a road and foot traffic bridge crossing the River Thames in London, England between Blackfriars Bridge and Hungerford Bridge. The name of the bridge is in memory of the British victory at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815...
(old), granite of nine arches each 120 feet wide (1810-17) cost £1,050,000 - Vauxhall BridgeVauxhall BridgeVauxhall Bridge is a Grade II* listed steel and granite deck arch bridge in central London. It crosses the River Thames in a south–east north–west direction between Vauxhall on the south bank and Pimlico on the north bank...
(two designs of old bridge 1810, neither used) - New GallowayNew GallowayNew Galloway is a town in Dumfries and Galloway Region, southwest Scotland. It lies on the west side of the valley of the Water of Ken, a mile north of the end of Loch Ken...
bridge, of granite (1811-21) - Cree Bridge at Newton StewartNewton StewartNewton Stewart is a burgh town in the south of Scotland in the west of the region of Dumfries and Galloway and in the county of Wigtownshire....
(1812-14) - ChepstowChepstowChepstow is a town in Monmouthshire, Wales, adjoining the border with Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the River Wye, close to its confluence with the River Severn, and close to the western end of the Severn Bridge on the M48 motorway...
cast iron bridge, (1812) design built later by local man - Plymouth BreakwaterPlymouth BreakwaterPlymouth Breakwater is a stone breakwater protecting Plymouth Sound and the anchorages therein. It is wide at the top and the base is . It lies in about of water. Around 4 million tons of rock were used in its construction in 1812 at the then-colossal cost of £1.5 million .-History:In 1806, as...
(1812-1841) completed by his son - Southwark BridgeSouthwark BridgeSouthwark Bridge is an arch bridge for traffic linking Southwark and the City across the River Thames, in London, England. It was designed by Ernest George and Basil Mott. It was built by Sir William Arrol & Co. and opened in 1921...
(old) of three cast iron arches (1814) replaced 1920 - Dunleary Asylum Harbour - later Kingstown Harbour- Later Dun Laoghaire Harbour. 1816-1842. Completed by his son. Cost £690,717 against the original estimate of £801,059.
- HullKingston upon HullKingston 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...
Middle Dock, cost £114,690 (1819) - DonaghadeeDonaghadeeDonaghadee is a small town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies on the northeast coast of the Ards Peninsula, about east of Belfast and about six miles south east of Bangor. It had a population of 6,470 people in the 2001 Census...
& PortpatrickPortpatrickPortpatrick is a village hanging on to the extreme south-westerly tip of mainland Scotland, cut into a cleft in steep cliffs.Dating back historically some 500 years, and built adjacent to the ruins of nearby Dunskey Castle, its position on the Rhins of Galloway affords visitors views of the...
Harbours (1819) estimated cost £145,000 - Leeds BridgeLeeds BridgeLeeds Bridge is a historic river crossing in Leeds, England. The present cast iron road bridge dates from 1730. It is Grade II listed.The medieval town of Leeds centred on 13th century burgess building plots either side of a wide road from the river crossing called Bridge Gate, now Briggate...
cast iron designed (1820), built after his death by the resident engineer G. Leather - Dublin Docks, introduces lightning conductors, gas works and gas lighting (1820)
- London BridgeLondon BridgeLondon Bridge is a bridge over the River Thames, connecting the City of London and Southwark, in central London. Situated between Cannon Street Railway Bridge and Tower Bridge, it forms the western end of the Pool of London...
(old), designed 1820, built after his death by his son (1824-31) moved to Lake Havasu CityLondon Bridge (Lake Havasu City)London Bridge is a bridge in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, United States, that is the reconstruction of the 1831 London Bridge that spanned the River Thames in London, England until it was dismantled in 1967. The Arizona bridge is a reinforced concrete structure clad in the original masonry of the...
in the U.S.A. - BlackwallBlackwall, LondonBlackwall is an area of the East End of London, situated in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets on the north bank of the River Thames.The district around Blackwall Stairs was known as Blackwall by at least the 14th century. This presumably derives from the colour of the river wall, constructed in...
Dock - Ruislip LidoRuislip LidoRuislip Lido is a reservoir and artificial beach in Ruislip, within the London Borough of Hillingdon, situated between Ruislip Common, Ruislip Woods , and Poors Field....
- Deeping FenDeeping FenDeeping Fen is a low-lying area in Lincolnshire in the east of England, which covers around . It is bounded by the River Welland and the River Glen, and is extensively drained, but the efficient drainage of the land exercised the minds of several of the great civil engineers of the 17th and 18th...
Drainage and pumping engines at Pode HolePode HolePode Hole is a small village to the west of Spalding at the confluence of several drainage channels. Two pumping stations discharge water into Vernatt's Drain from land in Deeping Fen to the South and West. Water from Pinchbeck South Fen to the North is also lifted into Vernatt's Drain...
(incomplete at his death)
See also
- Canals of the United KingdomCanals of the United KingdomThe canals of the United Kingdom are a major part of the network of inland waterways in the United Kingdom. They have a colourful history, from use for irrigation and transport, through becoming the focus of the Industrial Revolution, to today's role for recreational boating...
- History of the British canal systemHistory of the British canal systemThe British canal system of water transport played a vital role in the United Kingdom's Industrial Revolution at a time when roads were only just emerging from the medieval mud and long trains of pack horses were the only means of "mass" transit by road of raw materials and finished products The...