George Frederick Armstrong, (15 May 1842 – 16 November 1900), was a distinguished 19th century English

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

specialising in

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

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, and

sanitary engineering Sanitary engineering or sanitation engineering, also known as public health engineering or wastewater engineering, is the application of engineering methods to improve sanitation of human communities, primarily by providing the removal and disp ...

who served as the Regius Professor of Engineering at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

. Over the course of his life he became a member of many learned societies and the author of many papers and lectures.

Early life and education

Armstrong was born in

Doncaster Doncaster ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don, it is the administrative centre of the City of Doncaster metropolitan borough, and is the second largest se ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

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on 15 May 1842. As the eldest son of George Armstrong, a woollen-draper, his early education in engineering began with work in the locomotive depots and repair shops of the

Great Northern Railway Great Northern Railway or Great Northern Railroad may refer to: Australia * Great Northern Railway (Queensland) in Australia * Great Northern Rail Services in Victoria, Australia *Central Australia Railway was known as the great Northern Railway ...

in his home of

. At the age seventeen, he began his formal education when he enrolled in

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

, then one of the few colleges with an engineering program. Armstrong remained at King's College from 1857 until he completed his studies in 1860. He then enrolled at

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, first in St. John's College and then in Jesus College, where he graduated with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

in 1864. While there, Armstrong participated in

high jump The high jump is a track and field event in which competitors must jump unaided over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without dislodging it. In its modern, most-practiced format, a bar is placed between two standards with a crash mat f ...

competitions, winning at least one award. Armstrong continued with his studies until 1867 when he graduated with a Masters Degree.

Career

Early career

Armstrong began his career as an assistant engineer under Richard Johnson, the then

chief engineer A chief engineer, commonly referred to as "Chief" or "ChEng", is the most senior licensed mariner (engine officer) of an engine department on a ship, typically a merchant ship, and holds overall leadership and the responsibility of that departmen ...

of the Great Northern Railway. By 1869 he returned to work at the company's locomotive works at home to Doncaster. He then became engineer of the Isle of Man Railway Company. In 1871, Armstrong moved into

academia An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

when he became the first 'Professor of Civil Engineering' at the Applied Science School of McGill University, in

Montreal, Quebec Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Canada. Once in this role, he organised a completely new university department and designed the engineering curriculum for its students. At the university for five years, he was a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

of the university companies of the First Regiment of the

Canadian Militia The Canadian Militia is a historical title for military units raised for the defence of Canada. The term has been used to describe sedentary militia units raised from local communities in Canada; as well as the regular army for the Province of Ca ...

. In 1876 he returned to Britain as the new Chair of Engineering at the

Yorkshire College The University of Leeds is a public research university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was established in 1874 as the Yorkshire College of Science. In 1884, it merged with the Leeds School of Medicine (established 1831) and was renamed Y ...

. Throughout 1879 he undertook elaborate observations and experiments to determine the diurnal variations in the amount of

carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalent bond, covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in a gas state at room temperature and at norma ...

in the

atmosphere An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosph ...

, and the results were then published through the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

Regius Professor

In 1885, Armstrong (who was of

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 ...

descent) was appointed by

the Crown The Crown is a political concept used in Commonwealth realms. Depending on the context used, it generally refers to the entirety of the State (polity), state (or in federal realms, the relevant level of government in that state), the executive ...

to become the second Regius Professor of Engineering at the

, a post which he held until his death. His inaugural lecture as the Regius Professor was entitled "The Progress of Technical Education at Home and Abroad." By all accounts the lecture was a success, being quoted in a debate by the leader of the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

Sir Stafford Northcote Stafford Henry Northcote, 1st Earl of Iddesleigh (27 October 1818 – 12 January 1887), known as Sir Stafford Northcote, 8th Baronet from 1851 to 1885, was a British Conservative politician. He was Chancellor of the Exchequer between 1874 and ...

, and leading to an endowment by the wealthy brewer of the eponymous Fulton Laboratory at the university in 1889. The Fulton Engineering Laboratory was established under his tenure "to provide systematic instruction on experimental methods ..and to familiarise icstudents with the strength and other physical properties of the chief materials used by engineers." Perhaps under the influence of writer

Charles Kingsley Charles Kingsley (12 June 1819 – 23 January 1875) was a broad church priest of the Church of England, a university professor, social reformer, historian, novelist and poet. He is particularly associated with Christian socialism, the workin ...

, Armstrong inaugurated courses on

for the benefit of the medical students studying public health. The courses in sanitation led to the foundation of a separate university department with a new professor of public health at its head. Armstrong also carried out the plans of his predecessor,

Fleeming Jenkin Henry Charles Fleeming Jenkin Royal Society of London, FRS FRSE (; 25 March 1833 – 12 June 1885) was a British engineer, inventor, economist, linguist, actor and dramatist known as the inventor of the cable car or Aerial tramway#Telpherage, t ...

, to create courses on

electrical engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems that use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

, which later developed as a sub-discipline of engineering. Attested as a methodical but genial teacher, Armstrong was popular among engineering students at Edinburgh University and supported the university's athletic endeavours. He sang at the students' union reception for Oliver Wendell Holmes, and supported the university's Reid Concerts.

Public service

Armstrong gave special attention to questions regarding water supply sanitation and became engineering adviser to the

Local Government Board for Scotland Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...

under the

Public Health Act Public Health Act is a stock short title used in the United Kingdom for legislation relating to public health. List *The Public Health Act 1848 (11 & 12 Vict. c. 63) *The Sanitary Act 1866 (29 & 30 Vict. c. 90) is sometimes called the Public Healt ...

. George Armstrong served as a convener of the Engineering and Machinery Committee of the Edinburgh International Exhibition of 1885, and as Vice Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Edinburgh International Exhibition of 1890, which had grown out of a planned celebration for

Scotland's Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

newly completed

Forth Bridge The Forth Bridge is a cantilever railway bridge across the Firth of Forth in the east of Scotland, west of central Edinburgh. Completed in 1890, it is considered a symbol of Scotland (having been voted Scotland's greatest man-made wonder in ...

. He was honorary local secretary for 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 110,000 member ...

, the

Iron and Steel Institute The Iron and Steel Institute was a British association originally organized by the iron trade of the north of England. Its object was the discussion of practical and scientific questions connected with the manufacture of iron and steel. History The ...

, and the

British Association The British Science Association (BSA) is a charity and learned society founded in 1831 to aid in the promotion and development of science. Until 2009 it was known as the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BA). The current Chief ...

, as well as Honorary President of the East of Scotland Engineering Association. He was a member of the

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

, a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was establis ...

, and a Fellow of the

Geological Society of London The Geological Society of London, known commonly as the Geological Society, is a learned society based in the United Kingdom. It is the oldest national geological society in the world and the largest in Europe, with more than 12,000 Fellows. Fe ...

. Armstrong was president of the Sanitary Engineering Section of the British Institute of Public Health in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

in 1893. He was elected President of the

Royal Scottish Society of Arts The Royal Scottish Society of Arts is a learned society in Scotland, dedicated to the study of science and technology. It was founded as The Society for the Encouragement of the Useful Arts in Scotland by Sir David Brewster in 1821 and dedicate ...

in 1896, and became a Fellow at his alma mater, King's College, in 1899. In his final years, he was an external examiner in engineering to the

University of Wales The University of Wales () is a confederal university based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded by royal charter in 1893 as a federal university with three constituent colleges – Aberystwyth, Bangor and Cardiff – the university was the first universit ...

and a member of the Board of Trustees of Wordsworth College. He served as both Justice of the Peace for his home county of

Westmorland Westmorland (, formerly also spelt ''Westmoreland''R. Wilkinson The British Isles, Sheet The British IslesVision of Britain/ref>) is an area of North West England which was Historic counties of England, historically a county. People of the area ...

and Chairman of the Grasmere District Council.

Later years and death

Armstrong married Margaret Brown in 1893, with whom he had his son George Cyril Frederick, two other sons, and a daughter. After suffering from heart problems for several months, which necessitated a leave of absence, George Armstrong died at his home in the village of Grasmere on 16 November 1900. He was succeeded as Regius Professor by

Thomas Hudson Beare Sir Thomas Hudson Beare FRSE RSSA (30 June 1859 – 10 June 1940) was a British engineer. He was successively Professor of Engineering at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, at University College, London (where he was a colleague of Karl Pears ...

and was buried in his village at St. Oswald's Church.

Works

*''A Lecture on the Progress of Higher Technical Instruction: At Home and Abroad in Relation to the Education of Engineers, Being a Public Inaugural Address Delivered in the University of Edinburgh'' *''Inaugural lecture of the Department of Practical Science in McGill University, Montreal, delivered in the William Molson Hall, Monday, 19 February 1872'' *''On the Diurnal Variation in the Amount of Carbon Dioxide in the Air''

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Armstrong, George Frederick British railway civil engineers 19th-century English engineers 19th-century English scientists Academics of the University of Edinburgh Academics of the University of Leeds Alumni of King's College London English civil engineers English railway mechanical engineers British engineering academics Engineers from Yorkshire Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Academic staff of McGill University 1842 births 1900 deaths Regius Professors of Engineering in Edinburgh University Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Alumni of Jesus College, Cambridge People from Doncaster People from Grasmere (village)