Waterways Engineers and Surveyors from Nimmo, Alexander

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Alexander Nimmo 1783 - 20 January 1832

Engineer. He was born at Kirkcaldy, Fifeshire and died at Dublin at the age of forty-nine.

April 1826	Haddiscoe (or New) Cut - Norfolk & Suffolk Broads	Between 10 April and 1 May he, and five other leading civil engineers, gave evidence to parliament on the Bill to build the cut.
1828	Manchester & Dee Ship Canal project	He together with Robert Stevenson and Thomas Telford reported on a scheme for a 7-mile ship canal from Hilbre islands off West Kirby parallel to the north coast of the Wirral to Wallasey, to avoid the difficult Mersey entrnce channels.
September 1830	Manchester, Bolton & Bury Canal	He reported on the proposal to convert the canal to a railway line. He said it was possible and gave a rough estimate of costs.

Hugh Oldham

Summer 1796

Leicester Navigation

He was called in to judge if Saddington tunnel was straight. He said it was not and James Barnes later confirmed his view.

Benjamin Outram 1764 - 1805

Engineer. Was an ironmaster from Alfreton, Derbyshire. Partner in the Butterley Iron Works. Supervised Nicholas Brown.

July 1787	Grand Union Erewash Canal	With John Hodgkinson and others he met with the Erewash Canal company to propose an extention of the canal to Pixton but could get no agreement. This being the start of the events that led to the building of the Cromford Canal.
1789	Cromford Canal	Was appointed full-time assistant engineer to William Jessop.
1791	Cromford Canal	He was now receiving a salary of £400 a year.
8 September 1792	Derby Canal	His report was considered by a meeting which proposed a Trent -Swarkeston-Derby-Denby canal with a branch to Sandiacre on the Erewash Canal.
1793	Nutbrook Canal	He was appointed engineer.
May 1793	Derby Canal	He was appointed engineer.
19 August 1793	Sheffield Canal	He reported his proposal for a level canal 12¾ miles long from the Eckington-Beighton road via Attercliffe to close behind the Hospital Chapel at Sheffield, with a fair amount of cutting and a 770 yard tunnel. The Attercliffe to Sheffield Section would take river barges as would the branch from Attercliffe to the Don, which made part of the river navigable with 3 lock and was to have 7 canal locks. The rest, including a 5 lock extension to an iron works near Chesterfield would be narrow.He estimated the main line and Tinsley Branch at £45,041.
22 October 1793	Huddersfield Narrow Canal	He reports on the proposed canal which he estimates at £178,748 exclusive of plarliamentary expenses.
1794	Peak Forest Canal	Was appointed engineer. He was later also commissioned to supply 'Cast Metal Railways' from the Butterley iron-works in which he was a partner.
April 1794	Huddersfield Narrow Canal	He is appointed engineer.
1795	River Don	He surveyed the river.
March 1795	Peak Forest Canal	He reports to the committee that 'Messrs. Fulton and McNiven are not proceeding in the cutting that part of the said Canal contracted to be cut by them'. This refers to Robert Fulton and Charles McNiven.
April 1795	Peak Forest Canal	He was sent with two others to view the operation of tub-boats and inclined planes at Coalbrook Dale and reported favourably on their use.
After November 1795	Huddersfield Narrow Canal	He decides to only work on Standedge Tunnel from the two ends thus saving the expense of sinking the very deep shafts that would be needed to work at more places but extending the completion date.
1796	Peak Forest Canal	He was engaged in a scheme for a line from the canal near Marple to run above Macclesfield and past Rudyard to the Caldon Branch about 4 miles from Leek. This proposal also included a reservoir at Rudyard.
Early 1796	Manchester, Bolton & Bury Canal	Following an inspection of the works he reported that £26,924 would be needed to complete the canal with wide locks and bridge-holes.
11 March 1796	Macclesfield Canal	He reported to a meeting at Macclesfield the results of his survey. It was agreed that a canal from the Peak Forest by way of Rudyard to the Caldon line at Endon would be advantageous, with a branch canal or railway from Poynton and Norbury to Stockport. He estimates were £90,000 for the project bringing a revenue of £10,175 a year.
September 1797	Huddersfield Narrow Canal	He reports that the Standedge tunnel contractor Thomas Lee could not complete his work under his present terms and would be ruined if he was not given some allowance for the unforseen dificulties encountered. The committee increased his rate for the contract and allowed him an extra year.
January 1798	Peak Forest Canal	His estimate for a tramroad at Marple, to connect the upper and lower pounds without locks, was accepted.
Summer 1798	Ashby de la Zouch Canal	He was asked to report on the feasibility of building tramroads to Ticknall and Cloud Hill instead of canals. He reported in favour of tramroads.
July 1798	Ashton Canal	Acting as contractor to the company he was building the basin at Piccadilly.
1799	Fletcher's Canal	He advised the company that a second lock with a small rise would be needed at the junction with the Manchester, Bolton & Bury Canal to avoid taking too much water.
1799	Monmouthshire Canal	Recommends the conversion of the company's cast-iron edge-rails to plateways.
Mid 1799	Worcester and Birmingham Canal	At the request of the company he gave his opinion on a proposal that the line to Worcester should be completed as a tramroad.
1 July 1799	Brecknock & Abergavenny Canal	Recommends the conversion of the company's cast-iron edge-rails to plateways.
1800	Monmouthshire Canal	He produced plans for a tramroad from the canal at Risca to the Tredegar works.
1800	Somerset Coal Canal	He advocates the rebuilding of colliery railways as plateways to take 2-ton waggons replacing the 10 -14 hundred-weight trucks using edge-rails. The trucks would then be run on to rafts and horse-towed up two inclined planes.
Summer 1800	Somerset Coal Canal	Following criticism of his earlier plan he now suggests railways to join the levels, the coal being carried in containers on boats and transferred to and from the railway on cranes.
October 1800	Huddersfield Narrow Canal	Was asked to report on a tramoad from Woolroad to Marton that had been suggested by the Peak Forest company as a stop gap until Standedge Tunnel was completed. Nothing came of this idea.
Before November 1800	Grand Junction Canal	The double-track horse tramroad that he built to connect the two ends of the un-finished Blisworth Tunnel was completed.
1801	Peak Forest Canal	He leaves his post as engineer.

George Overton

He was originally from Llanelly near Crickhowell and was first noted as a mining and civil engineer. Later he worked on canal and tramway projects. He was a partner in both the Hirwaun iron-works (with F W Bowzer and a Mr Oliver) and in coalmines. Because of his experience with tramroads he was asked to survey the Stockton to Darlington railway line.

After May 1799	Glamorganshire Canal	He was appointed engineer for the 9½ mile Penydarren tramroad (opened in 1802) from Merthyr to Abercynon.
August 1811	Aberdare Canal	He was appointed resident engineer.
June 1815	Brecknock & Abergavenny Canal	In May or June the 12 mile Bryn-oer Tramroad from a colliery at Bryn-oer to the canal at Tal-y-bont was opened, he having been the engieer for the work and a joint leasee after it was opened.
June 1821	Glamorganshire Canal	He reported on the Port of Cardiff and improvements for better accommodation of the increasing trade on the canal, proposing canal deepening, straightening and a new basin so that 300-ton vessels could reach the wharves.
Early 1823	Glamorganshire Canal	He marked out a 15 mile extension of the Penydarren tramroad to Cardiff. This was on the opposite side of the valley to the canal. The tramroad was not extended but later the Taff Vale Railway used the route.

Richard Owen 1744 - 1830

Joseph Page

12 September 1769

River Ancholme

The lock house at Ferriby was completed under his direction.

Thomas Page

After 1859	River Nene	Following an accident involving a gang of lighters he recommended the removal of the restriction to the river flow, or throttle, at Wisbech.
1863	River Ouse (Yorkshire)	As engineer for the Ouse trustees he jointly prepared a plan with William Bartholomew, the engineer of the Aire & Calder, for the deeping of the river at Goole by 3 foot to take larger steamers.

H R Palmer

1834	Calder and Hebble Navigation	He was asked to report following an Act that allowed improvements to the navigation up as far as Mirfield. He suggested large-scale works at the cost of £83,403. The committee and shareholders agreed on a smaller navigation 7 feet deep and 50 foot wide.
29 June 1840	Mersey & Irwell Navigation	He produces a Report on the Improvement of the Rivers Mersey and Irwell ... for the Navigation of Sea-going Vessels. He proposes an enlarged line to end at Regent Bridge, Manchester, many new cuts with a new canal from below Woolston Lock past Bank Quay, across Cuerdley Marsh to join the river at Runcorn. The whole route was to have six locks big enough to take four flats and a 400-ton steamer.

William Palmer

A York engineer and surveyor working from about 1722 to 1736 on the inprovement of Yorkshire rivers. Worked with Joseph 1 Atkinson and worked with Joshua Mitchel.

1722	River Don	Doncaster Corporation commissioned him, with Joshua Mitchel and Joseph Atkinson, to survey the river.
November 1722	River Don	He produced a survey showing the whole river up to Sheffield could be made navigable.
1726	River Ouse (Yorkshire)	He surveyed the river above York while working for York corporation.
After February 1726	River Don	He caught a fever and was dangerously ill while the Bill to make the river navigable to Sheffield was in the commons.
1727	River Ouse (Yorkshire)	He produced a survey of the whole river from York to Trent Falls for a new Act of parliament that established trustees for the river. After the Act was passed he was taken on as manager and engineer.

Joseph Parker

Early 1768	Coventry Canal	He was appointed Clerk of Works and sent to Hugh Henshall for a months training.
Before 1770	Coventry Canal	He left his post of Clerk of Works.
1778	Basingstoke Canal	He surveyed the line for the canal Act.

Thomas Pear

1815	River Welland	He reported on the poor condition of Deeping Fen which drained into the river.
1831	River Nene	He completed his work of overseeing the stoning of the banks for works under the 1827 Act. He is refered to as John Pear on page 213 of The Canals of Eastern England but as Thomas in the index entry.

E T Percy

Late February 1827

Glastonbury Canal

He spoke in favour of the project at a meeting in Glastonbury Town Hall.

Richard Phillips

Henry Pickard

James Pinkerton

William Pitt

A H Plowright

1909

River Nene

As engineer of the Nene third district he gave evidence to the Royal Commission on Canals and Waterways on the poor state of the Wisbech Canal and River Nene.

William Pontey

1802

River Ouse (Yorkshire)

He was consulted on the propsal to take a cut from above Strensall to Sheriff Hutton bridge. He approved the idea and was given charge of the work. The cut was open by about the end of June 1804.

Richard Porter

He was a Driffield man whose father was landlord of the Blue Bell. He became a corn merchant and a mortgagee of the Driffield navigation for £510.

17 June 1767

Driffield Navigation

He was appointed engineer, a post he only held for six weeks.

Samuel Porter died July 1808

1799	Stratford upon Avon Canal	He was engineer when cutting restarted, having previously been Josiah Clowes assistant.
Before 1808	River Ancholme	He was the navigation engineer.

James Potter

February 1825	Trent and Mersey Canal	As engineer in charge he began construction of Telford's new Harecastle Tunnel.
1840	Birmingham & Warwick Junction Canal	He was appointed engineer for the building of the 2 mile 5 furlong canal with 6 locks.

Peter Potter

1812

Grand Union Regents Canal

Appearing for E B Portman in oposition to the Regent's Canal Bill he estimated the cost for the canal as £506,697.

Robert Pownall 1715 - 1780

Clerk to the Weaver Navigation at Winsford in 1735 and by 1757 was surveying. In 1758 was inspector and superintendent. Had his worked checked by James Brindley and worked with Thomas Telford.

1764	River Weaver	As the trustees' engineer he was asked to prepare plans to make Witton Brook navigable with a depth of 4.5 feet. These plans were checked by James Brindley.
Mid 1765	River Weaver	As engineer to the Weaver trustees he, together with Hugh Henshall, suveyed various routes for terminating the Trent & Mersey Canal at a junction with the Weaver navigation.
May 1765	River Weaver	He and Hugh Henshall were asked to survey routes between Winsford and Lawton, near Kidsgrove, via either Middlewich or Nantwich.

Edward Price

May 1798

Neath Canal

He was engineer for the construction of the 2½ mile extension of the canal from near Melincrythan pill to Giant's Grave near Briton Ferry.

Henry H Price

1825	Tees Canal schemes	He deposited a plan for a 4½: mile ship canal from the lower end of 1810 Mandale cut to a basin at Cargo Fleet, with enrance locks at each end.
1835	Bridgwater and Taunton Canal	He was requested by the Bridgwater corporation to report on the practicability of building a ship canal from Combwich to Bridgewater, building a dock thereand extending the Bridgwater & Taunton Canal from the existing junction with the River Tone at Huntworth to the proposed new dock.
August 1835	Grand Surrey Dock, Canal & Junction Railway project	He suggested this scheme to the directors of the Grand Surrey Canal company and was favourably received.

John Priddey

Resident engineer on the Droitwich Canal, under Brindley. Assitant Clerk of Works on the Oxford Canal in 1773. Surveyed the Stroudwater in 1774 and the Thames & Severn in 1781.

March 1768	Droitwich Canal	He was appointed engineer with a salary of £190 a year.
Summer 1774	Stroudwater Canal	He surveyed the route with Thomas Dadford.
23 February 1775	Stroudwater Canal	He was appointed engineer at a salary of £100 a year with at least a quater of his time to be spent supervising construction.
2 May 1776	Stroudwater Canal	He was given three months notice of the termination of his post as engineer.
August 1781	Thames and Severn Canal	He completed the first survey for the canal.

Henry Provis

District engineer of the Grand Junction Canal from 1802 to 1816. Probably father of William Alexander Provis.

Early 1804	Grand Junction Canal	Together with Benjamin Bevan was asked to prepare fresh estimates for the Wolverton Aqueduct following the contractors' claims for extra payments.
October 1807	Grand Junction Canal	Together with Benjamin Bevan was asked to examine the contractor Thomas Harrison's claim for payments in the dispute over the Wolverton Aqueduct.

William Alexander Provis died 1848

Engineer, surveyor and contractor on various Midlands canals. Probably son of Henry Provis.

1828	Aylesbury - Abingdon Canal project	He made a new estimate of the costs of the canal which was lower than the previous £200,000 estimate.
1829	Stourbridge Extension Canal	Around this time he was asked, together with William Fowler and J U Rastrick, to put forward proposals for a canal extension towards Shut End.
1830	Leicester Navigation	Around this time he was called in to advise on the problem of reopenning the Forest line. A horse railway throughout the line at the cost of £44,585 was agreed but rejected by shareholders.
Early 1836	Grand Western Canal	He was asked to report on the lifts and Wellisford inclined plane on the as yet un-openned canal. The lifts were satisfactory but the plane was not. He thought that the water filled buckets used to counter balance the cradle and boat should be 25 tons rather than 10.

William Radford

1845	Grand Union Regents Canal	While serving as company engineer he suggested building a railway along the canal to link the London northern railway termini with the docks. Sufficient subscriptions for this scheme were not raised.
1859	Grand Union Regents Canal	He and John Fowler prepared a plan for a railway to run beside the canal from Kings Cross to the Regent's Canal Dock but the proposal did not get past the draft bill stage.

John Raistrick

1819	Huddersfield Narrow Canal	Appointed engineer.
Mid 1819	Huddersfield Narrow Canal	He proposed a steamboat working on a chain laid in Standedge Tunnel could be used for towage but the idea seems not to have been followed up at the time.
1822	Huddersfield Narrow Canal	About this time he offered to run a steam tug through Standedge Tunne lat a charge not exceeding 3 shillings if he were allowed to operate free of dues for ten years. A tug was operating by late 1824.
1834	Huddersfield Narrow Canal	He suggests creating an artifical current by pumping to propel boats through Standedge Tunnel.
1843	Huddersfield Narrow Canal	Left his post as engineer.

John Ralph

1795

Wilts and Berks Canal

He and William Whitworth estimated the cost of the 55¼-mile main line and put the cost of the branches at £8,350.

John Urpeth Rastrick 1780 - 1856

Canal, tramroad and railway engineer from Morpeth, Northumberland. He also built the locomotive 'Agenoria' that was used on a tramroad from pits near Kingsford and drew 131 tons of rolling stock up an inclined plane.

1829	Stourbridge Extension Canal	Around this time he was asked, together with W A Provis and William Fowler, to put forward proposals for a canal extension towards Shut End. The company preferred his line.
Early 1833	Leicester Navigation	He and Thomas Hill were consulted on the horse railway the company proposed to build along a similar route to the Forest line.
27 February 1834	Leominster Canal	He was asked to survey the route from the Rea Aqueduct at Newnham to connect the canal to the River Severn. He reported in early August.
March 1835	Leominster Canal	He produced a report (while working as engineer of the Staffordshie & Worcestershire Canal) on a cheaper version of the Leominster Canal to the Severn tramroad. The cheapest option was £44,394. The idea was not taken further.
Early 1837	Stourbridge, Wolverhampton & Birmingham Junc'n Canal	He made an estimate for a reduced line from Brockmoor to just beyond Shut End which he costed at £32,404 including a Sandhills branch. This was to be built as the Stourbridge Extension Canal.
June 1837	Stourbridge Extension Canal	He was asked to be engineer but he did not take up the post.
January 1842	Thames & Medway Canal	He met with the canal shareholders to discuss the possible conversion of the canal to a railway at the cost of £120,000.
April 1844	Thames & Medway Canal	As company engineer he approved the contract with Fox, Henderson & Co for the building of a railway alongside the canal and sharing Higham Tunnel with boat traffic.

Feb	APR	Jun
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2003	2004	2005

July 1777	Leeds and Liverpool Canal	He was appointed engineer.
October 1781	Leeds & Liverpool - Rufford Branch	He reports the construction of branch has been completed.
Summer 1782	Leeds and Liverpool Canal	He is discharged from his post of engineer.