Biography

Firbank was the son of a Durham miner, was born at Bishop Auckland

Bishop Auckland

Bishop Auckland is a market town and civil parish in County Durham in north east England. It is located about northwest of Darlington and southwest of Durham at the confluence of the River Wear with its tributary the River Gaunless...

 in 1819. At the age of seven he was sent to work in a colliery, and attended a night-school.
In 1841 he secured a sub-contract in connection with the Woodhead tunnel

Woodhead Tunnel

The Woodhead Tunnels are three parallel trans-Pennine 3-mile long railway tunnels on the Woodhead Line, a former major rail link from Manchester to Sheffield in northern England...

 on the Stockton and Darlington railway

Stockton and Darlington Railway

The Stockton and Darlington Railway , which opened in 1825, was the world's first publicly subscribed passenger railway. It was 26 miles long, and was built in north-eastern England between Witton Park and Stockton-on-Tees via Darlington, and connected to several collieries near Shildon...

, and in 1845 and 1846 took contracts on the Midland railway

Midland Railway

The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....

. The opposition to railway construction was so great at this time that on one occasion Firbank was captured and kept a prisoner for twenty-four hours. Noblemen would not permit the contractors or their workmen to approach their demesnes.

In 1848 Firbank was engaged on the Rugby and Stamford branch of the North-Western railway, and lost most of his savings by the bankruptcy of the former contractor of the line.

When the Monmouthshire Railway and Canal Company

Monmouthshire Railway and Canal Company

The Monmouthshire Railway and Canal Company built and operated the Newport and Pontypool Railway. It was known as "The Rat and Cat's".- Overview :...

 transformed their mineral tramways and canals into passenger railways in 1854, Firbank took the contract for dealing with the canals in the town of Newport, Monmouthshire. He also took the contract for the maintenance of the lines for seven years, and this contract was several times renewed. Firbank established himself at Newport, where he formed an intimate friendship with Crawshaw Bailey, the ironmaster, who supported him in his early undertakings. He was employed in South Wales for thirty years, until the absorption of the Monmouthshire company by the Great Western

Great Western Railway

The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...

.

In 1856 Firbank took a contract for the widening of the London and North-Western railway near London, and afterwards (1859–66) various contracts on the Brighton line

Brighton Main Line

The Brighton Main Line is a British railway line from London Victoria and London Bridge to Brighton. It is about 50 miles long, and is electrified throughout. Trains are operated by Southern, First Capital Connect, and Gatwick Express, now part of Southern.-Original proposals:There were no fewer...

. He was also engaged upon the Midland Company's Bedford and London extension (1864–1868), which involved great difficulties and ultimately cost the company upwards of £3,000,000. He was contractor in 1870 on the Settle and Carlisle extension of the Midland railway. He was afterwards contractor for many lines, the most difficult undertaking being the Birmingham west suburban section of the Midland railway.

In 1884 Firbank built the St. Pancras goods depôt of the Midland railway. The last contract taken by him was for the Bournemouth direct line from Brokenhurst to Christchurch

Christchurch

Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...

. It proved to be the most troublesome of all his undertakings, and was finally completed by his son, Joseph T. Firbank

Thomas Firbank (MP)

Sir Thomas Firbank was a British Conservative Party politician.He lived at St Julians, Newport, and was High Sheriff of Monmouthshire in 1891. At the general election in July 1885, he was elected as the Member of Parliament for Hull East...

. The lines constructed by Firbank from 1846 to 1886 amounted to forty-nine. All through his career he was a generous employer, doing his best to promote the welfare of those whom he employed.

Faibank was a justice of the peace

Justice of the Peace

A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...

 and deputy-lieutenant for the county of Monmouth. he died at his home, near Newport, on 29 June 1886.

Assessment

Firbank has been described as "an excellent specimen of the Englishmen who rise up not so much by any transcendent talents, as by intelligence and energy", and above all by a scrupulous "honesty, inspiring confidence". He was indefatigable in work, retiring to rest by nine o'clock and rarely rising later than five. His business faculties were very great.