THOMAS TELFORD 1757 - 1834

AN ESKDALE TRIBUTE

L G LUESCHER

Telford’s is a happy life: everywhere making roads,

building bridges, forming canals and creating harbours-

works of sure, solid, permanent utility;

everywhere employing a great number of persons,

selecting the most meritorious, and putting them forward in the world,

in his own way.

Journal of a Tour of Scotland

Robert Southey. 1819

The generous support of all involved with this project is gratefully acknowledged.

Artwork and design by John Hills. www.johnhills.info

The generous support of all involved with this project is gratefully acknowledg

© L G Luescher 2007

‘I still recollect with pride and pleasure my native parish of

Westerkirk’young life must have been one of sparse comfort, and yet he was to take with him an abiding affection for Eskdale and its people. ‘I still recollect with pride and pleasure my native parish of Westerkirk’, he wrote in old age.

At the age of 15, Thomas became apprenticed to a stonemason, first in Lochmaben, and then to one Andrew Thomson in Langholm. He soon found himself busily employed in a bustling trade. The bridge over the Esk, completed around 1778, still bears his mason’s mark along with the marks of other masons with whom he must have worked. The original structure of the bridge, which was widened in 1880, remains unchanged. Although his early works are not well documented, Telford refers in his autobiography to the experience he acquired during the Langholm years - ‘Regular roads were substituted for the old horse tracks, and wheeled carriages introduced. Bridges, numerous but small, were built over the mountain streams.....and I was here early experienced in the several operations required in their construction’.

THE EARLY YEARS IN ESKDALE

‘It would be difficult to find in all Scotland a more solitary spot than the birthplace of Thomas Telford.’ Thus wrote J. Inglis Ker in his tribute to Telford in 1928, and in 2007 as we commemorate the 250th year of the birth of Telford much the same can be said. Even with the advent of tourism and the encroachment of commercial forestry, few travellers find their way along the banks of the Meggat Water, which meanders down between gentle rolling hills to join the River Esk in the parish of Westerkirk, a few miles from the ancient border town of Langholm. The landscape of uncultivated, mossy pastures, sparkling burns and grazing sheep, so beloved by Telford, has scarcely changed over the centuries. Far up the valley lies the farm of Glendinning, on which Telford’s father was a herd, and it was here that Eskdale’s most distinguished son was born on 9th August, 1757.

Within a few months John Telford had died, and his widow Janet moved with her son Thomas further down the valley to a cottage at the Crooks. The cottage was two-roomed and thatched, and shared with another family. Thomas helped his mother, who took farm work to support her young son, and when he was old enough relatives paid for him to attend the Westerkirk Parish School. He lodged on neighbouring farms, earning his keep and a few shillings a year to pay for clogs. His

THOMAS TELFORD 1757 - 1834

AN ESKDALE TRIBUTE

Langholm Bridge.

This was the era of ‘agricultural improvements’. Farms were becoming more organised and the good Duke Henry of Buccleuch, who owned much of the land in Eskdale, was genuinely concerned to improve the living conditions of the people of the region. He engaged the young mason to replace the dwellings of mud-wall and heather-thatch with houses of stone with slate roofs and wooden floors.

As his confidence in the art of hewing stone grew, Telford returned to the cemetery in Westerkirk to carve a gravestone in memory of his father, John, and the first-born Thomas who had died in infancy, the bold lettering of the inscription still clearly legible today. Nearby is another stone, commemorating the Pasley family of the Craig, and it was to Elizabeth Pasley that Thomas owed much for she had fostered in him an early interest in literature and poetry that was to last throughout his life.

FROM MASON AND ARCHITECT TO CIVIL ENGINEER

Telford commenced work as a journeyman mason on Somerset House, which offered plenty of practice in intricate and ornamental stone-carving. His work must have impressed for two years later he was appointed to superintend a building programme at Portsmouth Dockyard which included a substantial residence for the Commissioner and a new chapel, the whole project on a far greater scale than had previously been entrusted to him. While in Portsmouth Telford took the opportunity to observe the various operations necessary in the construction of the graving-docks and wharf-walls, acquiring knowledge which was later to serve him well.

Telford continued to study every aspect of his trade, read widely and wrote poetry. His progress was aided by another Eskdale connection. Sir William Pulteney MP, second son of Sir James Johnstone of Westerhall, who had married the niece of the Earl of Bath and taken her title, took an interest in the young architect

from Westerkirk, and became Telford’s patron. Pulteney discussed alterations to Westerhall with Telford, and in 1786 invited him to move to Shropshire, initially to carry out improvements to Shrewsbury Castle where he had taken residence. Two years later Telford was engaged as County Surveyor of Shropshire, with responsibility for public buildings, roads and bridges.

This period included some of Telford’s most notable early works including St. Mary Magdalene Church, Bridgnorth and bridges over the Severn at Montford (1792) and at Bewdley (1795-98). He worked on improvements to the county gaol, a new hospital, and numerous other bridges, 42 in all, and roads. He experimented with iron as an alternative material for his bridge designs, making careful studies of the first iron bridge at Coalbrookdale, cast at the foundry of Abraham Darby in 1777, and endeavoured to improve on the design in his own first iron bridge at Buildwas (1795-96).

From Langholm Telford went to Edinburgh where he quickly found work on the development of the New Town - the formal arrangement of streets and houses designed by architect James Craig that makes up George Street, Queen Street and Princes Street. He made detailed drawings of the great buildings of the city, realising from the fine architecture the scope for artistry and magnificence within his profession.

In 1782 Telford returned to Westerkirk. Now a skilled craftsman, he was eager to further his ambitions and, by good fortune, Sir James Johnstone of Westerhall was seeking a means of delivering a horse to London. And so it was that, at the age of 25, Telford left Eskdale and rode to London. In his saddlebag he carried his mallet, chisels, leather apron and some letters of introduction from Miss Pasley to a number of prominent architects, most notably Sir William Chambers and Robert Adam.

St. Mary Magdalene Church.

Bewdley Bridge.

Gravestone in memory of Telford’s fatherat Westerkirk cemetery.

This was the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, and Telford no longer saw himself as an architect, but rather as a civil engineer. He became increasingly absorbed in the need to improve communications, realising the fundamental importance to commerce and agriculture of an effective transport system. In 1793 Telford was appointed engineer to the Ellesmere Canal Company. The steam locomotive had not yet been invented and many roads were still barely passable by packhorse in winter. The network of inland waterways was, at the time, regarded as the most successful means of transporting freight, building materials and agricultural produce. The Ellesmere Canal, which took eight years to complete, was an immense project which established Telford’s reputation as an engineer. Of particular note was his pioneering design of the aqueducts at Pont Cysyllte and Chirk, which carried the water in cast iron troughs high above the Dee and Ceiriog valleys. These were hailed as revolutionary, and Sir Walter Scott, on seeing the Pont Cysyllte Aqueduct, pronounced it the most impressive work of art he had ever seen.

Much of the biographical detail of Telford’s adult life is preserved in letters written over many years to Andrew Little,

and in later years to Andrew’s son Jamie. A fellow-pupil at Westerkirk, Andrew Little had preceded Telford to Edinburgh where he studied medicine, and on qualifying he had found work on an African slave trader as the ship’s doctor. The young surgeon’s career was, however, short-lived. Blinded by a bolt of lightning during a storm, Little was forced to return to Langholm, where he became the school-teacher.

whose sons he taught in later life. Although it appears that he became distant from his mother - who remained at Westerkirk - he provided well for her, sending money regularly to her through Andrew Little, and visiting her shortly before her death in 1794. Telford never married, and his correspondence makes no mention of any inclination towards marriage.

It is apparent from their correspondence that Telford was a confident and ambitious man, sociable and well-liked by his large circle of friends and equally at ease with politicians, academics, landowners and labourers. He had extraordinary energy and vision, generosity, and a capacity for unstinting hard work. He attracted the respect and loyalty of his fellow artisans, some of whom worked with him over many years on his major projects and

Part of a letter written to Andrew Little..

Detail of a line drawing of the Pont Cysyllte aqueduct taken from the Telford Atlas..

Pont Cysyllte aqueduct on the Ellesmere Canal, opened in November 1805.

Chirk aqueduct.

Telford improved many miles of old military roads including Glencoe and Inverness to Fort Augustus. 32 churches and 43 manses were built to Telford’s design in some of Scotland’s remotest communities. His roads and bridges opened up communications throught the Highlands of Scotland.

Beautifully maintained interior of Plockton Church.

Manse at Onich. Bridge over River Moriston.

Original embankment-Glen Tarbert (A861).

Old military road-Glencoe. Telford bridge over River Shiel (A87).Plockton Church-built to Telford design.

An old farmstead near Glendinning. Interior of Ardgour Church.

THE HIGHLAND PLAN

Telford was asked to return to his native Scotland in 1801 initially to consider improvements to the east-coast harbours. His early years in Westerkirk had conditioned him to hardship and lonely places, yet he was ill-prepared for what he found in the Highlands. The Highland Clearances were forcing crofters from their small-holdings to make way for large-scale sheep farms. There was no employment for the dispossessed people, no tools and a chronic shortage of food. Roads amounted to a few fragmented tracks, built to move troops around during the rebellions of the 1740s, and now often referred to as General Wade’s military roads. The perilous river crossings had to be undertaken by ferry, and drovers had to swim across with their cattle.

Telford reported to the Government that the demoralised Highlanders were emigrating at an alarming rate. He saw road reform as the way to develop trade and create employment, and set about devising a master plan to build roads, bridges and harbours in the Highlands. Telford himself claimed that his plan

was ‘one of the noblest projects ever laid before a Nation’ and few would disagree. It brought him great credit, and in 1802 the Government appointed him chief engineer with overall responsibility to carry out his plan. Funding for the roads was provided in part by the Government and in part by local landowners.

Under Telford’s direction 920 miles of roads and 1200 bridges were constructed, and a further 280 miles of military roads improved, providing employment for thousands of men, many of whom became skilled engineers in their own right. His first bridge in Scotland since his work on the bridge over the Esk at Langholm was built in 1805 at Tongland, near Kirkcudbright. Among his most imposing bridges was the graceful seven arch structure over the Tay at Dunkeld (1806-08), and the iron bridge over the Spey at Craigellachie (1812-15). His road from Perth to Inverness gave access to the

north, and he then set about constructing numerous other roads and bridges across the Highlands and Western Isles. Telford made communication possible where previously none had existed, and in so doing advanced the country by at least a century. He prepared meticulous plans and appointed foremen to carry them out, overseeing the whole master plan himself during annual tours of inspection by horse or pony-trap.

On one such tour he was accompanied by the poet Robert Southey who wrote a journal describing the transformation of the Highlands as he saw it in progress. It was Southey who aptly conferred on Thomas Telford the title ‘Pontifex Maximus - Colossus of Roads’. He wrote of Telford: ‘A man more heartily to be liked, more worthy to be esteemed and admired, I have never fallen in with’.

Dunkeld Bridge.

Ferness Bridge, River Findhorn .Tongland Bridge, Kirkcudbright.

Craigellachie Bridge.

Glenshiel Bridge.

Lovat Bridge, River Beauly.

THE CALEDONIAN CANAL

In the early nineteenth century most roads and bridges were paid for by private subscription - by landowners or traders who stood to benefit from them, and who then charged tolls to travellers to retrieve the costs, hence the number of tollhouses relating to the period. The Caledonian Canal was fundamentally different. Its main purpose was to provide a safe passage for the fishing fleets between the east and west coasts, and to eliminate the need for the Navy and merchant vessels to navigate the treacherous passage around the northern coast of Scotland. Following detailed surveys by Telford, the Government eventually authorised public finance, perhaps persuaded in part that the employment created by the construction of the canal might reduce the flow of emigration.

Work started on the Canal in 1804. Local smiths were set to work to forge tools - picks, crowbars and shovels, while carpenters built barrows. Iron wheels, axles and rails were sent up from Derbyshire, and massive steam driven

pumps were set up to control the flow of water. Labourers were recruited, sheds built to accommodate them, stables for the horses, and workshops. Supplies of oatmeal were brought in to feed the

labourers, cows to provide milk, and a brewery built ‘that the Workmen may be induced to relinquish the pernicious habit of drinking Whiskey’.

Much of the Great Glen was already navigable, but the remaining 20 miles presented Telford with some of the most challenging engineering problems he was ever to encounter. The terrain was extremely difficult, and the severity of the climate often halted work for long periods. Extensive dredging had to be carried out, and in all 29 locks were constructed to raise the level of the canal to its highest point at Loch Oich. On viewing the succession of eight locks known as Neptune’s Staircase at the western end of the Canal, the poet Southey wrote: ‘A panorama painted from this place would include the highest mountain in Great Britain, and its greatest work of art’.

A work of art it may have been, but the Canal had taken 18 years to complete, nearly three times longer than intended, and had cost nearly £1,000,000 rather than the £350,000 originally estimated. And time had moved on. By the time the Canal was completed the war with France was over, sail had given way to steam navigation and advances in shipbuilding technology meant wooden ships were swiftly being superseded by iron vessels with much larger hulls.

Although failing to meet its original objectives, the Caledonian Canal was none the less a remarkable achievement and, still navigable today, remains an outstanding working example of industrial archaeology. Despite some criticism at the time Telford was justly proud of the achievement, the more so for it had provided employment to thousands,

and taught lasting skills which generated a whole new prosperity in the Highlands.

At the same time the Church of Scotland commissioned Telford to build a number of low-budget churches and manses in some of the remotest communities in the Highlands and Islands. In all 32 churches and 43 manses were built to Telford’s design, at a total cost of just over £54,000, and many remain in use today. He then turned his attention back to the coastal areas, constructing and improving upon numerous harbours and docks, most notably Aberdeen, Dundee, Wick and Peterhead. The Lowlands benefited too, with the construction of the Carlisle to Glasgow road with joining roads to Lanark, and surveys for the Carter Bar road across the Cheviots to Edinburgh and the Carlisle to Stranraer road.

Aberdeen Harbour.

Foss Church by Loch Tummel.

Detail of lock opening.Below: Drawing of a barrow from the Telford Atlas

Series of 8 locks known as Neptune’s Staircase at the west end of the Caledonian Canal.

Telford’s house at Banavie.

OTHER WORKS IN BRITAIN AND ABROAD

While work in Scotland was proceeding Telford applied his engineering skills to other projects both in Britain and abroad. The London to Holyhead road and the immense suspension bridge across the Menai Straits, completed in 1826, shortened journey time considerably and greatly improved communication with Ireland. The suspension bridge over the estuary by Conway Castle followed shortly thereafter. Other major schemes which he supervised or advised on included the Gotha Canal in Sweden - a massive waterway uniting the North Sea and the Baltic - bridges and roads in Poland, Germany and Austria, docks in Ireland, St Katherine’s Dock in London and the drainage of the Fens. Telford’s work on the Gotha Canal in Sweden established Britain’s reputation for engineering skills worldwide, and formed the foundation on which Britain’s export of technical knowledge was built.

Even as his health declined Telford continued to advise on a variety of engineering projects, and his final bridge designs, the Broomielaw Bridge, Glasgow (1829-36), and Dean Bridge over the Water of Leith, Edinburgh (1829-31) were two of his finest works.

After having lived in lodgings and hotels for so many years, Telford acquired a house at 24 Abingdon Street, London in which he took great pride, and it was here that he died on 2nd September 1834. From his humble beginnings beneath the Eskdale skies to his final resting in Westminster Abbey, Thomas Telford devoted his whole life to building roads, bridges and canals. Honoured by Governments at home and abroad, many of his works remain today, a monument to his engineering skills.

Telford had outstanding natural ability, and a deep understanding of his craft. But it was also perhaps, paradoxically, the very nature of his boyhood days in Eskdale that singled him out from other great achievers of his time. Long days and nights spent in the hills taught him self-reliance and the value of solitude, and his boyhood love for his native landscape inspired him, as a man, to write poetry. His Scottish village

school education, where the shepherd’s son sat alongside the sons of the laird, gave him a respect for the dignity of learning and a hunger for knowledge. And the benevolence of his community, the Pasley family and the Johnstones of Westerhall, showed him the way to opportunity. Most importantly, his apprenticeship as a young man in Langholm taught him the practical skills needed to rise in his profession, and gave him an understanding of the materials of the forest, the forge and the quarry, and the tools needed to mould and shape them for his purpose.

Telford never forgot Eskdale. Often forgoing payment for his work, he had not amassed a great fortune at the time of his death. In his will he bequeathed money to his many friends, to the Institution of Civil Engineers along with his drawings and papers, and to the communities of Langholm and Westerkirk for the establishment of libraries which are still in use today.

Nor has Eskdale forgotten Telford. In the year 2007 a simple cairn of local whinstone has been erected near the place of Thomas Telford’s birth at Glendinning, to commemorate the birth at that place of the greatest engineer of his time.

Telford took a keen interest in the formation of the Institution of Civil Engineers, and was elected its first president in 1820. He turned what had begun as an informal group of young engineers into a highly regarded organisation which met regularly to accumulate and exchange engineering knowledge. The Institution gained world renown, and was granted a Royal Charter by George IV in 1828. One hundred years later, the Institution in conjunction with the Eskdale and Liddesdale Archaeological Society, erected a granite memorial with inscribed bronze panels near the confluence of the Meggat and the Esk near where Telford’s famous life had begun. This fine memorial now stands at the Westerkirk Library as a lasting tribute to Telford’s creative genius and benevolence.

The graceful Menai Suspension Bridgelinking Anglesey with Caernarvenshire.

Broomielaw Bridge, Glasgow.