Sir James Falshaw, 1st Baronet JP, DL,

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...

(21 March 1810 – 14 June 1889), was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

railway engineer Railway engineering is a multi-faceted engineering discipline dealing with the design, construction and operation of all types of rail transport systems. It encompasses a wide range of engineering disciplines, including civil engineering, comput ...

and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

Life

He was born in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

, of an "old yeoman family" and was the son of William Falshaw, wool merchant, and Hannah Shaw. He was the sixth of fourteen children. His grandfather, George, came from Coverdale in the

North Riding of Yorkshire The North Riding of Yorkshire is a subdivision of Yorkshire, England, alongside York, the East Riding and West Riding. The riding's highest point is at Mickle Fell with 2,585 ft (788 metres). From the Restoration it was used as ...

. In youth he studied under Jonathan Lockwood and then, aged 14, he was articled to the architect and surveyor, Joseph Cusworth, and trained as an engineer and surveyor. There he befriended

John Hawkshaw Sir John Hawkshaw FRS FRSE FRSA MICE (9 April 1811 – 2 June 1891), was an English civil engineer. He served as President of the Institution of Civil Engineers 1862-63. His most noteworthy work is the Severn Tunnel. Early life He was born ...

(later Sir John Hawkshaw). In 1836, he went to work for George Leather, an engineer. Here he worked on Leeds Waterworks situated in

Eccup Eccup is a village in the civil parish of Alwoodley and north of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is just north of Alwoodley and east of Bramhope and Golden Acre Park. Eccup is at the north-west edge of Eccup Reservoir. Etymology ...

. From 1837 to 1841, he worked on the Stockton and

Hartlepool Hartlepool () is a seaside and port town in County Durham, England. It is the largest settlement and administrative centre of the Borough of Hartlepool. With an estimated population of 90,123, it is the second-largest settlement in County ...

railway line and began to specialise in that field of work. The most impressive structure on this line was the 92 arch brick viaduct over Greatham Marsh. From 1838 to 1844, he also worked on the

Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...

Waterworks. In June 1844, he moved to

Kendal Kendal, once Kirkby in Kendal or Kirkby Kendal, is a market town and civil parish in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria, England, south-east of Windermere and north of Lancaster. Historically in Westmorland, it lies within the dale of th ...

to oversee the construction of the

Lancaster and Carlisle Railway The Lancaster and Carlisle Railway was a main line railway opened between those cities in 1846. With its Scottish counterpart, the Caledonian Railway, the Company launched the first continuous railway connection between the English railway networ ...

. In 1845, he acted as an advisor to the House of Commons on various forthcoming railway projects. In 1845, he moved to

Stirling Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a city in central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its me ...

to oversee the building of the

Caledonian Railway The Caledonian Railway (CR) was a major Scottish railway company. It was formed in the early 19th century with the objective of forming a link between English railways and Glasgow. It progressively extended its network and reached Edinburgh an ...

. This project involved joining to the existing

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

line at Greenhill and extending a 100-mile line (most of which was double track) in a broad loop via Stirling and

Dunblane Dunblane (, gd, Dùn Bhlàthain) is a small town in the council area of Stirling in central Scotland, and inside the historic boundaries of the county of Perthshire. It is a commuter town, with many residents making use of good transport links ...

to reach

Forfar Forfar ( sco, Farfar, gd, Baile Fharfair) is the county town of Angus, Scotland and the administrative centre for Angus Council, with a new multi-million pound office complex located on the outskirts of the town. As of 2021, the town has a p ...

. The most impressive part of this is the mile-long Moncrieff Tunnel. This was completed by 1848. His first wife, Anne Morkill, died in April 1864 and is buried in Whitkirk in Yorkshire. In 1871, he married Jane Gibbs (b.1825) at the Wesleyan Methodist Chapel, Nicholson Square, Edinburgh. From 1882 to 1887 he was chairman of the

North British Railway Company The North British Railway was a British railway company, based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was established in 1844, with the intention of linking with English railways at Berwick. The line opened in 1846, and from the outset the company followe ...

. Falshaw was

Lord Provost of Edinburgh The Right Honourable Lord Provost of Edinburgh is the convener of the City of Edinburgh local authority, who is elected by City_of_Edinburgh_Council, the city council and serves not only as the chair of that body, but as a figurehead for the e ...

between 1874 and 1877. His

Town Clerk A clerk is a senior official of many municipal governments in the English-speaking world. In some communities, including most in the United States, the position is elected, but in many others, the clerk is appointed to their post. In the UK, a To ...

was

William Skinner of Corra William Skinner of Corra WS FRSE DL JP (1823–1901) was a 19th-century Scottish lawyer and author. He was Town Clerk of Edinburgh from 1874 to 1895. Life He was born on 26 July 1823, the son of John Robert Skinner WS and his wife, Ann Bl ...

. He was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

, of Belgrave Crescent in the City of Edinburgh, in 1876. He died at home, 14 Belgrave Crescent, in western Edinburgh in June 1889, aged 79, when the baronetcy became extinct. He is buried close to his home, in

Dean Cemetery The Dean Cemetery is a historically important Victorian cemetery north of the Dean Village, west of Edinburgh city centre, in Scotland. It lies between Queensferry Road and the Water of Leith, bounded on its east side by Dean Path and on ...

and has an impressive marble monument of great height and ornament over his grave. He is buried with both wives, including his second wife, Jane Gibbs, Lady Falshaw (d.1889). The grave lies on the main east-west path of the northern extension to the original cemetery.

Memorials

James Falshaw memorial window, St Giles Cathedral, Edinburgh

The main east window in

St. Giles Cathedral St Giles' Cathedral ( gd, Cathair-eaglais Naomh Giles), or the High Kirk of Edinburgh, is a parish church of the Church of Scotland in the Old Town, Edinburgh, Old Town of Edinburgh. The current building was begun in the 14th century and extended ...

is dedicated to James Falshaw. Falshaw Bridge crossing the

Water of Leith The Water of Leith (Scottish Gaelic: ''Uisge Lìte'') is the main river flowing near central Edinburgh, Scotland, and flows into the port of Leith where it flows into the sea via the Firth of Forth. Name The name ''Leith'' may be of Britto ...

Stockbridge, Edinburgh Stockbridge is a suburb of Edinburgh, located north of the city centre, bounded by the New Town and by Comely Bank. The name is Scots ''stock brig'' from Anglic ''stocc brycg'', meaning a timber bridge. Originally a small outlying village, i ...

has a plaque to Falshaw. What is now called Iona Street, east of

Leith Walk Leith Walk is one of the longest streets in Edinburgh, Scotland, and is the main road connecting the centre of the city to Leith. Forming most of the A900 road, it slopes downwards from Picardy Place at the south-western end of the street to the ...

was originally planned as Falshaw Street but this name only survived for ten years.

Artistic Recognition

A full-length portrait of Falshaw by

Robert Herdman Robert Inerarity Herdman RSA RSW (17 September 1829 – 10 January 1888) was a Victorian artist specialising in portraiture and historical compositions. He is also remembered for a series of pastoral scenes featuring young girls. He received ...

RSA hangs in the Old Council Chamber (now known as the Diamond Jubilee Room) in Edinburgh City Chambers. A marble bust by John Hutchison stands in the Merchants Hall in Edinburgh.

References

External links

Sir James Falshaw, Bt, obituaryPortrait of Sir James Falshaw, Bt, by Robert Inerarity Herdman.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Falshaw, James 1810 births 1889 deaths British railway pioneers Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Lord Provosts of Edinburgh British railway civil engineers People from Leeds Engineers from Yorkshire 19th-century British businesspeople