John Bethell (c. 1804–1867) was a British solicitor and inventor. In 1838, he patented the 'Bethell process' for preserving timber using

creosote Creosote is a category of carbonaceous chemicals formed by the distillation of various tars and pyrolysis of plant-derived material, such as wood or fossil fuel. They are typically used as preservatives or antiseptics. Some creosote types were ...

. That same year he was elected an Associate 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 ...

. He was the younger brother of Richard, the Lord Chancellor Lord Westbury and like his brother a son-in-law of the architect Robert Abraham, having married Abraham's daughter Louisa Sarah on 28 February 1833.

References

British inventors 1800s births 1867 deaths Year of birth uncertain {{UK-engineer-stub