William Henry Barlow (1812–1902)
Civil Engineer
William Henry Barlow was a civil engineer famous for his large-scale projects in the late 19th century. He designed the impressive train shed roof at St Pancras station, which was the largest in the world when built. After a disaster, he designed the new Tay Bridge, setting new standards in civil engineering. His research into steel and girders led to the design of the Forth Bridge, one of the world’s most remarkable railway structures.
Early life
William Henry Barlow was born near Woolwich, the son of a well-known mathematician and physicist. At sixteen, he started working with his father before apprenticing in mechanical and civil engineering at the Woolwich and London Dockyards. In 1832, he worked for engineers Maudslay & Field and was sent to Istanbul (then Constantinople) to set up an arsenal for the Turkish government.
When he returned to England in 1838, Barlow became an assistant engineer for the Birmingham & Manchester Railway. After the line was completed in 1842, he became the resident engineer for the Midland Counties Railway in Derby. In 1844, the Midland Counties Railway became part of the new Midland Railway, and Barlow was appointed chief engineer, working alongside George Stephenson.
Barlow noticed that while iron rails wore out quickly, the wooden sleepers supporting them rotted even faster. He developed and patented a new type of rail that could be laid directly on the track bed without needing sleepers, using only occasional cross ties to maintain the gauge. This ‘Barlow Rail’ was used by Isambard Kingdom Brunel in some locations on the Great Western Railway broad gauge.
Consulting engineer
In 1857, Barlow moved to London and started his own practice. He was hired by the Midland Railway as their new consulting engineer after George Stephenson retired. His major project for the Midland Railway was extending the line from Bedford to London, starting in 1862. This gave the company its own access to London for the first time. Barlow designed St Pancras station, the company’s terminus on Euston Road. The station featured a magnificent train shed roof, which was 240 feet wide and the largest in the world at the time.
Tay and Forth bridges
After the Tay Bridge disaster in 1879, Barlow joined the committee investigating the accident. The North British Railway wanted to rebuild the bridge and asked him for advice. He recommended building a new double-line bridge, separate from the old one. Designed by WH Barlow & Son and built by William Arrol of Glasgow, work on the new Tay Bridge began in 1882 and it opened in June 1887.
Following the collapse of the first Tay Bridge, work on a bridge across the Forth stopped. Barlow, as a consultant engineer for the Midland Railway, was asked along with Sir John Fowler and T E Harrison to report on a new bridge design. Several designs were proposed, including a continuous girder bridge by Benjamin Baker, based on a patent from Barlow in 1859. Baker’s design was accepted, and Barlow improved the bridge’s stability by modifying the vertical columns in the cantilever design. Barlow, Fowler, and Harrison were asked to get permission to build the bridge from the Forth Bridge Railway, a consortium of several railway companies. Once permission was granted, construction was handed over to Sir John Fowler and Benjamin Baker.
Engineering and scientific investigations
Throughout his career, Barlow presented many papers on various engineering topics and investigations that interested him. These ranged from discovering electrical currents on the earth’s surface (noted while managing the Midland Railway’s electric telegraph system) to recording the human voice.
Barlow was instrumental in introducing steel to railway construction. In 1868, he joined a committee that conducted experiments proving steel was suitable for construction. He quickly realized that steel’s properties allowed engineers to build bridges over spans that iron couldn’t handle. In 1877, he was part of a committee that established the first safe stress level for using steel in railway engineering. The Forth Bridge, which Barlow helped design, was the first major structure in Britain made of steel.
William Henry Barlow and his son Crawford retired from their engineering firm in 1896. Barlow died on November 12, 1902, at his home in Old Charlton, Kent.
Did you know?
William Barlow devised a revolutionary method of sound recording in the 1870s which was the forerunner to the record player and the telephone.