James Brunlees
Encyclopedia
Sir James Brunlees was a Scottish civil engineer
. He was born in Kelso in the Scottish Borders
in 1816.
In 1850, Brunlees worked on the Londonderry and Coleraine Railway. For this job he was obliged to build an embankment over Rosse’s Bay on the River Foyle
, surmounting great difficulties.
. This was a short but difficult and important railway to link the Furness Railway
network to the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
line and thence to all points further south in the British network. The route was planned by McClean
and Stileman at 19 miles in length of which ten miles comprised embankments and viaducts across tidal water. Much of this was sand running to a depth of 30 to 70 feet. This made it very challenging to build. In business terms the Manchester
-based railway contractors John Brogden and Sons
were the prime movers of this railway.
The Ulverstone and Lancaster Railway Act received the Royal Assent
on 24 July 1851 but work was not in full progress until September 1853 because workers and accommodation for them were not readily available. McClean and Stileman had resigned as engineers in the previous February so another engineer had to supervise construction. Brunlees was chosen because of his success with the River Foyle project.
The line was opened on 26 August 1857. Brunlees wrote a paper on this project for the Institution of Civil Engineers
in which he described the design profile of the embankments and a novel design of drawbridge for the viaducts to withstand the winds and waves. His work on the U&L earned him praise from men like Locke
and Hawkshaw
. Viaducts were built across the estuaries of the rivers Kent and Leven and these were designed and built by W & J Galloway of Manchester
using a novel piling system involving waterjets.
. This involved a 1 miles (1.60934 km) cast-iron girder
viaduct
between Bowness-on-Solway
and Annan
across the Solway Firth
in Scotland. It had 193 spans with 2,892 tons of cast iron
for the piles and 1,807 tons of wrought iron
. The Act of Parliament
was passed in 1864 and the railway was opened in 1869.
Unfortunately in 1875 and 1881 the viaduct was damaged by ice. In 1881 the damage was severe and there was a Board of Trade
Inquiry. The inspecting officer said that because of the thickness of ice, the size of the ice-floes, and the absence of wind, it was not surprising that the cast-iron columns had not withstood the shock. This method of construction should be avoided in estuaries where the climate was subject to sudden changes in temperature and to blows from floating ice. He had no objection to rebuilding the viaduct but recommended modifications to prevent a repetition. He did not criticise anyone however, perhaps because this type of engineering was new and everyone was learning.
, connecting Liverpool
and Birkenhead
, and the Sao Paulo Railway
between Sao Paulo
and Porto de Santos.
He also worked in maritime engineering and was responsible for the construction of the docks at Avonmouth
and Whitehaven as well as the piers at Southport
and Southend
.
There is evidence that Brunlees also worked with the Brogdens on their New Zealand projects
He served as president of the Institution of Civil Engineers between December 1882 and December 1883.
He was knighted in 1886.
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...
. He was born in Kelso in the Scottish Borders
Scottish Borders
The Scottish Borders is one of 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It is bordered by Dumfries and Galloway in the west, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian in the north west, City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian to the north; and the non-metropolitan counties of Northumberland...
in 1816.
In 1850, Brunlees worked on the Londonderry and Coleraine Railway. For this job he was obliged to build an embankment over Rosse’s Bay on the River Foyle
River Foyle
The River Foyle is a river in west Ulster in the northwest of Ireland, which flows from the confluence of the rivers Finn and Mourne at the towns of Lifford in County Donegal, Republic of Ireland, and Strabane in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. From here it flows to the City of Derry, where it...
, surmounting great difficulties.
Railway across Morecambe Bay
Brunlees was the Construction Engineer for the Ulverston and Lancaster RailwayUlverston and Lancaster Railway
The “Ulverstone” and Lancaster Railway Company was short-lived as a business but the line that it built is still in daily use. The line runs from Lindal-in-Furness to Carnforth where it joins what was then the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway...
. This was a short but difficult and important railway to link the Furness Railway
Furness Railway
The Furness Railway was a railway company operating in the Furness area of Lancashire in North West England.-History:The company was established on May 23, 1844 when the Furness Railway Act was passed by Parliament...
network to the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
The Lancaster and Carlisle Railway was a British railway company authorised on 6 June 1844 to build a line between Lancaster and Carlisle in North-West England...
line and thence to all points further south in the British network. The route was planned by McClean
John Robinson McClean
John Robinson McClean CB FRS , was a British civil engineer and Liberal Party politician.-Early life:He was born in Belfast. Educated at Belfast Academical Institution and University of Glasgow.-Engineering career:...
and Stileman at 19 miles in length of which ten miles comprised embankments and viaducts across tidal water. Much of this was sand running to a depth of 30 to 70 feet. This made it very challenging to build. In business terms the Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
-based railway contractors John Brogden and Sons
John Brogden and Sons
John Brogden and Sons was a firm of Railway Contractors, Iron and Coal Miners and Iron Smelters operating from roughly 1837 to the bankruptcy in 1883. However the business essentially started when John Brogden moved from his father's farm near Clitheroe to set up in business in the rapidly...
were the prime movers of this railway.
The Ulverstone and Lancaster Railway Act received the Royal Assent
Royal Assent
The granting of royal assent refers to the method by which any constitutional monarch formally approves and promulgates an act of his or her nation's parliament, thus making it a law...
on 24 July 1851 but work was not in full progress until September 1853 because workers and accommodation for them were not readily available. McClean and Stileman had resigned as engineers in the previous February so another engineer had to supervise construction. Brunlees was chosen because of his success with the River Foyle project.
The line was opened on 26 August 1857. Brunlees wrote a paper on this project for the Institution of Civil Engineers
Institution of Civil Engineers
Founded on 2 January 1818, the Institution of Civil Engineers is an independent professional association, based in central London, representing civil engineering. Like its early membership, the majority of its current members are British engineers, but it also has members in more than 150...
in which he described the design profile of the embankments and a novel design of drawbridge for the viaducts to withstand the winds and waves. His work on the U&L earned him praise from men like Locke
Joseph Locke
Joseph Locke was a notable English civil engineer of the 19th century, particularly associated with railway projects...
and Hawkshaw
John Hawkshaw
Sir John Hawkshaw , was an English civil engineer.-Early life:He was born in Leeds, Yorkshire and was educated at Leeds Grammar School...
. Viaducts were built across the estuaries of the rivers Kent and Leven and these were designed and built by W & J Galloway of Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
using a novel piling system involving waterjets.
Railway across the Solway Firth
James Brunlees was the engineer of the Solway Junction RailwaySolway Junction Railway
The Solway Junction Railway ran between the Caledonian Railway near Kirtlebridge and the Brayton station of the Maryport and Carlisle Railway. The Act of Parliament was granted on 30 June 1864 and the line was opened in 1869. It involved a iron girder viaduct between Bowness-on-Solway and Annan...
. This involved a 1 miles (1.60934 km) cast-iron girder
Girder
A girder is a support beam used in construction. Girders often have an I-beam cross section for strength, but may also have a box shape, Z shape or other forms. Girder is the term used to denote the main horizontal support of a structure which supports smaller beams...
viaduct
Viaduct
A viaduct is a bridge composed of several small spans. The term viaduct is derived from the Latin via for road and ducere to lead something. However, the Ancient Romans did not use that term per se; it is a modern derivation from an analogy with aqueduct. Like the Roman aqueducts, many early...
between Bowness-on-Solway
Bowness-on-Solway
Bowness-on-Solway is a small village of less than 100 houses on the Solway Firth separating England and Scotland. It falls in North-West Cumbria to the west of Carlisle on the English side. The western end of Hadrian's Wall is a major tourist attraction, along with beaches and wading birds...
and Annan
Annan, Dumfries and Galloway
The royal burgh of Annan is a well-built town, red sandstone being the material mainly used. Each year in July, Annan celebrates the Royal Charter and the boundaries of the Royal Burgh are confirmed when a mounted cavalcade undertakes the Riding of the Marches. Entertainment includes a...
across the Solway Firth
Solway Firth
The Solway Firth is a firth that forms part of the border between England and Scotland, between Cumbria and Dumfries and Galloway. It stretches from St Bees Head, just south of Whitehaven in Cumbria, to the Mull of Galloway, on the western end of Dumfries and Galloway. The Isle of Man is also very...
in Scotland. It had 193 spans with 2,892 tons of cast iron
Cast iron
Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...
for the piles and 1,807 tons of wrought iron
Wrought iron
thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...
. The Act of Parliament
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
was passed in 1864 and the railway was opened in 1869.
Unfortunately in 1875 and 1881 the viaduct was damaged by ice. In 1881 the damage was severe and there was a Board of Trade
Board of Trade
The Board of Trade is a committee of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, originating as a committee of inquiry in the 17th century and evolving gradually into a government department with a diverse range of functions...
Inquiry. The inspecting officer said that because of the thickness of ice, the size of the ice-floes, and the absence of wind, it was not surprising that the cast-iron columns had not withstood the shock. This method of construction should be avoided in estuaries where the climate was subject to sudden changes in temperature and to blows from floating ice. He had no objection to rebuilding the viaduct but recommended modifications to prevent a repetition. He did not criticise anyone however, perhaps because this type of engineering was new and everyone was learning.
Other work
Brunlees served as a railway engineer in the construction of the Mersey RailwayMersey Railway
The Mersey Railway connected Liverpool and Birkenhead, England, via the Mersey Railway Tunnel under the River Mersey. Opened in 1886, it was the second oldest urban underground railway network in the world. The railway contained the first tunnel built under the River Mersey. It was constructed by...
, connecting Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
and Birkenhead
Birkenhead
Birkenhead is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral in Merseyside, England. It is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite the city of Liverpool...
, and the Sao Paulo Railway
São Paulo Railway
São Paulo Railway was a privately owned British railway company in Brazil, which operated the gauge railway from the seaport at Santos via São Paulo to Jundiaí...
between Sao Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
and Porto de Santos.
He also worked in maritime engineering and was responsible for the construction of the docks at Avonmouth
Avonmouth Docks
The Avonmouth Docks are part of the Port of Bristol, in England. They are situated on the northern side of the mouth of the River Avon, opposite the Royal Portbury Dock on the southern side, where the river joins the Severn estuary, within Avonmouth....
and Whitehaven as well as the piers at Southport
Southport Pier
Southport Pier is a Grade II listed structure in Southport, Merseyside, England. At 1,216 yards it is the second longest in Great Britain after Southend Pier...
and Southend
Southend Pier
Southend Pier is a major landmark in Southend-on-Sea. Extending into the Thames Estuary, it is the longest pleasure pier in the world. Sir John Betjeman once said that "the Pier is Southend, Southend is the Pier". The pier is a Grade II listed building....
.
There is evidence that Brunlees also worked with the Brogdens on their New Zealand projects
He served as president of the Institution of Civil Engineers between December 1882 and December 1883.
He was knighted in 1886.