Ernest Goüin
Encyclopedia
Ernest Goüin (1815-1885) was a French civil engineer
and industrialist.
In 1846 he founded Ernest Goüin & Cie. (after 1871 Société de Construction des Batignolles
); the company initially built locomotives, and diversified into bridge building and railway construction projects.
His name is one of the 72 names inscribed on the Eiffel Tower.
He was educated at the Ecole Polytechnique
, and had achieved the military rank of Major, when in 1836 he resigned his commission and began to training in civil engineering at the École nationale des ponts et chaussées
He then studied engineering in England, learning at the railway workshops there, and subsequently was responsible for monitoring the construction of locomotives for the Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans
at the workshops of the Sharp Brothers in Manchester.
Between 1839 and 1845 he was manager of a railway workshops in Paris on the Paris to St. Germain line; in 1846 he founded his own company Ernest Gouin et Cie. with backing from James de Rothschild
, and began locomotive construction. An economic depression in 1847 affected orders for locomotives and forced Goüin to diversify; as a result his company began manufacturing structural metal constructions, and in 1852 his company built became the first metal bridge builder in France, with a bridge in Asnières
.
Later he established a shipyard in Nantes
. His company became public in 1871 as Société de Construction des Batignolles
, and through it he became involved in railway construction, including crossings of the Pyrenees
, Apennines, Carpathians and the Tyrolean Alps, lines in Algeria and Senegal, as well as railway lines in France and Belgium.
He also attained the positions of director of the Banque de France
, and chairman of the Conseil de prud'hommes de la Seine, and of the Paris Chamber of Commerce
.
He died in 1871, his descendants were involved in the running of the Société de Construction de Batignolles.
Civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...
and industrialist.
In 1846 he founded Ernest Goüin & Cie. (after 1871 Société de Construction des Batignolles
Société de Construction des Batignolles
The Société de Construction des Batignolles was a civil engineering company of France created in 1871 as a public limited company from the 1846 limited partnership of Ernest Gouin et Cie....
); the company initially built locomotives, and diversified into bridge building and railway construction projects.
His name is one of the 72 names inscribed on the Eiffel Tower.
Biography
Born on 20 July 1815, second son of Édouard Goüin, Ernest Goüin came from a established family of distinguised bankers and traders.He was educated at the Ecole Polytechnique
École Polytechnique
The École Polytechnique is a state-run institution of higher education and research in Palaiseau, Essonne, France, near Paris. Polytechnique is renowned for its four year undergraduate/graduate Master's program...
, and had achieved the military rank of Major, when in 1836 he resigned his commission and began to training in civil engineering at the École nationale des ponts et chaussées
École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées
Founded in 1747, the École nationale des ponts et chaussées , often referred to as les Ponts, is the world's oldest civil engineering school...
He then studied engineering in England, learning at the railway workshops there, and subsequently was responsible for monitoring the construction of locomotives for the Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans
Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans
The Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans was an early French railway company.It merged with the Chemin de Fer du Midi to form the Chemin de Fer de Paris à Orléans et du Midi in 1934...
at the workshops of the Sharp Brothers in Manchester.
Between 1839 and 1845 he was manager of a railway workshops in Paris on the Paris to St. Germain line; in 1846 he founded his own company Ernest Gouin et Cie. with backing from James de Rothschild
James Mayer de Rothschild
James Mayer de Rothschild was a French banker and the original founder of the French branch of the Rothschild family.-Biography:...
, and began locomotive construction. An economic depression in 1847 affected orders for locomotives and forced Goüin to diversify; as a result his company began manufacturing structural metal constructions, and in 1852 his company built became the first metal bridge builder in France, with a bridge in Asnières
Asnières
Asnières is the name or part of the name of several communes in France:* Asnières, Eure, in the Eure département* Asnières-en-Bessin, in the Calvados département* Asnières-en-Montagne, in the Côte-d'Or département...
.
Later he established a shipyard in Nantes
Nantes
Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
. His company became public in 1871 as Société de Construction des Batignolles
Société de Construction des Batignolles
The Société de Construction des Batignolles was a civil engineering company of France created in 1871 as a public limited company from the 1846 limited partnership of Ernest Gouin et Cie....
, and through it he became involved in railway construction, including crossings of the Pyrenees
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
, Apennines, Carpathians and the Tyrolean Alps, lines in Algeria and Senegal, as well as railway lines in France and Belgium.
He also attained the positions of director of the Banque de France
Banque de France
The Banque de France is the central bank of France; it is linked to the European Central Bank . Its main charge is to implement the interest rate policy of the European System of Central Banks...
, and chairman of the Conseil de prud'hommes de la Seine, and of the Paris Chamber of Commerce
Paris Chamber of Commerce
The Paris Chamber of Commerce is a Chamber of Commerce of the Paris region. It defends the interests of 310,000 corporations of the Paris, Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis, and Val-de-Marne départements that create 20% of France's GDP.The CCIP was created on February 25, 1803 by Napoléon...
.
He died in 1871, his descendants were involved in the running of the Société de Construction de Batignolles.
See also
- Goüin family (french wikipedia article)
- Margaret BridgeMargaret BridgeMargit híd or Margaret Bridge is a bridge in Budapest, Hungary, connecting Buda and Pest across the Danube. It is the second northernmost and second oldest public bridge in Budapest....
, designed by Ernest Goüin and Émile Nouguier