Sarah Guppy
Encyclopedia
Sarah Guppy, née Beach was an English inventor who contributed to the design of Britain's infrastructure
and developed several domestic products.
asked her for permission to use her patented design for suspension bridge foundations, and she granted it to him free of charge. As a friend of Isambard Kingdom Brunel
and his family she became involved in the Great Western Railway, writing to the directors with ideas and giving her support. In 1841 she wrote a letter recommending planting willows and poplars to stabilise embankments. She continued to offer technical advice despite the fact that, as she wrote, ‘it is unpleasant to speak of oneself,—it may seem boastful particularly in a woman’.
s that led to a government contract worth £40,000. Other inventions included a bed with built-in exercise equipment, a device for a tea or coffee urn which would cook eggs in the steam as well as having a small dish to keep toast warm and a device for "improvements in caulking ships, boats and other vessels." In later life she wrote The Cottagers and Labourers Friend and Dialogues for Children, invented the fire hood or Cook’s Comforter, and patented a new type of candlestick that enabled candles to burn longer.
merchant Samuel Guppy and lived in Queen Square
and Prince Street, a leading light of the Bristol and Clifton
social scene. The couple had six children, including Thomas Richard, Grace and Sarah. Although Thomas Richard went into the family’s sugar refining business, he later became an engineer and was an associate of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, contributing significantly to the design of SS Great Western and SS Great Britain. Brunel painted a portrait of the younger Sarah Guppy c. 1836.
, but Richard ran through his rich wife's money at a rapid rate, spending on horses and neglecting her. Sarah moved into 7 Richmond Hill, Clifton in 1842. She bought the land opposite the house for the benefit of Clifton residents and it still remains green space.
Infrastructure
Infrastructure is basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function...
and developed several domestic products.
Early history and inventions
Sarah Guppy was born in Birmingham, England. In 1811 she patented the first of her inventions, a method of making safe piling for bridges. Thomas TelfordThomas Telford
Thomas Telford FRS, FRSE was a Scottish civil engineer, architect and stonemason, and a noted road, bridge and canal builder.-Early career:...
asked her for permission to use her patented design for suspension bridge foundations, and she granted it to him free of charge. As a friend of Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel, FRS , was a British civil engineer who built bridges and dockyards including the construction of the first major British railway, the Great Western Railway; a series of steamships, including the first propeller-driven transatlantic steamship; and numerous important bridges...
and his family she became involved in the Great Western Railway, writing to the directors with ideas and giving her support. In 1841 she wrote a letter recommending planting willows and poplars to stabilise embankments. She continued to offer technical advice despite the fact that, as she wrote, ‘it is unpleasant to speak of oneself,—it may seem boastful particularly in a woman’.
Patents and publications
The family took out 10 patents in the first half of the nineteenth century, including a method of keeping ships free of barnacleBarnacle
A barnacle is a type of arthropod belonging to infraclass Cirripedia in the subphylum Crustacea, and is hence related to crabs and lobsters. Barnacles are exclusively marine, and tend to live in shallow and tidal waters, typically in erosive settings. They are sessile suspension feeders, and have...
s that led to a government contract worth £40,000. Other inventions included a bed with built-in exercise equipment, a device for a tea or coffee urn which would cook eggs in the steam as well as having a small dish to keep toast warm and a device for "improvements in caulking ships, boats and other vessels." In later life she wrote The Cottagers and Labourers Friend and Dialogues for Children, invented the fire hood or Cook’s Comforter, and patented a new type of candlestick that enabled candles to burn longer.
Marriage and family
She married BristolBristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
merchant Samuel Guppy and lived in Queen Square
Queen Square, Bristol
Queen Square is a garden square in the centre of Bristol, England. It was originally a fashionable residential address, but now most of the buildings are in office use....
and Prince Street, a leading light of the Bristol and Clifton
Clifton, Bristol
Clifton is a suburb of the City of Bristol in England, and the name of both one of the city's thirty-five council wards. The Clifton ward also includes the areas of Cliftonwood and Hotwells...
social scene. The couple had six children, including Thomas Richard, Grace and Sarah. Although Thomas Richard went into the family’s sugar refining business, he later became an engineer and was an associate of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, contributing significantly to the design of SS Great Western and SS Great Britain. Brunel painted a portrait of the younger Sarah Guppy c. 1836.
Later life
In 1837 the widowed Sarah, now 67, married Richard Eyre-Coote, 28 years her junior. For a while they lived at Arnos Court, BrislingtonBrislington
Brislington is an area in the south east of the city of Bristol, England. It is on the edge of Bristol and from Bath. The Brislington Brook runs through the area in the woodlands of Nightingale Valley...
, but Richard ran through his rich wife's money at a rapid rate, spending on horses and neglecting her. Sarah moved into 7 Richmond Hill, Clifton in 1842. She bought the land opposite the house for the benefit of Clifton residents and it still remains green space.