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Benjamin Hall Blyth (14 July 1819 – 21 August 1866) was a
Benjamin Hall Blyth (14 July 1819 – 21 August 1866) was a Scottish
Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including:
*Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland
*Scottish English
*Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...
civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing i ...
.
Life
Blyth was born at 26 Minto St inNewington, Edinburgh
Newington is a neighbourhood of southern Edinburgh, Scotland. Developed from the early 19th century, it is an affluent, predominantly residential area.
Located between 1 (1.5km) and 2.5 miles (4km) south of Edinburgh city centre, Newington is ...
, the son of Robert Brittain Blyth, an iron merchant, and his wife, Barbara Cooper. He was their third son, and the first to survive to adulthood.
Blyth was trained as a railway engineer under an apprenticeship with Grainger & Miller
A miller is a person who operates a Gristmill, mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Mill (grinding), Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surname ...
, a railway contractor. In 1848 he established an engineering practice on the prestigious George Street (at no 124) in Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
where it would remain for the next 100 years. In 1854, after his brother Edward Lawrence Ireland Blyth finished his own apprenticeship with Grainger & Miller, Benjamin took him into partnership of the renamed ''B & E Blyth''.
The practice did work for the Caledonian, Glasgow and South Western, Scottish Central, Dundee and Perth, Great North of Scotland and Portpatrick
Portpatrick is a village and civil parish in the historical county of Wigtownshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It is located on the west coast of the Rhins of Galloway. The parish is about in length and in breadth, covering .
Histor ...
railway companies.
Blyth was a first cousin of Arthur Blyth, who was three times premier of South Australia in the 19th century. Their fathers were brothers.Blyth, E.L.I. 1893, The family of Blythe or Blyth of Norton and Birchet His older sister was Scottish philanthropist, educational and campaigner Phoebe Blyth.
Blyth married Mary Dudgeon Wright in Leith, Edinburgh, on 1 August 1848. They initially lived at 26 Minto Street in the south of Edinburgh. Mary took on clerical duties in the early stages of Blyth's company. From 1854 they lived at 12 Hope Terrace, Edinburgh.
Blyth died from diabetes aggravated by overwork at home in North Berwick
North Berwick (; gd, Bearaig a Tuath) is a seaside town and former royal burgh in East Lothian, Scotland. It is situated on the south shore of the Firth of Forth, approximately east-northeast of Edinburgh. North Berwick became a fashionable ...
on 21 August 1866 and is buried in the Grange Cemetery, being survived by his wife, seven sons and two daughters.
His wife died of cancer and meningitis in 1868, and their children were subsequently brought up by his wife's sister, Elizabeth Scotland Wright. His eldest son Benjamin Blyth II took over his father's practice and the company remains in business to this day as Blyth and Blyth.
His house served as the offices of Scottish Natural Heritage
NatureScot ( gd, NàdarAlba), which was formerly known as Scottish Natural Heritage, is an Scottish public bodies#Executive NDPBs, executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government responsible for the country's natural heritage, ...
between 1950 and 2003 then reverted to its use as a family home.
Employees
The harbour engineer, William Dyce Cay, worked under Blyth on theCastle Douglas
Castle Douglas ( gd, Caisteal Dhùghlais) is a town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It lies in the lieutenancy area of Kirkcudbrightshire, in the eastern part of Galloway, between the towns of Dalbeattie and Gatehouse of Fleet. It is in the ...
to Portpatrick
Portpatrick is a village and civil parish in the historical county of Wigtownshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It is located on the west coast of the Rhins of Galloway. The parish is about in length and in breadth, covering .
Histor ...
Railway in 1861.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blyth, Benjamin 1819 births 1866 deaths 19th-century Scottish businesspeople People from North Berwick 19th-century British engineers Scottish civil engineers Engineers from Edinburgh British railway civil engineers Burials at the Grange Cemetery