Online resource of custom wood and metal picture frames available in a variety of styles and colors.
|
Go Back
Sir Joseph Bazalgette (March 28, 1819 - March 15, 1891)
Sir Joseph Bazalgette
(March 28, 1819 - March 15, 1891) |
|
Art Work
| Name: |
Sir Joseph Bazalgette |
| Gender: |
Male |
| Place of Birth: |
Enfield, London |
| Nationality: |
English |
| Birth: |
March 28, 1819 |
| Death: |
March 15, 1891 |
| Website: |
|
| Past Auctions: |
Click Here |
|
|
Quick Facts
| Known For: |
|
| Medium: |
Engineer |
| Method: |
|
| Style: |
|
| Fine Art Profession(s): |
|
|
|
Biography
| He was educated privately and articled in 1836 to the engineer John McNeill (1793-1880), with whom he worked in Northern Ireland on drainage and land reclamation projects, subjects that he had studied in Holland. In 1842 he set up as an independent railway engineer but ill health forced him to retire from commercial practice in 1847. After a years convalescence he was appointed assistant engineer under the newly established Metropolitan Commission of Sewers in London, and for the rest of his life his work was largely confined to public projects. In 1852 Bazalgette became chief engineer of the Metropolitan Commission of Sewers, a position he then occupied at the Metropolitan Board of Works, from its inception in 1855 until it was superseded by the London County Council in 1889, when he retired. He is associated with two great engineering projects: the construction of a system of sewers for the complete drainage of London, and the building of embankments along the Thames in central London. Londons chaotic drainage proved controversial, and various commissions appointed between 1848 and 1855 produced different improvement schemes, none of which was built. Following the creation of the Metropolitan Board of Works, Bazalgette produced new plans, which were initially blocked by the government, but in 1858 the Metropolitan Board of Works was finally given full control over the project. The main drainage system was opened in 1865 and the complete network was completed in 1875. Bazalgettes system comprised over 80 miles of large-bore sewers and four pumping stations with a combined capacity of 420 million gallons per day. The pumping stations were highly decorated: at the Crossness Sewage Works (1865), for example, the chimney was given the form of a campanile, and the surrounding area was carefully landscaped. The success of the system, which cost a‚£4.6m, was immediately evident in terms of both engineering and public health.Many varied plans to rebuild the Thames embankments had occasionally been proposed but it was not until 1862 that the Metropolitan Board of Works was granted the legal powers to undertake the work. The first section, from Westminster to Blackfriars, known as the Victoria Embankment (1864-70), was followed by the Albert (1866-9) and Chelsea (1871-4) embankments. During their construction more than 12 ha of land was reclaimed, on much of which public gardens were laid out. The embankments were carefully designed for their solidity and aesthetic appeal. All were faced with granite and complemented by specially designed street furniture such as dolphin-based cast-iron lamps. There was, however, some criticism of the poor architectural detail. Among Bazalgettes other projects were bridges over the Thames at Putney (1882-6) and Battersea (1886-90), and other embankment schemes at vulnerable points elsewhere along the Thames. He also acted as a consultant to British local authorities and to foreign governments. He was knighted in 1874 in recognition of his public services. |
Samples of Work
|
|
|
|
