James Oldham (23 June 1801 – 10 June 1890) was a British civil engineer, involved in the reclamation of

Sunk Island Sunk Island is a Crown Estate village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies south of Ottringham and to the north of the Humber Estuary. The Greenwich Meridian passes through the east of ...

in the

East Riding of Yorkshire The East Riding of Yorkshire, often abbreviated to the East Riding or East Yorkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and west, S ...

, as well as a number of dock and other civil engineering schemes in and around

Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull, usually shortened to Hull, is a historic maritime city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Est ...

Biography

James Oldham was born in

, England, on 23 June 1801. At the age of 14, he went to sea, spending time on ships in the

Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages *Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originatin ...

; however, the life of a seaman prove too much for him and he later returned to England, and joined his father, a

millwright A millwright is a craftsman or skilled tradesman who installs, dismantles, maintains, repairs, reassembles, and moves machinery in factories, power plants, and construction sites. The term ''millwright'' (also known as ''industrial mechanic'') ...

, as apprentice, learning mechanical engineering. One of Oldham's first contracts for was for the upgrade of the North Bridge on the River Hull in 1832, for the

Hull Corporation Hull City Council, or Kingston upon Hull City Council, is the local authority for the city of Kingston upon Hull (generally known as Hull) in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. Hull has had a council since 1299, whic ...

, on which he acted as superintending engineer. Minutes of the Proceedings (1891), pp. 377–378. In 1835, he prepared a plan for the conversion of the Old Harbour, Hull, in 1835, a design for a West Dock for Thomas Thompson, published in 1836; and a plan for a dock in the east of Hull for the Queen's Dock Company in 1838. He also was engineer for a number of proposed railways : the ''Hull and Gainsborough'' ( New Holland to

Gainsborough Gainsborough or Gainsboro may refer to: Places * Gainsborough, Ipswich, Suffolk, England ** Gainsborough Ward, Ipswich * Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, a town in England ** Gainsborough (UK Parliament constituency) * Gainsborough, Saskatchewan, Ca ...

) of 1844, the 1845 ''Hull and Barnsley Junction'' scheme, the 1866 ''Hull and West Yorkshire and Lancashire'', and the 1884 ''Hull and Lincoln'' railway. ''The Engineer'' (20 June 1890) He also was an engineer on the ''Hull and Leeds'' (1835) ( Hull to Selby), and

Hull and Hornsea Railway The Hull and Hornsea Railway was a branch line which connected the city of Kingston upon Hull with the seaside town of Hornsea in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. History Early proposals and construction A proposal for a railway line to ...

s. In 1850, he was employed by the

Commissioners of Woods and Forests The Commissioners of Woods, Forests and Land Revenues were established in the United Kingdom in 1810 by merging the former offices of Surveyor General of Woods, Forests, Parks, and Chases and Surveyor General of the Land Revenues of the Crown in ...

to reclaim the land a

on the north bank of the

Humber Estuary The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Trent, Trent. From there to the North Sea, it forms ...

, and undertook surveys for reclamation of a larger area to the east of . Minutes of the Proceedings (1891), p. 378. In 1874, he entered into partnership with George Bohn; the firm acted under

James Abernethy James Abernethy FRSE MICE (12 June 1814 – 8 March 1896) was a Scottish civil engineer. Biography Abernethy was born in Aberdeen to George Abernethy, an engineer, and Isabella Johnston. In 1823, the family moved to South Wales, where his fathe ...

during the construction of the Alexandra Dock of the

Hull and Barnsley Railway The Hull Barnsley & West Riding Junction Railway and Dock Company (HB&WRJR&DCo.) was opened on 20 July 1885. It had a total projected length of but never reached Barnsley, stopping a few miles short at Stairfoot. The name was changed to The ...

in the 1880s. Oldhan was a founder of the Hull Mechanic's Institute, and a regular and reliable witness to Committees of the Houses of Parliament. Minutes of the Proceedings (1891), pp. 379–340. He died on 10 June 1890, of congestion of the lungs.

Published works

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References

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Oldham, James 1801 births 1890 deaths British civil engineers Engineers from Kingston upon Hull Institution of Civil Engineers