William Robert Galbraith (7 July 1829 – 5 October 1914)Marshall, 2003 was 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 ...

in the United Kingdom during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He was employed by the

London and South Western Railway The London and South Western Railway (LSWR, sometimes written L&SWR) was a railway company in England from 1838 to 1922. Originating as the London and Southampton Railway, its network extended to Dorchester and Weymouth, to Salisbury, Exete ...

as a consulting engineer for over 40 years, overseeing the design and construction of nearly all that company's new lines between 1862 and his retirement in 1907. In 1892 he formed an engineering consultancy with R. F. Church. As Galbraith & Church they undertook numerous projects for other railways besides the LSWR, including the Baker Street and Waterloo Railway which became known as London Underground's

Bakerloo line The Bakerloo line () is a London Underground line that runs between in suburban north-west London and in south London, via the West End. Printed in brown on the Tube map, it serves 25 stations, 15 of which are underground, over . It runs par ...

. In total he designed and oversaw the construction of over 14 miles of London's underground railways). In the 1890s Galbraith was the North British Railway's Parliamentary Consultant, acting as a resident expert and adviser during Parliamentary hearings on the company's engineering projects).

His projects include: *

Kew railway bridge Kew Railway Bridge spans the River Thames in London, England, between Kew and Strand-on-the-Green, Chiswick. The bridge was opened in 1869. History The bridge, which was given Grade II listed structure protection in 1983, was designed by W. ...

across the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...

in London, built in 1864–1869 by the London and South Western Railway * Newport Pagnell to Wolverton Branch Railway, W. R. Galbraith was director from 1871 and was mentioned in the 1870 Act of Parliament which authorised the building of the line as one of the creditors of the railway * Meldon railway viaduct, built in 1874 by the London and South Western Railway across the West Okement river valley near

Okehampton Okehampton ( ) is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in West Devon in the English county of Devon. At the 2021 census, the parish had a population of 7,313, which was slightly more than the 7,104 recorded at the 2011 census. Th ...

, Devon * The Swanage Branch Line, opened in 1885 * Hockley Railway Viaduct as part of the Winchester Cheshill branch of the LSWR in 1891. * The modernisation and expansion of

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

Docks following their purchase by the LSWR in 1892. * The

Waterloo & City line The Waterloo & City line, colloquially known as The Drain, is a shuttle line of the London Underground that runs between Waterloo and Bank stations with no intermediate stops. Its primary traffic consists of commuters from south-west London ...

in London, opened 11 July 1898. * The Basingstoke and Alton Light Railway, opened in 1901 * The

Meon Valley Railway The Meon Valley Railway was a cross-country railway in Hampshire, England, that ran for 22 miles (36 km) between Alton and Fareham, closely following the course of the River Meon. At its northern (Alton) end, it joined with the Alton L ...

, built between 1898 and 1903. * The Bakerloo line, built between 1898 and 1906 * Calstock railway viaduct across the Tamar valley, built between 1904 and 1907

References

*Marshall, J .,''Biographical Dictionary of Railway Engineers'', 2nd Edition, Railway & Canal Historical Society, London. British civil engineers 1829 births 1914 deaths {{UK-engineer-stub