Nicholas Wood FGS
FRS (24 April 1795 – 19 December 1865) was an English
colliery
Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...
and steam locomotive engineer. He helped engineer and design many steps forward in both engineering and mining safety, and helped bring about the
North of England Institute of Mining and Mechanical Engineers
The North of England Institute of Mining and Mechanical Engineers (NEIMME), commonly known as The Mining Institute, is a British Royal Chartered learned society and membership organisation dedicated to advancing science and technology in the N ...
, holding the position of President from its inauguration to his death.
Early life
Nicholas Wood was born at Sourmires, in the parish of
Ryton Ryton may refer to:
Places in England
* Ryton, Gloucestershire, a location
*Ryton, North Yorkshire
*Ryton, Shropshire
*Ryton, Tyne and Wear
*Ryton, Warwickshire (in Bulkington)
*Ryton-on-Dunsmore, Warwickshire
*Great Ryton, Shropshire
People
...
, then in
County Durham
County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly â€About North East E ...
, the son of Nicholas and Ann (née Laws) Wood.
Nicholas Senior was the mining engineer at Crawcrook colliery. Nicholas Junior attended the village school at
Crawcrook
Crawcrook is a semi-rural village close to the western border of the metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear in England. Traditionally an independent village in County Durham, it was incorporated into the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead on 1 April ...
and started work in 1811 at
Killingworth
Killingworth, formerly Killingworth Township, is a town in North Tyneside, England.
Killingworth was built as a planned town in the 1960s, next to Killingworth Village, which existed for centuries before the Township. Other nearby towns and ...
Colliery as an apprentice colliery viewer under the guidance of
Ralph Dodds. Wood eventually became the viewer, or colliery manager, of Killingworth Colliery in 1815. He was there a close associate of the colliery enginewright
George Stephenson
George Stephenson (9 June 1781 – 12 August 1848) was a British civil engineer and mechanical engineer. Renowned as the "Father of Railways", Stephenson was considered by the Victorians a great example of diligent application and thirst for ...
, helping him develop his version of the
safety lamp
A safety lamp is any of several types of lamp that provides illumination in coal mines and is designed to operate in air that may contain coal dust or gases, both of which are potentially flammable or explosive. Until the development of effectiv ...
and making considerable technical contributions to the development of his locomotive ''
Blücher''.
[ Early in their career, George Stephenson began developing a revolutionary safety lamp, yet it was Wood, already an accomplished craftsmen, who made the drawing to which the "Geordie" lamp was made, under the supervision of the inventor.][ It was Nicholas Wood who actually designed the system of actuating the valves of Stephenson's ''Blücher'' with eccentrics added to the axle; most of the valve gears, including, ironically, the Stephenson Gear, were based on the use of eccentrics, however, not on the simple slip eccentrics of Wood.] He also carried out in 1818 a series of experiments on rolling resistance, lubrication and laminated steel springs of locomotives.[ In 1823 he accompanied Stephenson to the meeting with Edward Pease in ]Darlington
Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town.
In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...
at which Pease was convinced to use locomotives on the Stockton and Darlington Railway
The Stockton and Darlington Railway (S&DR) was a railway company that operated in north-east England from 1825 to 1863. The world's first public railway to use steam locomotives, its first line connected collieries near Shildon with Darl ...
and put Stephenson in charge of building it. Wood and Stephenson remained in close contact throughout their lives, and George Stephenson even sent his son, Robert Stephenson
Robert Stephenson Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS HFRSE FRSA Doctor of Civil Law, DCL (16 October 1803 – 12 October 1859) was an English civil engineer and designer of locomotives. The only son of George Stephenson, the "Father of Railway ...
, to work as Wood's apprentice, where he flourished.
Career
By 1825 he had gained sufficient reputation and expertise in the design and testing of locomotives that in 1825 he was able to publish his influential book ''A Practical Treatise on Rail-roads and Interior Communication'', in which he analysed the various types of 'motive power' then in use: self-acting planes, fixed steam-engine planes, horses and steam locomotives. He was also invited to give evidence before committees of both houses of parliament on the Liverpool and Manchester Railway
The Liverpool and Manchester Railway (L&MR) was the first inter-city railway in the world. It opened on 15 September 1830 between the Lancashire towns of Liverpool and Manchester in England. It was also the first railway to rely exclusively ...
Bill and then appointed as one of the three judges, along with John Rastrick and John Kennedy, at the subsequent Rainhill Trials of 1829. He republished his book, considerably enlarged by reports and discussion of the trials, as a second edition in 1831. A third edition appeared in 1838.[
In 1832 he was involved in the building of the ]Newcastle and Carlisle Railway
The Newcastle & Carlisle Railway (N&CR) was an English railway company formed in 1825 that built a line from Newcastle upon Tyne on Britain's east coast, to Carlisle, on the west coast. The railway began operating mineral trains in 1834 between ...
and in 1845 became a director of the Newcastle and Berwick Railway
The York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway (YN&BR) was an English railway company formed in 1847 by the amalgamation of the York and Newcastle Railway and the Newcastle and Berwick Railway. Both companies were part of the group of business interest ...
. Wood was also given an opportunity to display his geological knowledge of Northumberland
Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey.
It is bordered by land on ...
by giving a paper when the British Association for the Advancement of Science held its annual meeting in Newcastle in 1838.[
In 1844 Wood became a partner in the Hetton Coal Company that owned ]Hetton
Hetton is a small Dales village in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England, situated 5.75 miles north of Skipton by the B6265 road. It is the largest settlement in the civil parish of Hetton-cum-Bordley. The population of the former ...
Colliery, and moved to Hetton Hall as colliery manager. He also was a partner in other local colliery companies - John Bowes and Partners and his own Nicholas Wood and Partners.
Wood often gave extensive evidence to government committees, such as the Select Committees on accidents of 1835 and 1853 and was involved in the discussions leading to the Mines Inspection Act of 1851. In 1855 he examined all the candidates for the new mining inspectorate. [
]
North of England Institute of Mining and Mechanical Engineers
Wood was one of the group of colliery viewers and others who following the Seaham Colliery explosion in 1852 decided to form a society to consider the prevention of accidents in coal mines. This was the North of England Institute of Mining Engineers. Wood was appointed the first President being re-elected to the position every year until his death. He campaigned for a College of Physical Science in Newcastle but without success because of funding difficulties and problems in the planned relationship with Durham University. A revitalised campaign after his death resulted in the creation of the college - a forerunner of Newcastle University - in 1871.
Other organisations
Wood was a member of the Institution of Civil Engineers and Institution of Mechanical Engineers and became a Fellow of the Geological Society in 1843 and a Fellow of the Royal Society
Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...
in 1864.[ He was a Vice President of the British Association for the Advancement of Science at the time of its meeting in Newcastle in 1863. He also served as Chairman of the employers organisation the ]Mining Association of Great Britain
The Mining Association of Great Britain (MAGB) was an industry association of employers in the mining industry of Great Britain that was active from 1854 to 1954.
History
The Mining Association of Great Britain was established in 1854 to represen ...
from its inception in 1854 until his death in 1865.
He married Maria Lindsay of Alnwick
Alnwick ( ) is a market town in Northumberland, England, of which it is the traditional county town. The population at the 2011 Census was 8,116.
The town is on the south bank of the River Aln, south of Berwick-upon-Tweed and the Scottish bor ...
in 1827; they had four sons and three daughters. In declining health for some months, he died while visiting London for medical consultations on 19 December 1865. He was buried at Hetton
Hetton is a small Dales village in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England, situated 5.75 miles north of Skipton by the B6265 road. It is the largest settlement in the civil parish of Hetton-cum-Bordley. The population of the former ...
. His four sons all made names for themselves in the coal industry; the youngest, Sir Lindsay Wood
''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as p ...
, becoming chairman of Hetton Collieries after his father's death and a baronet.[
]
Legacy
In 1871, in honour of Nicholas Wood, the Neville Hall within the North of England Institute of Mining Mechanical Engineers was renamed the Wood Memorial Hall. Planned to open on 5 August 1871, on the nineteenth anniversary of its foundation, the opening was delayed, owing to the joiners being on strike for four months. The Hall was successfully reopened on 2 July 1872, and was considered by many of the members to be a worthy testimonial to the memory of Nicholas Wood. Within the building, there is a monumental statue of Nicholas Wood presiding over the library, mounted on the top of a throne in the setting of an iconostasis
In Eastern Christianity, an iconostasis ( gr, εἰκονοστάσιον) is a wall of icons and religious paintings, separating the nave from the sanctuary in a Church (building), church. ''Iconostasis'' also refers to a portable icon stand t ...
.[The Mining Institute Renaissance- Anniversary Celebrations 1852– 2002. Authors: R.Blance, H. Burn, J. Ceiriog-Hughes, A.Doyle, N.Jackson, D.J Mallett, J.S. Porthouse, R. Sanderson, and G.W. Taylor]
Publications
Book
*Wood, Nichola
''A Practical Treatise on Rail-roads and Interior Communication in General'', 1825
2nd ed. 1831; 3rd ed. 1838.
Selected articles
*Wood, Nicholas. On the geology of a part of Northumberland and Cumberland. ''Transactions - Natural History Society of Northumberland, Durham and Newcastle Upon Tyne'' 1831, 302-334
*Wood, Nicholas. Inaugural address delivered to the members of the North of England Institute of Mining Engineers...... ''Transactions - North of England Institute of Mining Engineers'' 1 1852-53, 11-33
*Wood, Nicholas. On safety-lamps for lighting coal mines. ''Transactions - North of England Institute of Mining Engineers'' 1 1852-53, 301-322
*Wood, Nicholas. On the conveyance of coals underground in pits. ''Transactions - North of England Institute of Mining Engineers'' 5 1856-57, 65–116
*Wood, Nicholas. On the improvements and progress in the working and ventilation of coal mines in the Newcastle-on-Tyne district within the last fifty years. ''Proceedings - Institution of Mechanical Engineers'' 1858, 177-236
*Wood, Nicholas. On the deposit of magnetic ironstone in Rosedale. ''Transactions - North of England Institute of Mining Engineers'' 7 1858-59, 85-94
*Wood, Nicholas. Address on the two late eminent engineers, the Messrs. Stephenson, father and son. ''Transactions - North of England Institute of Mining Engineers'' 8 1859-60, 33-84
*Wood, N., Taylor, J. & Marley, J. Coal mining, &c. ''Transactions - North of England Institute of Mining Engineers'' 12 1862-63, 149-218
References
Further reading
Obituary Notice: Nicholas Wood
''Proceedings - Royal Society of London'' 16 1868, lxi-lxiii
* Wood, Nichola
"On safety lamps for lighting coal mines"
''Transactions, North of England Institute of Mining and Mechanical Engineers'', 1 1852-3, 301–322. Retrieved 28 October 2013.
Nicholas Wood
Grace's Guide. Retrieved 28 October 2013.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wood, Nicholas
1795 births
1865 deaths
Engineers from Tyne and Wear
19th-century English people
People of the Industrial Revolution
English inventors
English mining engineers
English railway mechanical engineers
British railway pioneers
British railway civil engineers
Locomotive builders and designers
People from Ryton, Tyne and Wear
Fellows of the Royal Society
Burials in Tyne and Wear