William Wylie Grierson was a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 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...

.

William was born to James Grierson (Manager of the Great Western Railway) and Margaret Emily Grierson and was educated at Rugby School

Rugby School

Rugby School is a co-educational day and boarding school located in the town of Rugby, Warwickshire, England. It is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain.-History:...

. William married Aleen Isabel Bell on 14 September 1927 at St. Paul's Church, Knightsbridge

St. Paul's Church, Knightsbridge

St Paul’s Church, Knightsbridge is an Anglican church in London’s West End, supposed to be one of the most beautiful Victorian churches in London. Set in the heart of the Grosvenor Estate on Wilton Place in Belgravia, the church dates from 1843, during the incumbency of the Rev. W. J. E. Bennett....

. William followed in his father's footsteps as engineer in chief to the Great Western Railway

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...

 between 1904 and 1923, following which he established an engineering consultancy firm. In 1918 he was made a commander of the Order of the British Empire

Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

. He served as 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...

 from 1929 to 1930. He also served in the Engineer and Railway Staff Corps, a Territorial Army unit whose members volunteer advice to the army on engineering matters. He died suddenly in San Remo

Sanremo

Sanremo or San Remo is a city with about 57,000 inhabitants on the Mediterranean coast of western Liguria in north-western Italy. Founded in Roman times, the city is best known as a tourist destination on the Italian Riviera. It hosts numerous cultural events, such as the Sanremo Music Festival...

, Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

on 14 March 1935 after an operation.