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John Gibb (1776-1850)
John Gibb (1776–1850) was a Scottish civil engineer and contractor whose work included the construction of harbours, bridges, roads, lighthouses, and railways in the United Kingdom, primarily in Scotland. He was a close associate of Thomas Telford, who employed him on many of his civil engineering projects during the first half of the 19th century. Life John Gibb was baptised on 13 October 1776, the youngest son of William Gibb (1736-1791) of Kirkcows, near Falkirk, Scotland, a contractor. He served an apprenticeship as a mechanic, after which he was employed by James Porteous (his brother in law) on the works of the Lancaster Canal, then by John Dalgleish Easton on the docks at Leith. In 1803 he married Easton's daughter, Catherine. From 1805, he was employed under John Rennie on the harbour at Greenock for four years . Min. Proc. Inst. Civ. Eng. (1851), p.82 On the works at Greenock, his abilities brought him to the notice of Thomas Telford, who installed him as re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brackets
A bracket is either of two tall fore- or back-facing punctuation marks commonly used to isolate a segment of text or data from its surroundings. Typically deployed in symmetric pairs, an individual bracket may be identified as a 'left' or 'right' bracket or, alternatively, an "opening bracket" or "closing bracket", respectively, depending on the Writing system#Directionality, directionality of the context. Specific forms of the mark include parentheses (also called "rounded brackets"), square brackets, curly brackets (also called 'braces'), and angle brackets (also called 'chevrons'), as well as various less common pairs of symbols. As well as signifying the overall class of punctuation, the word "bracket" is commonly used to refer to a specific form of bracket, which varies from region to region. In most English-speaking countries, an unqualified word "bracket" refers to the parenthesis (round bracket); in the United States, the square bracket. Glossary of mathematical sym ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nairn
Nairn (; gd, Inbhir Narann) is a town and royal burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is an ancient fishing port and market town around east of Inverness, at the point where the River Nairn enters the Moray Firth. It is the traditional county town of Nairnshire. At the 2011 census, Nairn had a population of 9,773, making it the third-largest settlement in the Highland council area, behind Inverness and Fort William. Nairn is best known as a seaside resort, with two golf courses, award-winning beaches, a community centre and arts venue, a small theatre (called The Little Theatre) and one small museum, providing information on the local area and incorporating the collection of the former Fishertown museum. History The History of Nairn is a broad and diverse topic spanning its Palaeolithic and Mesolithic roots before recorded history, to the Picts and the visitation of Roman general Agriocola. Its possible founding under the name Ekkailsbakki by Sigurd, Earl of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Almond Valley Viaduct
The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genus ''Prunus'', it is classified with the peach in the subgenus ''Amygdalus'', distinguished from the other subgenera by corrugations on the shell (endocarp) surrounding the seed. The fruit of the almond is a drupe, consisting of an outer hull and a hard shell with the seed, which is not a true nut. ''Shelling'' almonds refers to removing the shell to reveal the seed. Almonds are sold shelled or unshelled. Blanched almonds are shelled almonds that have been treated with hot water to soften the seedcoat, which is then removed to reveal the white embryo. Once almonds are cleaned and processed, they can be stored over time. Almonds are used in many food cuisines, often featuring prominently in desserts, such as marzipan. The almond tree prosp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edinburgh And Glasgow Railway
The Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway was authorised by Act of Parliament on 4 July 1838. It was opened to passenger traffic on 21 February 1842, between its Glasgow Queen Street railway station (sometimes referred to at first as Dundas Street) and Haymarket railway station in Edinburgh. Construction cost £1,200,000 for 46 miles (74 km). The intermediate stations were at Corstorphine (later Saughton), Gogar, Ratho, Winchburgh, Linlithgow, Polmont, Falkirk, Castlecary, Croy, North Lanarkshire, Croy, Kirkintilloch (later Lenzie) and Bishopbriggs. There was a ticket platform at Cowlairs. The line was extended eastwards from Haymarket to North Bridge, Edinburgh, North Bridge in 1846, and a joint station for connection with the North British Railway was opened on what is now Edinburgh Waverley railway station in 1847. The quantity of passenger business on the line considerably exceeded estimates, reaching almost double the daily volume, and by 1850 company needed 58 locomotives ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Victoria Bridge (river Wear)
Victoria Viaduct, originally known as the Victoria Bridge, is a stone arch rail viaduct spanning the River Wear about south-east of Washington in North East England. It was built as part of the Durham Junction Railway under the supervision of Thomas Elliot Harrison. History and design The bridge was constructed as part of the Durham Junction Railway, which had been sanctioned by act of parliament in 1834; the act allowed for traffic tolls on a bridge over the Wear, including tolls for road and foot crossing. A iron bridge suitable for passage by rail, foot and road vehicle was designed by John Green of Newcastle, but instead a stone arch bridge designed by James Walker was chosen. The contract to build the bridge was given to John Gibb & Son. of Aberdeen. The design was based upon the Alcántara Bridge in Spain. Construction began 17 March 1836 and was completed on 28 June 1838, the date of the coronation of Queen Victoria; as a result it was called 'Victoria Bridge'. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thomas Elliot Harrison
Thomas Elliot Harrison (4 April 1808 – 20 March 1888) was a British engineer. Born in Fulham, London, he was raised in the north east of England, where his father was a promoter of early railway companies; after an apprenticeship under William Chapman; he gained engineering experience on the lines his father had helped establish, as well as in working in association with George Stephenson and Robert Stephenson during his early career. In 1850 he became chief engineer of the York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway, and retained that title during the company's amalgamations with other north eastern railway firms, becoming the North Eastern Railway's first chief engineer at its formation in 1854, a position he held until his death in 1888. The best known works he was involved with are bridges: which include the Skelton viaduct on the Ouse; the Victoria Viaduct and Monkwearmouth railway bridge on the Wear; he was also involved in dock and railway line construction, and engineering ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glasgow Bridge, Glasgow
The Glasgow Bridge spans the River Clyde in Glasgow linking the city centre to Laurieston, Tradeston and Gorbals. Formerly known as Broomielaw Bridge, it is at the bottom of Jamaica Street near Central Station, and is colloquially known as the Jamaica Bridge. The original bridge was completed in 1772, and was designed by William Mylne and built by civil engineer John Smeaton. Its seven-arch structure was honoured by Thomas Telford, the first president of the Institution of Civil Engineers, who replaced it in 1833 with a design built by John Gibb & Son for £34,000. One of Telford's colleagues, Charles Atherton, was the resident engineer for the Works. It became the first in Glasgow to be lit by electricity. Between 1895 and 1899 it was replaced with the current wider bridge which incorporated Telford's stonework and expanded the arches to accommodate larger ships. The present structure is protected as a category B listed building. Proposed bridge The Glasgow Bridge wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dean Bridge
The Dean Bridge spans the Water of Leith in the city of Edinburgh on the A90 road to Queensferry on the Firth of Forth. It carries the roadway, long and broad, on four arches rising above the river.H Coghill, ''Discovering The Water of Leith'', John Donald 1988, The bridge was one of the last major works before retirement of the bridge designer, civil engineer Thomas Telford, and was completed in 1831 when he was seventy-three years old. Before the bridge was built the river had been crossed since medieval times at a ford, later by a single-arch stone bridge near the same spot, at the foot of Bell's Brae in the Dean Village. The private Dean Gardens lie under the east side of the bridge on the north bank of the Water of Leith. History The original proposal for a new bridge came from John Learmonth, a former Edinburgh Lord Provost and owner of the Dean estate on the north bank of the river. Following the successful expansion of the New Town on Lord Moray's estate on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bridge Of Don (bridge)
Bridge of Don is a five-arch bridge of granite, built between 1827 and 1830, crossing the River Don, Aberdeenshire, River Don just above its mouth in Aberdeen, Scotland. History In 1605 Alexander Hay executed a Charter of Mortification for the maintenance of the 13th century Brig o' Balgownie further upstream, which later became the Bridge of Don Fund, which financed several bridges in the north-east of Scotland. This fund having accumulated a value of over , the patrons of the fund, the town council, sought an Act of Parliament to permit construction of a new bridge in 1825. The original design by John Gibb (engineer), John Gibb and John Smith (architect), John Smith was modified by Thomas Telford, and construction work started in 1827. Problems with the foundations meant it had to be partly taken down and have additional Deep foundation, piles sunk. It was opened free to the public with no toll in 1830 and later gave its name to Bridge of Don, the suburb of the city on the nor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Commissioners Of Highland Roads And Bridges
The Commissioners of Highland Roads and Bridges (formally the Commissioners for Roads and Bridges in the Highlands of Scotland) was created in 1803 to take responsibility for the construction and maintenance of the long-distance roads in the Scottish Highlands. The commission was created following the 1802 inspection by Thomas Telford (on behalf of the government) of the state of the roads. The Scottish Highland Roads and Bridges Act 1803 (43 Geo III c 80) established the commission. The initial commissioners, named in section 4 of the 1803 Act, were the Speaker of the House of Commons, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and His Majesty's Advocate for Scotland, all for the Time being, the Rt Hon William Dundas, Sir William Pulteney, Bt, Isaac Hawkins Browne, Nicholas Vansittart, Charles Grant, William Smith, and Charles Dundas. The commission was dissolved by the Highland Roads and Bridges Act 1862 with effect from 31 December of that year, and the roads managed by the Commission ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lighthouses
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mark dangerous coastlines, hazardous shoals, reefs, rocks, and safe entries to harbors; they also assist in aerial navigation. Once widely used, the number of operational lighthouses has declined due to the expense of maintenance and has become uneconomical since the advent of much cheaper, more sophisticated and effective electronic navigational systems. History Ancient lighthouses Before the development of clearly defined ports, mariners were guided by fires built on hilltops. Since elevating the fire would improve the visibility, placing the fire on a platform became a practice that led to the development of the lighthouse. In antiquity, the lighthouse functioned more as an entrance marker to ports than as a warning signal for reefs and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Stevenson (civil Engineer)
Robert Stevenson, FRSE, FGS, FRAS, FSA Scot, MWS (8 June 1772 – 12 July 1850) was a Scottish civil engineer, and designer and builder of lighthouses. His works include the Bell Rock Lighthouse. Early life Robert Stevenson was born in Glasgow. His father was Alan Stevenson, a partner in a West Indies sugar trading house in the city. Alan died of an epidemic fever on the island of St. Christopher in the West Indies on 26 May 1774, a few days before Robert's second birthday. Robert's uncle died of the same disease around the same time. Since this left Alan's widow, Jean Lillie Stevenson, in much-reduced financial circumstances, Robert was educated, as a young child, at a charity school. Robert's mother intended him to join the ministry, so when he was a bit older she enrolled him in the school of a locally famous Glasgow linguist, a Mr Macintyre. But when Robert was 15, she remarried and the family moved to 1 Blair Street, off the Royal Mile in Edinburgh. Robert's new stepfath ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
