William Tierney Clark
William Tierney Clark (born August 23, 1783 in Bristol , † September 22, 1852 in Hammersmith , London , United Kingdom ) was an English bridge construction engineer who gained recognition for his chain bridges and became famous for the Széchenyi chain bridge in Budapest .
Life and accomplishments
William Tierney Clark, whose father had died early, found a job after an apprenticeship as a mechanical engineer in the Coalbrookdale Ironworks , the ironworks built by the Abraham Darby family , which after the construction of the Iron Bridge, among other things, with the production of components for the bridges of Thomas Telford were concerned. The knowledge he acquired there in the manufacture of cast iron and wrought iron led him to a company in London in 1808 and, on the recommendation of John Rennie , to the West Middlesex Waterworks in 1811 . He increased their efficiency considerably, installed reservoirs and a water pipe under the Thames to Hammersmith. With the consent of his employer, he took up a job as a self-employed engineer, initially building the Thames and Medway Canal . In 1824 he began planning the Hammersmith Bridge , which was completed in 1827. Between 1829 and 1832 he built the Marlow Bridge over the Thames and then the Norfolk Bridge , a suspension bridge in Shoreham-by-Sea that was replaced in 1923.
Clark's most important work was the Széchenyi Chain Bridge built between 1839 and 1849 over the Danube , with which the then still independent cities of Buda and Pest were connected. In recognition of his achievement, Emperor Franz Joseph I gave him a golden snuffbox decorated with diamonds .
In 1845 he also drew up plans for a suspension bridge over the Neva , which Tsar Nicholas I recognized with a gold medal.
Clark became a member of the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) in 1823 and a member of the Royal Society in 1837 .
Fonts
- An Account, with illustrations, of the Suspension Bridge across the River Danube . John Weale, London 1852–53. Digitized on Google Books
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Biographical treatise by Robert Hunt: Clark, William Tierney in the Dictionary of National Biography
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Clark, William Tierney |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | English bridge construction engineer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | August 23, 1783 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Bristol |
| DATE OF DEATH | September 22, 1852 |
| Place of death | Hammersmith , London , United Kingdom |