Thomas Page (26 October 1803 – 8 January 1877) was a British architect and civil engineer, who was responsible for the design and construction of many bridges, including

Westminster Bridge Westminster Bridge is a road-and-foot-traffic bridge over the River Thames in London, linking Westminster on the west side and Lambeth on the east side. The bridge is painted predominantly green, the same colour as the leather seats in the H ...

and the first

Chelsea Bridge Chelsea Bridge is a bridge over the River Thames in west London, connecting Chelsea on the north bank to Battersea on the south bank, and split between the City of Westminster, the London Borough of Wandsworth and the Royal Borough of Kensin ...

(both crossing 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 ...

)

Early life

Page was born in London on 26 October 1803. The education he received whilst growing up in

Romaldkirk Romaldkirk is a village in Teesdale, in the Pennines of England. The village lies within the historic boundaries of the North Riding of Yorkshire, but has been administered by County Durham since 1974. It is thought that the name might be deriv ...

by the

River Tees The River Tees (), in Northern England, rises on the eastern slope of Cross Fell in the North Pennines and flows eastwards for to reach the North Sea between Hartlepool and Redcar near Middlesbrough. The modern day history of the river has bee ...

) was designed to prepare him for life as a sailor. However, the engineer

Thomas Tredgold Thomas Tredgold (1788–1829) was an English engineer and author, known for his early work on railroad construction. His definition of civil engineering formed the basis of the charter of the Institution of Civil Engineers. Biography He was b ...

suggested that Page become a

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 ...

, advice that Page followed.

Career

Page worked in Leeds and then moved to the London office of

Edward Blore Edward Blore (13 September 1787 – 4 September 1879) was a 19th-century English landscape and architectural artist, architect and antiquary. Early career He was born in Derby, the son of the antiquarian writer Thomas Blore. Blore's bac ...

before working on the

Thames Tunnel The Thames Tunnel is a tunnel beneath the River Thames in London, connecting Rotherhithe and Wapping. It measures 35 feet (11 m) wide by 20 feet (6 m) high and is 1,300 feet (396 m) long, running at a depth of 7 ...

from 1835, initially as an assistant to

Marc Isambard Brunel Sir Marc Isambard Brunel (, ; 25 April 1769 – 12 December 1849) was a French-British engineer who is most famous for the work he did in Britain. He constructed the Thames Tunnel and was the father of Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Born in Franc ...

before becoming acting engineer in 1836 upon the retirement of

Richard Beamish Richard Henrik Beamish (16 June 1861 – 23 February 1938) was an Irish politician, brewer and company director. Early and personal life He was born in Glounthaune, County Cork, the eldest child of Richard Pigott Beamish and his wife Hulda ...

. His design for the

Thames Embankment The Thames Embankment is a work of 19th-century civil engineering that reclaimed marshy land next to the River Thames in central London. It consists of the Victoria Embankment and Chelsea Embankment. History There had been a long history of ...

from

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buck ...

to Blackfriars was recommended by the Commissioners for Metropolis Improvements in 1842, and he became consulting engineer for the

Office of Woods and Forests The Commissioners of Woods, Forests and Land Revenues were established in the United Kingdom in 1810 by merging the former offices of Surveyor General of Woods, Forests, Parks, and Chases and Surveyor General of the Land Revenues of the Crown into ...

, including responsibility for the Thames Embankment Office. In this role, his approval was required for any railway works affecting Crown land, and he would sometimes suggest changes (as happened at the

Old Deer Park Old Deer Park is an area of open space within Richmond, owned by the Crown Estate, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England. It covers of which are leased as sports grounds for sports, particularly rugby and golf. Despite the ...

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a ...

, and at

Windsor Home Park The Home Park, previously known as the Little Park (and originally Lydecroft Park), is a private Royal park, administered by the Crown Estate. It lies on the eastern side of Windsor Castle in the town and former civil parish of Windsor in the ...

). The Thames Embankment project failed to progress after disagreements between the

Crown Estate The Crown Estate is a collection of lands and holdings in the United Kingdom belonging to the British monarch as a corporation sole, making it "the sovereign's public estate", which is neither government property nor part of the monarch's priv ...

and the

City of London corporation The City of London Corporation, officially and legally the Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London, is the municipal governing body of the City of London, the historic centre of London and the location of much of the United King ...

about

riparian rights Riparian water rights (or simply riparian rights) is a system for allocating water among those who possess land along its path. It has its origins in English common law. Riparian water rights exist in many jurisdictions with a common law heri ...

. In 1845, Page drew plans for a new railway terminus to be built in the

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 ...

between

Hungerford Bridge The Hungerford Bridge crosses the River Thames in London, and lies between Waterloo Bridge and Westminster Bridge. Owned by Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd (who use its official name of Charing Cross Bridge) it is a steel truss railway bridg ...

and

Waterloo Bridge Waterloo Bridge () is a road and foot traffic bridge crossing the River Thames in London, between Blackfriars Bridge and Hungerford Bridge and Golden Jubilee Bridges. Its name commemorates the victory of the British, Dutch and Prussians at t ...

; it was never built. Other proposals included a railway tunnel underneath

London Docks London Docklands is the riverfront and former docks in London. It is located in inner east and southeast London, in the boroughs of Southwark, Tower Hamlets, Lewisham, Newham, and Greenwich. The docks were formerly part of the Port of ...

to connect the London to Brighton line with the

Eastern Counties Railway The Eastern Counties Railway (ECR) was an English railway company incorporated in 1836 intended to link London with Ipswich via Colchester, and then extend to Norwich and Yarmouth. Construction began in 1837 on the first nine miles at the Lond ...

(1845), docks for Holyhead and

Porth Dinllaen Porthdinllaen (''in English'' sometimes Porth Dinllaen) is a small coastal village on the Llŷn Peninsula in the Dwyfor area of Gwynedd, Wales, built on a small promontory, and historically in Caernarfonshire. It is near the larger village of Mo ...

in north Wales, which were competing for the Irish mail traffic (1846) and docks for Swansea (1847). He then designed and built the

Albert Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia * Albert Productions, a record label * Alber ...

and Victoria Bridges in

Datchet Datchet is a village and civil parish in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England, located on the north bank of the River Thames. Historically part of Buckinghamshire, and the Stoke Hundred, the village was eventually t ...

, with new roads between Windsor and

Frogmore Frogmore is an estate within the Home Park, adjoining Windsor Castle, in Berkshire, England. It comprises , of primarily private gardens managed by the Crown Estate. It is the location of Frogmore House, a royal retreat, and Frogmore Cottage. ...

(1848–49). He also designed

(built between 1854 and 1862), the first

(opened 1858), and

Lendal Bridge There are nine bridges across the River Ouse within the city of York, England, and sixteen smaller bridges and passages across the narrower River Foss. Bridges over the Ouse The earliest bridge, built by the Romans, linked Stonegate (the '' ...

York York is a cathedral city with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many hist ...

(opened 1863), and was responsible for the plans for the embankment and road on the stretch of the Thames between

Vauxhall Bridge Vauxhall Bridge is a Grade II* listed steel and granite deck arch bridge in central London. It crosses the River Thames in a southeast–northwest direction between Vauxhall on the south bank and Pimlico on the north bank. Opened in 1906, it r ...

and

Battersea Bridge Battersea Bridge is a five-span arch bridge with cast-iron girders and granite piers crossing the River Thames in London, England. It is situated on a sharp bend in the river, and links Battersea south of the river with Chelsea to the north. ...

(opened 1869). In 1870, addressing the

Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...

, he put forward the idea of a submerged tube to act as a tunnel between England and France. Page died in Paris on 8 January 1877.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Page, Thomas 1803 births 1877 deaths British civil engineers People from Startforth Rural District Engineers from Yorkshire