William Cubitt
Encyclopedia
Sir William Cubitt was an eminent English
civil engineer
and millwright
. Born in Norfolk
, England, he was employed in many of the great engineering undertakings of his time. He invented a type of windmill
sail and the prison treadwheel
, and was employed as chief engineer, at Ransomes
of Ipswich
, before moving to London. He worked on canals, docks, and railways, including the South Eastern Railway
and the Great Northern Railway
. He was the chief engineer of Crystal Palace
erected at Hyde Park
in 1851.
He was president of the Institution of Civil Engineers
between 1850 and 1851.
One of Cubitt's nephews and his protégé on the South Eastern
and Great Northern
railways, James Moore
C. E., was appointed Chief Engineer for the Hobson's Bay Railway company
and designed the first commercial steam railway in Melbourne, Australia. Moore replaced another of Cubitt's assistants, William Snell Chauncy
..
Cubitt also constructed Penton Lodge, which is located in Penton Mewsey,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
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 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...
. Born in Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, England, he was employed in many of the great engineering undertakings of his time. He invented a type of windmill
Windmill
A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. Originally windmills were developed for milling grain for food production. In the course of history the windmill was adapted to many other industrial uses. An important...
sail and the prison treadwheel
Treadwheel
A treadwheel is a form of animal engine typically powered by humans. It may resemble a water wheel in appearance, and can be worked either by a human treading paddles set into its circumference , or by a human or animal standing inside it .Uses of treadwheels included raising water, to power...
, and was employed as chief engineer, at Ransomes
Ransomes
Ransomes is the common name for the Ransomes, Sims & Jefferies engineering firm. It may also refer to several other organisations or locations name after the firm:*Ransomes and Reavell Sports Club Ground*Ransomes Industrial Estate*Ransomes Sports F.C....
of Ipswich
Ipswich
Ipswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
, before moving to London. He worked on canals, docks, and railways, including the South Eastern Railway
South Eastern Railway (UK)
The South Eastern Railway was a railway company in south-eastern England from 1836 until 1922. The company was formed to construct a route from London to Dover. Branch lines were later opened to Tunbridge Wells, Hastings, Canterbury and other places in Kent...
and the Great Northern Railway
Great Northern Railway (Great Britain)
The Great Northern Railway was a British railway company established by the Great Northern Railway Act of 1846. On 1 January 1923 the company lost its identity as a constituent of the newly formed London and North Eastern Railway....
. He was the chief engineer of Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace was a cast-iron and glass building originally erected in Hyde Park, London, England, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. More than 14,000 exhibitors from around the world gathered in the Palace's of exhibition space to display examples of the latest technology developed in...
erected at Hyde Park
Hyde Park, London
Hyde Park is one of the largest parks in central London, United Kingdom, and one of the Royal Parks of London, famous for its Speakers' Corner.The park is divided in two by the Serpentine...
in 1851.
He was president 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...
between 1850 and 1851.
One of Cubitt's nephews and his protégé on the South Eastern
Great Eastern Railway
The Great Eastern Railway was a pre-grouping British railway company, whose main line linked London Liverpool Street to Norwich and which had other lines through East Anglia...
and Great Northern
Great Northern Railway (Great Britain)
The Great Northern Railway was a British railway company established by the Great Northern Railway Act of 1846. On 1 January 1923 the company lost its identity as a constituent of the newly formed London and North Eastern Railway....
railways, James Moore
James Moore (engineer)
James Moore was an engineer responsible for the first steam railway to operate in Australia.James Moore C.E. was a nephew of Sir William Cubitt, under whom he was engaged on the South Eastern and Great Northern railways in Britain, and presumably learnt his trade there...
C. E., was appointed Chief Engineer for the Hobson's Bay Railway company
Melbourne and Hobson's Bay Railway Company
The Melbourne and Hobson's Bay Railway Company was a railway company in Victoria, Australia. The company was founded on 20 January 1853 to build Australia's first railway broad gauge line from Melbourne to the port of Sandridge...
and designed the first commercial steam railway in Melbourne, Australia. Moore replaced another of Cubitt's assistants, William Snell Chauncy
William Snell Chauncy
William Snell Chauncy was an English civil engineer responsible for a number of important engineering works including the first steam railway opened in Australia.-Early life and work:...
..
Structures
Extant structures by Cubitt include:- Many windmillWindmillA windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. Originally windmills were developed for milling grain for food production. In the course of history the windmill was adapted to many other industrial uses. An important...
s in East AngliaEast AngliaEast Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
and LincolnshireLincolnshireLincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders... - Iron bridges: Brent Eleigh and Clare, and the Stoke Bridge at IpswichIpswichIpswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
(Suffolk); WithamWithamWitham is a town in the county of Essex, in the south east of England with a population of 22,500. It is part of the District of Braintree and is twinned with the town of Waldbröl, Germany. Witham stands between the larger towns of Chelmsford and Colchester...
(Essex). - Port Offices, LowestoftLowestoftLowestoft is a town in the English county of Suffolk. The town is on the North Sea coast and is the most easterly point of the United Kingdom. It is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and south-east of Norwich...
- Haddiscoe Cut
- Oxford CanalOxford CanalThe Oxford Canal is a narrow canal in central England linking Oxford with Coventry via Banbury and Rugby. It connects with the River Thames at Oxford, to the Grand Union Canal at the villages of Braunston and Napton-on-the-Hill, and to the Coventry Canal at Hawkesbury Junction in Bedworth just...
at RugbyRugby, WarwickshireRugby is a market town in Warwickshire, England, located on the River Avon. The town has a population of 61,988 making it the second largest town in the county...
and at Newbold tunnel - Shropshire Union CanalShropshire Union CanalThe Shropshire Union Canal is a navigable canal in England; the Llangollen and Montgomery canals are the modern names of branches of the Shropshire Union system and lie partially in Wales....
at Shelmore Embankment - Diglis Lock on the River SevernRiver SevernThe River Severn is the longest river in Great Britain, at about , but the second longest on the British Isles, behind the River Shannon. It rises at an altitude of on Plynlimon, Ceredigion near Llanidloes, Powys, in the Cambrian Mountains of mid Wales...
at WorcesterWorcesterThe City of Worcester, commonly known as Worcester, , is a city and county town of Worcestershire in the West Midlands of England. Worcester is situated some southwest of Birmingham and north of Gloucester, and has an approximate population of 94,000 people. The River Severn runs through the... - Foord Viaduct (1844), FolkestoneFolkestoneFolkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...
- Folkestone Warren and Martello, Abbot's Cliff, Shakespeare and Martello tunnels
- Welwyn ViaductWelwyn ViaductThe Welwyn Viaduct, also called Digswell Viaduct is a railway viaduct that carries the East Coast Main Line over the River Mimram and a locally important landmark. It is located between Welwyn Garden City and Digswell...
- Nene Bridge, PeterboroughPeterboroughPeterborough is a cathedral city and unitary authority area in the East of England, with an estimated population of in June 2007. For ceremonial purposes it is in the county of Cambridgeshire. Situated north of London, the city stands on the River Nene which flows into the North Sea...
- Museum of ChildhoodMuseum of ChildhoodThere are several museums called the Museum of Childhood:*Museum of Childhood , Scotland*Museum of Childhood , New Hampshire, United States*V&A Museum of Childhood, Bethnal Green, London, England, run by the Victoria and Albert Museum...
, Bethnal GreenBethnal GreenBethnal Green is a district of the East End of London, England and part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, with the far northern parts falling within the London Borough of Hackney. Located northeast of Charing Cross, it was historically an agrarian hamlet in the ancient parish of Stepney,...
External links
Cubitt also constructed Penton Lodge, which is located in Penton Mewsey,