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Louis Harper (23 April 1868 – 26 January 1940) was a civil engineer from the north-east of
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
who designed a number of
suspension Suspension or suspended may refer to: Science and engineering * Suspension (topology), in mathematics * Suspension (dynamical systems), in mathematics * Suspension of a ring, in mathematics * Suspension (chemistry), small solid particles suspende ...
footbridge A footbridge (also a pedestrian bridge, pedestrian overpass, or pedestrian overcrossing) is a bridge designed solely for pedestrians.''Oxford English Dictionary'' While the primary meaning for a bridge is a structure which links "two points at a ...
s towards the end of the 19th century. Harper was born in
Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...
, Aberdeenshire, to John Harper and Margaret Ross. His father came from
Turriff Turriff () is a town and civil parish in Aberdeenshire in Scotland. It lies on the River Deveron, about above sea level, and has a population of 5,708. In everyday speech it is often referred to by its Scots name ''Turra'', which is derived f ...
in Aberdeenshire, and worked as a fencer in
Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
and
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 ...
before starting the family firm in Aberdeen in 1856, which became Harpers Ltd in 1885. John Harper patented a mechanism for straining
wire Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample diameter 40 mm A wire is a flexible strand of metal. Wire is c ...
, used both to make
fence A fence is a structure that encloses an area, typically outdoors, and is usually constructed from posts that are connected by boards, wire, rails or netting. A fence differs from a wall in not having a solid foundation along its whole length. ...
s and later also for the
cable Cable may refer to: Mechanical * Nautical cable, an assembly of three or more ropes woven against the weave of the ropes, rendering it virtually waterproof * Wire rope, a type of rope that consists of several strands of metal wire laid into a hel ...
s of bridges. His son John took charge of the business until 1887, while his second son Louis served an apprenticeship with Jenkins & Mar, Civil Engineers. Louis set up his own firm in 1889, later collaborating with the contractors James Abernethy & Co. In addition to his bridge projects, he assisted Aberdeen Council in surveying their town water scheme. He became an Associate 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 ...
in 1893, resigning in 1921. The firm's early bridges included suspension bridges at
Aboyne Aboyne ( sco, Abyne, gd, Abèidh) is a village on the edge of the Highlands in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, on the River Dee, approximately west of Aberdeen. It has a swimming pool at Aboyne Academy, all-weather tennis courts, a bowling green and ...
, spanning , and at Shocklach in Cheshire, both built in 1871. Neither bridge exists today. The early bridges had wooden towers, although these were replaced in later bridges by structural steel or
cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron– carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impur ...
members. He died in Aberdeen in 1940.''England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1966, 1973-1995''


Later bridges

*
Monymusk Monymusk ( gd, Monadh Musga) is a planned village in the Marr area of Aberdeenshire, Scotland. History Malcolm Canmore first established Celtic foundation on the site in 1078 The Culdees of Munimusc are recorded as inhabiting the site in 117 ...
, 1879 over the
River Don, Aberdeenshire The River Don ( gd, Deathan) is a river in north-east Scotland. It rises in the Grampians and flows eastwards, through Aberdeenshire, to the North Sea at Aberdeen. The Don passes through Alford, Kemnay, Inverurie, Kintore, and Dyce. Its ...
, span *Burnhervie, circa 1880, near
Kemnay Kemnay ( Gaelic: ''Camnaidh'') is a village west of Aberdeen in Garioch, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. History The village name ''Kemnay'' is believed to originate from the Celtic words that mean "little crook in the river" due to the village loc ...
, collapsed 1979 *
Birkhall Birkhall (from the Scots ''Birk Hauch'': "Birch River-meadow") is a estate on Royal Deeside, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, owned by King Charles III. It is located alongside the River Muick to the south-west of Ballater. History The property wa ...
, 1880,
Royal Deeside The River Dee ( gd, Uisge Dhè) is a river in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It rises in the Cairngorms and flows through southern Aberdeenshire to reach the North Sea at Aberdeen. The area it passes through is known as Deeside, or Royal Deeside in ...
, span *
Cromdale Cromdale ( gd, Cromdhail, from ''crom'' 'crooked' and ''dal'' 'valley, dale') is a village in Strathspey, in the Highland council area of Scotland, and one of the ancient parishes which formed the combined ecclesiastical (later civil) parish ...
, 1881 over the
River Spey The River Spey (Scottish Gaelic: Uisge Spè) is a river in the northeast of Scotland. At it is the eighth longest river in the United Kingdom, as well as the second longest and fastest-flowing river in Scotland. It is important for salmon fishi ...
, collapsed and replaced by road bridge in 1922 *
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 tradi ...
, 1887, first bridge by Louis Harper *Crathorne Hall, 1888, span, collapsed 1930 in flood *
Bandon, County Cork Bandon (; ) is a town in County Cork, Ireland. It lies on the River Bandon between two hills. The name in Irish means 'Bridge of the Bandon', a reference to the origin of the town as a crossing point on the river. In 2004 Bandon celebrated its ...
, 1890, span *
Larbert Larbert ( gd, Lèirbert/Leth-pheairt, sco, Lairbert) is a small town in the Falkirk council area of Scotland. The town lies in the Forth Valley above the River Carron which flows from the west. Larbert is from the shoreline of the Firth of F ...
, 1893 over the River Carron, span *Feugh, 1893 near
Banchory Banchory (, sco, Banchry, gd, Beannchar) is a burgh or town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is about west of Aberdeen, near where the Feugh River meets the River Dee. Prehistory and archaeology In 2009, a farmer discovered a short cist bu ...
*
Trentham, Staffordshire Trentham () is a suburb of the city of Stoke-on-Trent in North Staffordshire, England, south-west of the city centre and south of the neighbouring town of Newcastle-under-Lyme. It is separated from the main urban area by open space and by the Tre ...
, 1893, span, replaced in 1930s *
Grimsby Grimsby or Great Grimsby is a port town and the administrative centre of North East Lincolnshire, Lincolnshire, England. Grimsby adjoins the town of Cleethorpes directly to the south-east forming a conurbation. Grimsby is north-east of L ...
, 1894, three bridges *Sellack Boat, 1895, near
Ross-on-Wye Ross-on-Wye ( Welsh: ''Rhosan ar Wy'') is a market town in England, near the border with Wales. It had a population of 10,582 according to the 2011 census, estimated at 11,309 in 2019. It lies in south-eastern Herefordshire, on the River Wye ...
*
Doveridge Doveridge is a village and civil parish in Derbyshire, United Kingdom, near the border with Staffordshire and about east of Uttoxeter. Its name may come from its having a bridge over the river Dove (i.e. Dove(B)ridge), a tributary of the River ...
, 1898, replaced by a bridge by David Rowell & Co. * Keswick, Cumbria, 1898 over River Greta, demolished 1979 *
Narva Narva, russian: Нарва is a municipality and city in Estonia. It is located in Ida-Viru county, at the eastern extreme point of Estonia, on the west bank of the Narva river which forms the Estonia–Russia international border. With 54 ...
,
Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
, circa 1898, span *
Newquay Newquay ( ; kw, Tewynblustri) is a town on the north coast in Cornwall, in the south west of England. It is a civil parish, seaside resort, regional centre for aerospace industries, spaceport and a fishing port on the North Atlantic coast of ...
, 1900, about span *Chundra Bridge, Chovar Gorge,
Nepal Nepal (; ne, :ne:नेपाल, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in S ...
, June 1903 (No longer in use) * Sundari Footbridge, Nepal, in current use (2017) A number of other bridges are proposed as having been designed by Louis Harper at the Harper Bridges website, although in the absence of clear documentary evidence, they are not listed above.


References

*River, Railway and Ravine; foot suspension bridges for Empire. Douglas Harper 2015, The History Press 164pp.


External links


Harper Bridges
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harper, Louis 1868 births 1940 deaths People from Aberdeen British bridge engineers Scottish civil engineers