Sir John Wolfe Barry (7 December 1836 – 22 January 1918), the youngest son of famous architect Sir

Charles Barry Sir Charles Barry (23 May 1795 – 12 May 1860) was a British architect, best known for his role in the rebuilding of the Palace of Westminster (also known as the Houses of Parliament) in London during the mid-19th century, but also respon ...

, was an English civil engineer of the late 19th and early 20th century. His most famous project is

Tower Bridge Tower Bridge is a Grade I listed combined bascule and suspension bridge in London, built between 1886 and 1894, designed by Horace Jones and engineered by John Wolfe Barry with the help of Henry Marc Brunel. It crosses the River Thames clos ...

over the River

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

in London which was constructed between 1886 and 1894. After receiving a knighthood in 1897, he added "Wolfe" to his inherited name in 1898 to become Sir John Wolfe Barry.

Early career

Wolfe Barry was educated at Glenalmond and

King's College, London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King G ...

, where he was a pupil of civil engineer Sir John Hawkshaw, as was his business partner

Henry Marc Brunel Henry Marc Brunel (27 June 1842 – 7 October 1903) was an English civil engineer and the son of the celebrated engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel and grandson of civil engineer Marc Isambard Brunel. Henry Marc Brunel was born in Westminster, L ...

, son of the great

Isambard Kingdom Brunel Isambard Kingdom Brunel (; 9 April 1806 – 15 September 1859) was a British civil engineer who is considered "one of the most ingenious and prolific figures in engineering history," "one of the 19th-century engineering giants," and "on ...

. Barry and Hawkshaw worked on railway bridge crossings across the Thames, among other projects. Brunel pursued his own business from 1871, but in 1878 went into partnership with Barry. Barry began his own practice in 1867, and carried out more work for the railways.

Tower Bridge

However, it was Tower Bridge that made Wolfe Barry's name. In 1878, architect Horace Jones first proposed a

bascule bridge A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- o ...

. An Act of Parliament allowing the Corporation of the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...

to build it was passed in 1885. Jones was appointed architect, and developed an initial scheme for which he was knighted in 1886. Wolfe Barry, already well-established with experience of bridges across the Thames, was introduced as the engineer for the project and with Henry Marc Brunel redesigned the mechanisms resulting in a modified plan. Within a month of construction starting Sir Horace Jones died, leaving Wolfe Barry and Brunel to oversee and complete the works. The bridge was completed in 1894.

Other projects

His other projects included: *

Cannon Street Railway Bridge Cannon Street station, also known as London Cannon Street, is a central London railway terminus and connected London Underground station in Travelcard zone 1 located on Cannon Street in the City of London and managed by Network Rail. It is o ...

(also known as the Alexandra Bridge) (1866) * Blackfriars Railway Bridge (also known as St Paul's Bridge), London (1886) In 1891, he entered into partnership with his nephew Lt. Col. Arthur John Barry and the partnership's projects included: * Barry Docks (not a namesake) near

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...

, south

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

District line The District line is a London Underground line running from in the east and Edgware Road in the west to in west London, where it splits into multiple branches. One branch runs to in south-west London and a short branch, with a limited serv ...

of the

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The ...

(with Sir John Hawkshaw) * Pumping stations on the

Regent's Canal Regent's Canal is a canal across an area just north of central London, England. It provides a link from the Paddington Arm of the Grand Union Canal, north-west of Paddington Basin in the west, to the Limehouse Basin and the River Thames in e ...

, north London * Kew Bridge, west London (1903) * Expansion of

Greenland Dock Greenland Dock is the oldest of London's riverside wet docks, located in Rotherhithe in the area of the city now known as Docklands. It used to be part of the Surrey Commercial Docks, most of which have by now been filled in. Greenland ...

, Surrey Docks (now Surrey Quays), south-east London (1904) *

Immingham Dock The Port of Immingham, also known as Immingham Dock, is a major port on the east coast of England, located on the south bank of the Humber Estuary in the town of Immingham, Lincolnshire. In 2019, the Port of Grimsby & Immingham was the larges ...

(1912) * Joint Dock, Kingston upon Hull (1914), with Benjamin Baker.) * No.3 Fish Dock, Grimsby (1934)

Industry standardisation

John Wolfe-Barry Vanity Fair 26 January 1905

Wolfe Barry was a recognised industry leader (he was elected President of the

Institution of Civil Engineers The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) is an independent professional association for civil engineers and a charitable body in the United Kingdom. Based in London, ICE has over 92,000 members, of whom three-quarters are located in the UK, whi ...

in 1896, knighted in 1897, and served on several Royal Commissions). He also played a prominent role in the development of industry standardisation, urging the ICE's Council to form a committee to focus on standards for iron and steel sections. Two members each from the ICE, the

Institution of Mechanical Engineers The Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) is an independent professional association and learned society headquartered in London, United Kingdom, that represents mechanical engineers and the engineering profession. With over 120,000 member ...

, the Institution of Naval Architects and the Iron and Steel Institute first met on 26 April 1901. With the

Institution of Electrical Engineers The Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE) was a British professional organisation of electronics, electrical, manufacturing, and Information Technology professionals, especially electrical engineers. It began in 1871 as the Society of T ...

who joining the following year, these bodies were the founder institutions of what is today the

British Standards Institution The British Standards Institution (BSI) is the national standards body of the United Kingdom. BSI produces technical standards on a wide range of products and services and also supplies certification and standards-related services to busines ...

or BSI.

Late career

He was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathemati ...

(FRS) in 1895 and made a

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

(KCB) in 1897. He was elected President of the

(Pres.Inst.C.E.) in 1898, in which year he assumed his middle name of Wolfe as an additional surname. He was also a member of the

Smeatonian Society of Civil Engineers The Smeatonian Society of Civil Engineers was founded in England in 1771. It was the first engineering society to be formed anywhere in the world, and remains the oldest. It was originally known as the Society of Civil Engineers, being renamed fo ...

. He was chairman of Cable and Wireless from 1900 to 1917. In 1902 he joined the consulting firm of Robert White & Partners, which was renamed Wolfe Barry, Robert White & Partners (later, in 1946, renamed Sir Bruce White, Wolfe Barry and Partners).

Personal life

He had married Rosalind Grace, the daughter of Rev Evan Edward Rowsell of Hambledon, Surrey. They had four sons and three daughters. In 1922 a memorial window designed by

Sir John Ninian Comper Sir John Ninian Comper (10 June 1864 – 22 December 1960) was a Scottish architect; one of the last of the great Gothic Revival architects. His work almost entirely focused on the design, restoration and embellishment of churches, and the des ...

was dedicated to his memory in the nave of Westminster Abbey. He added the name Wolfe to his forename after receiving an inheritance from his godfather, the architect John Lewis Wolfe (1798–1881). Wolfe Barry published the results of an investigation into his family's genealogy in 1906.Sir John Wolfe Barry, ''Notes on Barry Genealogy in England and Wales''. Self published, London, 1906 Wolfe Barry died in January 1918, and was buried in

Brookwood Cemetery Brookwood Cemetery, also known as the London Necropolis, is a burial ground in Brookwood, Surrey, England. It is the largest cemetery in the United Kingdom and one of the largest in Europe. The cemetery is listed a Grade I site in the Regi ...

near

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in northwest Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'' and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement o ...

in Surrey.

References

External links

*Robert C. McWilliam
''Barry, Sir John Wolfe (1836–1918)''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

, 2004 (Subscription required) * This article on his father contains a paragraph describing John Wolfe Barry's career.
Sir John Wolfe Barry
biography at the Tower Bridge Restoration website {{DEFAULTSORT:Wolfe Barry, John 1836 births 1918 deaths People educated at Glenalmond College Alumni of King's College London Artists from London Architects from London English civil engineers Fellows of the Royal Society Presidents of the Institution of Civil Engineers Presidents of the Smeatonian Society of Civil Engineers Burials at Brookwood Cemetery Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...