J. W. Wilson (Joseph William Wilson; 11 October 1829 – 5 November 1898) was an English engineer. He was a consulting engineer in the construction of

pier image:Brighton Pier, Brighton, East Sussex, England-2Oct2011 (1).jpg, Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century. A pier is a raised structure that rises above a body of ...

s, and founded the School of Practical Engineering at

Crystal Palace School Crystal Palace School of Art, Science, and Literature, also known as Crystal Palace Company's School of Art, (1854–1936) was opened in 1854 by the Crystal Palace Company as a new enterprise, to occupy part of its buildings when it re-erected t ...

Life

Early life and career

Wilson was born in

Walthamstow Walthamstow ( or ) is a large town in East London, east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London and the Historic counties of England, ancient county of Essex. Situated northeast of Chari ...

, son of the Rev. William Wilson, vicar of Walthamstow. He was intended for the church, and was entered for

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road. Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Dorothy W ...

; preferring a career in engineering, he was placed as a pupil with his cousin Charles Fox, of the firm Fox and Henderson. At the end of his pupilage he was an assistant at the firm, in charge of the machinery used for the preparation of timber in the construction of

the Crystal Palace The Crystal Palace was a cast iron and plate glass structure, originally built in Hyde Park, London, Hyde Park, London, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. The exhibition took place from 1 May to 15 October 1851, and more than 14,000 exhibit ...

, the building housing the

Great Exhibition The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, also known as the Great Exhibition or the Crystal Palace Exhibition (in reference to the temporary The Crystal Palace, structure in which it was held), was an International Exhib ...

of 1851.1898 Obituary (Institution of Mechanical Engineers) in "Joseph William Wilson"
''Grace's Guide''. Retrieved 3 April 2021."Obituary: Joseph William Wilson"
Institution of Civil Engineers. icevirtuallibrary.com. Retrieved 3 April 2021.

Oldbury and Banbury

In 1852, in partnership with his brother-in-law Samuel H. F. Cox, Wilson established at Oldbury (now in

West Midlands West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...

) the Oldbury Engineering Works. It employed 300 to 400 men, and made pumping engines and other machinery, including machinery for the goldfields of California. For health reasons, he retired from the Oldbury works. He became a consulting engineer at the Timber Works in

Banbury Banbury is a historic market town on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. It had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census. Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding area of north Oxfordshire ...

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

, and patented in 1855 a circular gouge and disc-paring tool for timber machinery, for which he received a medal from the

Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...

London

In 1857 Wilson established himself as a consulting engineer in London, and was involved in the construction of

s including those at

Teignmouth Teignmouth ( ) is a seaside town, fishing port and civil parish in the English county of Devon. It is situated on the north bank of the estuary mouth of the River Teign, about 12 miles south of Exeter. The town had a population of 14,749 at the ...

and

Bognor Regis Bognor Regis (), sometimes simply known as Bognor (), is a town and seaside resort in West Sussex on the south coast of England, south-west of London, west of Brighton, south-east of Chichester and east of Portsmouth. Other nearby towns ...

. In 1872, with the support of

George Grove Sir George Grove (13 August 182028 May 1900) was an English engineer and writer on music, known as the founding editor of ''Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians''. Grove was trained as a civil engineer, and successful in that profession, ...

, secretary of

, he founded there the School of Practical Engineering, which combined theory and practice of engineering. Wilson was its principal for 26 years. He was a member of the

Institution of Mechanical Engineers The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) is an independent professional association and learned society headquartered in London, United Kingdom, that represents mechanical engineers and the engineering profession. With over 120,000 member ...

, a member of the

Institution of Civil Engineers The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) is an independent professional association for civil engineers and a charitable body in the United Kingdom. Based in London, ICE has over 92,000 members, of whom three-quarters are located in the UK, whi ...

and a fellow of the

Royal Colonial Institute The Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS) is a non-governmental organisation with a mission to promote the value of the Commonwealth and the values upon which it is based. The Society upholds the values of the Commonwealth Charter, promoting confli ...

. Wilson died at his home in

Kenley Kenley is an area within the London Borough of Croydon. Prior to its incorporation into Greater London in 1965 it was in the historic county of Surrey. It is situated south of Purley, east of Coulsdon, north of Caterham and Whyteleafe and we ...

in 1898.

Family

His son Joseph William Wilson (1851–1930) was co-founder and first vice-principal of the Crystal Palace School of Engineering, and succeeded his father as principal in 1898; his son Maurice Wilson (1862–1936) became principal in 1924."Maurice Wilson"
''Grace's Guide''. Retrieved 4 April 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, J. W. 1829 births 1898 deaths English civil engineers 19th-century British engineers People from Walthamstow