INDEX

‘Adelaide’ steam-ship, built under Mr. Brunel’s directions, 290 Admiralty, Mr. Brunel’s connection with the, respecting the screw propeller, 283. Communication with the, on floating gun-carriage, 459 Airy, G. B., Astronomer Royal, member of the Gauge Commission, 117. Correspondence with Mr. Brunel on astronomical observations for the ‘Great Eastern,’ 321 Angarrack, viaduct at, 189 ‘Archimedes’ steamer, the screw propeller used in the, 253. Experiments made in the, 254 Armstrong, Sir W. G. His hydraulic machinery at Paddington station, 85 note.¹ Engaged with Mr. Brunel on gunnery investigations, 452. Letter to, 454, 461 Atlantic cable expeditions of the ‘Great Eastern,’ 412. Loss of the first cable, 412. A second one laid, and the first recovered, 413. The French cable of 1869, 413 Atmospheric system of propulsion on railways, 131. Description of this method of traction, 134. History of its introduction prior to 1844, 136. Mr. Brunel’s views respecting it, 137. His report recommending its adoption on the South Devon Railway, 138. Grounds of his recommendation, 142. Select Committee on, 144. Working of the system, 153. Imperfections of engines, 154, and longitudinal valve, 157. Mr. Brunel’s report on the failure of the Atmospheric apparatus, 159. Abandonment of the system, 164 Australian Mail Company, Mr. Brunel appointed engineer of the, 290

Barlow, Professor P., member of the Gauge Commission, 117 Barlow, W. H., 57 Bath, station at, 84 Bath, bridges at, 175, 179 Bathford, bridge at, 175 Beamish, Richard, his account of Sir Isambard Brunel’s block machinery at Portsmouth, quoted, 3. Joins the Thames Tunnel works, 21 Bennett, Joseph, Mr. Brunel’s secretary, 92 Berks and Hants Railway, 88 Birmingham and Oxford Junction Railway, 90 Birmingham, Great Western extension to, 124 Birth of Mr. Brunel, 1 Blake, H. W., consulted by Mr. Brunel on the ‘Great Eastern,’ 297 Block machinery at Portsmouth, Sir Isambard Brunel’s, 2 Bourbon, Ile de, Sir Isambard Brunel’s suspension bridges for the, 5. Description of them, 40 Bourne viaduct, 181 Box Tunnel, 70 note¹, 72, 81. Criticism as to its safety, 81. Letter from Mr. Brunel on the, 81 Bremner, A., 263, 280 Brentford, dock at, 440 Brentford, extension of the Great Western Railway to, 86 Brereton, Robert Pearson, chief of Mr. Brunel’s engineering staff, 92, 210, 215 note¹, 217 note¹, 223, 225, 437, 438 note¹ Brickwork, use of, 59. Bridges in, 172 Bridges, suspension, Sir Isambard Brunel’s: in the Ile de Bourbon, 5, 40; designs for the Serpentine, and for the Thames at Kingston, 5. Mr. Brunel’s: at Clifton, 46; Charing Cross, 59 Bridges, railway, 171. 1. Brickwork and masonry bridges, 172. Flying bridges, 176. Skew bridges, 177. Letter from Mr. Brunel on bridge construction, 178. 2. Timber bridges and viaducts, 179. 3. Cast-iron bridges, 190. 4. Wrought-iron bridges, 192. Girder bridges, 193. Opening bridges, 195. Trussed bridges, 199. Extracts from letters on bridges of large span, 212 note¹. Experiments on matters connected with bridge construction, 227 Bristol, Mr. Brunel’s early connection with, 58, 64. Station at, 84. Bridges at, 175, 195. Floating Harbour, 422. Proposed improvement of the port, 426. New lock at, 427 Bristol and Exeter Railway, 86 Bristol and Gloucester Railway, 90 Bristol and South Wales Union Railway, 90 Briton Ferry Docks, 437 Broad Gauge. See Gauge Brunel, Sir Marc Isambard, birth of, 2. Arrives in England, 2. Marries Miss Sophia Kingdom, 2. Designs the Block machinery at Portsmouth, 2. Veneering machinery, 5. Shoe machinery, 5. Designs suspension bridges for the Ile de Bourbon, 5, 40. Experiments on carbonic acid gas, 5, 42. Proposes the Thames Tunnel, 5. Extracts from his Journal relating to the Rotherhithe shaft, 10. Extracts from his Journal relating to the works at the Thames Tunnel up to January 1828, 16. His death, 39. Hoop iron introduced by, in brickwork, 177. Designed a large timber bridge to cross the Neva, 211 note² Bullo Pill opening bridge, 197

Caermarthen, opening bridge at, 198 Carbonic acid gas, experiments on, by Sir Isambard Brunel and Mr. Brunel, 5, 42 Cast-iron bridges, 190. Mr. Brunel’s views as to the use of cast iron in bridge construction, 190, 192 Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway, 88 Chepstow bridge, 203. Mode of forming piers, 203. Description of superstructure, 206. Floating and erection, 209 Clarke, Seymour, 117 Claxton, Captain, 57. Assists Mr. Brunel at the floating of the Chepstow bridge, 210. And the Saltash bridge, 222. Appointed Managing Director of the Great Western Steam-Ship Company, 234, 242, 247. Letter to, from Mr. Brunel, on the ‘Great Britain,’ 264. Goes to Dundrum to carry out Mr. Brunel’s plans for the protection of the ‘Great Britain,’ 272. Letter to, from Mr. Brunel, on the breakwater, 272. Report of, on breakwater, 274. Superintends floating of the ‘Great Britain,’ 280. Consulted by Mr. Brunel on the ‘Great Eastern,’ 291, 297. Floating Harbour, Bristol, 424 Clifton Suspension Bridge, origin of the, 47. Mr. Brunel’s designs, 47. Rejected by Mr. Telford, 51. Mr. Telford’s own design, 52. Second competition, 52. Mr. Brunel successful, and appointed engineer, 53. The site described, 54. Description of the design, 55. Architectural features, 56. Commencement of the work, 56. Completed, 57 Coles, Captain Cowper, 461 Construction of works, letter on, 178 Continuous girders, 208 Cork and Youghal Railway, 91 Cornwall Railway, 87. Viaducts on, 185 Crystal Palace at Sydenham, water-towers of the, 448 Cylinders, of Chepstow bridge, method of sinking the, 204. The great cylinder of the Royal Albert Bridge, 214

Dalkey Railway, Atmospheric System on, 131 Dartmouth and Torbay Railway, 87 Death of Mr. Brunel, 520 Dock and pier works: Monkwearmouth, 418; Bristol, 422; Plymouth, 433; Briton Ferry, 437; Brentford, 440; Neyland, 443 Draught, Mr. Brunel’s paper on, 101 note¹ Dublin, railway to Wicklow from, 91 Dundrum Bay, stranding of the ‘Great Britain’ in, 263

Early life of Mr. Brunel. He goes to school at Chelsea, 4; at Brighton, 4; at Paris, 5. Employed in his father’s office, 5. Engaged at the Thames Tunnel, 6. References by Sir I. Brunel to his exertions, 17, 19, 21, 22, 25, 33. Appointed resident engineer, 25 note¹. First irruption of the river, 29. Second irruption, 35. Accident, 36. Visit to Plymouth, 46 Eastern Bengal Railway, 91, 195, 517 Eastern Counties Railway, gauge adopted on the, 105 Eastern Steam Navigation Company, formation of the, 291. See ‘Great Eastern’ Egypt, visit to, 517 Electric telegraph, application of the, in connection with railways, 155 Engineer, Mr. Brunel’s view of the position of, 475. Of joint-engineer, 476. Of consulting engineer, 477. Of the position of the engineer in relation to the contractors, 477. To the Directors, 478. Remarks on interference of Directors with assistant engineers, 481. On State control over engineering works, 486 Experiments: Strength of timber, 182, 227. Cast-iron girders, 190, 191. Wrought-iron girder, 193. Riveting, 194, 228. Continuous beams, 209, 229. Bridge construction, 227. Ropes and chains, 228. Friction, 348, 368, 385

Faraday, M., his experiments on the liquefaction of gases, 42. Consulted by Mr. Brunel on the Kyanising process, 189 Field, Cyrus, 411, 414 Field, J., consulted by Mr. Brunel on the ‘Great Eastern,’ 297 Floating gun-carriage, 454 Floating harbour at Bristol, 422 Floating pier, proposed at Portishead, 426. In Mill Bay, 436 Florence and Pistoja Railway, 91 Flying bridges, 176 Ford, Captain Robert, consulted by Mr. Brunel on the ‘Great Eastern,’ 297 Friction, experiments and observations on, 348, 368, 385 Froude, W., letter to, describing floating of the ‘Great Eastern,’ 389

Gathampton, bridge at, 174 Genoa, Novi, and Alessandria Railway, 91 Gauge of railways, difference between the broad and narrow, 99. Origin of the ordinary gauge, 99. Adoption of the broad gauge on the Great Western Railway, 101, 106. Reasons for its adoption, 102. Attacks on, 106. Reports of Mr. Wood and Mr. Hawkshaw on, 107. Report by Mr. Brunel on, 107. Northern extension, 116. Inconveniences of a break of gauge, 116. Royal Commission on the gauge question, 117. Report of the Commissioners, 117. ‘Observations on the Report,’ 119. Report of the Board of Trade, 122. Act for regulating gauge, 122. The mixed gauge, 124. Summary of the advantages of the broad gauge, 127. Partial abandonment of the broad gauge, 127, 129. Report on the broad gauge, 525 Gilbert, Davies, appointed referee in the second competition for the Clifton Suspension Bridge, 52. Recommends Mr. Brunel’s design, 53 Girder bridges, 193 Glennie, W., 215 note¹ Gloucester, opening bridges near, 196 Gloucester and Dean Forest Railway, 88 Gooch, Sir Daniel, 117, 119. Experiments by, 125 Gravatt, William, an assistant engineer at the Thames Tunnel, 26 ‘Great Britain’ steam-ship, commencement of the, 247. Report on the engines, 249. Adoption of the screw propeller, 254. Principal features of her design, 255. Arrives in the Thames, 261. Her voyages, 262. Stranded in Dundrum Bay, 263. Letter from Mr. Brunel on the subject, 264. His reports to the Directors, 267, 273. Construction of breakwater, 274. Floating of the ship, 280. Her subsequent history, 282. Dimensions of ship and engines, 282 ‘Great Eastern’ steam-ship, origin of the project, 291. Memorandum by Mr. Brunel to the Directors of the Eastern Steam Navigation Company, 292. He is appointed engineer, 293. Letter on the form and dimensions of the ship, 294. Report on mode of proceeding, 296. On enquiries relating to the draught and form of the vessel, 297. On the dimensions, 299. Tenders invited, 300. Report on tenders, 301. Commencement of the work, 304. Extracts from Mr. Brunel’s memoranda, 304, 310. Letters on his position as engineer, 311. Report describing the ship, 315. Letter to the Astronomer Royal, 321. The observers’ department in the ship, 322. Captain Harrison appointed to the command, 323. Memorandum on the management of the ship, 324. Letter on the duties of chief engineer, 335. Suspension and resumption of the works, 339. Reasons for launching the ship broadside to the river, 340. Adoption of iron sliding-surfaces, 343. The ways and cradles, 345. Motive power, 348. Checking gear, 351. River tackle, 352. Letter to Captain Harrison on the river tackle, 354. Letter to the Directors respecting the operation of launching, 355. Memorandum of arrangements and intended mode of proceeding, 356. Particular instructions, 358. Final preparations, 359. Commencement of the launch, 360. Accident at one of the drums, 361. Failure of the first attempt, 362. Second attempt, 364. Report on operations, 366. Progress of the launch, 368. Suspension of operations, 376. Report and memorandum, 377. Re-commencement, 379. Floating of the ship, 382. Experiments and observations on friction, 385. Letter to Mr. W. Froude, describing the floating, 389. Formation of the Great Ship Company, 393. Progress of the works to Mr. Brunel’s last illness, 393. Completion of the ship, 393. Voyage to Weymouth, 393. Explosion of water-heater, 393. Storm at Holyhead, 395. Description of the ship, 396. Her first voyages to New York, 403. To Quebec, with troops, 404. Accident to rudder, and loss of paddlewheels, 405. Voyages in 1862, 407. Accident off Montauk Point, 407. Formation of Great Eastern Steam-Ship Company, 409. Remarks on performance of ship, 409. Employed in laying Atlantic cables, 412. The Indian cable, 414. Dimensions of ship and engines, 416 Great Exhibition of 1851, Mr. Brunel’s opinion respecting prizes to exhibitors, 445. His part in the work of the Building Committee, 446. Supports Sir Joseph Paxton’s design, 447 Great Western Hotel, 86 Great Western Railway, origin of the, 63. Mr. Brunel appointed engineer, 64. Survey of the country, 65. Bill for a line from London to Reading, and Bath to Bristol, read a second time, and referred to a committee, 66. Opposition to the Bill, 67. Plan of entering London, 68. Mr. Brunel’s cross-examination, 69. The Bill passed by the Commons, but thrown out in the Lords, 70. A Bill for the whole line introduced, read a second time, and committed, 71. Evidence taken before the Commons’ Committee, 72. Evidence before the Lords’ Committee, 73. The Bill receives the Royal Assent, 74. Construction of the line, 80. Opening from London to Bristol, 80. Levels and inclines, 80, 104. The Box Tunnel, 81. The Bath and Bristol stations, 84. Paddington station, 84. Branches and extensions of the railway, 86, 88, 90. Adoption of the broad gauge, 106. The permanent way, 108, 111. Meeting of shareholders on broad gauge, 111. Extension of the Great Western system, 116 ‘Great Western’ steam-ship, formation of the company, 233. Details of the construction of the vessel, 234 note². Report on the selection of the builders of the engines, 235. Controversy with Dr. Lardner, 237. Launch of the vessel, and voyage to London, 241. Return to Bristol, 242. Fire on board, and accident to Mr. Brunel, 242. First voyage to New York, 243. Subsequent history, 244. Dimensions of ship and engines, 245 Gunnery experiments, 452 Guppy, T. R., 148, 233, 234, 247, 253, 254. Letter to, on iron-ship building, 259

Hammond, J. W., 65, 92 Hanwell, bridge at, destroyed by fire, 190 Hanwell viaduct, 172 Harrison, Captain, 223. Appointed commander of the ‘Great Eastern,’ 323. Letter to, on the river tackle, 354. At the launch, 362, 370, 382, 392 Haverfordwest, opening bridge at, 198 Hawkshaw, J., 57. Report on broad gauge and permanent way, 107 Henley branch of the Great Western Railway, 86 Hungerford Suspension Bridge, 57, 59

India, railway works in, 91 Indian Cable expedition of the ‘Great Eastern,’ 414 Institution of Civil Engineers, 516 note², 521 Inventors, communications with, 485 Ireland, railway works in, 90 Italy, Mr. Brunel’s railway works in, 91, 510 Ivybridge viaduct, 182

Kennet, bridge over the river, 175 Kidwelly, opening bridge at, 198 Kyanising process, 189, 421

Landore, viaduct at, 183 Lane, Michael, 29 Lardner, Dr., 114 note¹. Opinions respecting ocean steam navigation, 237 Llansamlet, flying arches near, 176 Llynvi Valley Railway, 89 Locke, Joseph, 62, 74. His address on the death of Mr. Brunel, 521 Locomotive power, comparison of, with stationary power, 142, 166 Loughor, opening bridge at, 197

Maidenhead bridge, 96, 173 Masonry, bridges in, 172 Maudslay and Field, 15, 148, 236, 284 Milford Haven, 88, 443 Monkwearmouth, docks at, 417, 418 Moulsford, bridge at, 174

Nasmyth, James, his steam hammer designed, 252 note¹. Letter to, on gunnery experiments, 452 Neath, improvement of river, 438 note¹ Newport viaduct, 185, 199 Neyland, pier at, 443

Ocean steam navigation, Mr. Brunel’s connection with, 231, 313 Opening bridges, 195 Oxford, Mr. Brunel created a Doctor in Civil Law at, 516 Oxford and Rugby extension of the Great Western Railway, 90, 116 Oxford branch of the Great Western Railway, 86 Oxford, Worcester, and Wolverhampton Railway, 90, 116

Paddington station, 84 Paris Exhibition of 1855, letter on decorations conferred at, 489 Parkes, Dr., medical superintendent of Renkioi Hospital, 468. Report of, on hospital buildings, 468 Patent laws, Mr. Brunel’s opinions on the, 212 note,¹ 450, 451, 454, 485, 489, 497 Patterson, W., 234, 247, 263 Paxton, Sir Joseph, his design for the Great Exhibition building, 447 Permanent way on the Great Western Railway, 108, 535 Plymouth Great Western Docks, 433 Polygonal rifle, 449 Portishead, proposed pier at, 426 Prince Consort, H.R.H. the, opens the Royal Albert Bridge, 226. Present at floating of the ‘Great Britain,’ 259 Private life of Mr. Brunel, 499. Early reminiscences, 500. Removal to Duke Street, and marriage, 505. His taste in art, 506. First journey to Italy, 508. Half-sovereign accident, 511. Purchase of property in Devonshire, 514. Life at Watcombe, 515. Failing health, 516. Journeys to Switzerland and Egypt, 516. Letter from Philæ, 517. His last illness, 520

Quaker’s Yard, viaduct at, 89

Railways, sketch of, in England prior to 1833, 61. Extent of Mr. Brunel’s, 79. Great Western, 80. Branches to Oxford, 86. Windsor, 86. Wycombe, 86. Uxbridge, 86. Henley, 86. Brentford, 86. Bristol and Exeter Railway, 86. South Devon, 87. South Devon and Tavistock, 87. Cornwall, 87. Branch lines now incorporated with Great Western Railway: Berks and Hants, 88. Wilts and Somerset, 88. Cheltenham and Great Western Union, 88. Gloucester and Dean Forest, 88. The South Wales, 88. The Taff Vale, 89. The Vale of Neath, 89. The Llynvi Valley, 89. The South Wales Mineral, 89. Bristol and South Wales Union, 90. Bristol and Gloucester, 90. The Oxford and Rugby, 90. Birmingham and Oxford Junction, 90. Oxford, Worcester, and Wolverhampton, 90. Ireland, 90. Italy, 91. India (Eastern Bengal), 91 Railway Structures, letter on the Royal Commission on the Application of Iron to, 192, 486 ‘Rattler’ steam-ship, trials with the, 287 Rendel, J. M., 211, 433 Renkioi, hospital buildings at, 461. Description of the buildings, 463. Dr. Parkes’s report on the formation and general management of the hospital, 468 Rennie, G. and J., 148 Richards, Westley, letters to, on polygonal rifle, 450 Riveting, experiments on, 194, 228 Ropes and chains, experiments on, 228 Rotherhithe shaft of the Thames Tunnel, construction of the, 9 Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash, 211. Plans for crossing the river Tamar at Saltash, 211. Trial cylinder for centre pier, 213. Report on making bridge for a single line, 214. Mode of construction of centre pier, 214. Description of superstructure, 218. Floating of first truss, 221. Lifting of first truss, 224. Floating and lifting of second truss, 225. Opening by H.R.H. the Prince Consort, 226 Royal Society, 516 note¹ Russell, J. Scott, builds the ‘Victoria’ and ‘Adelaide,’ 290. Assists Mr. Brunel in maturing designs of the ‘Great Eastern,’ 291, 292, 297. Letter to, on the form and dimensions of the ship, 294. Tender accepted for hull and paddle-engines, 301

St. Mary’s viaduct, 181 St. Pinnock viaduct, 186 Saltash bridge. See Royal Albert Bridge Samuda, J., 131, 134, 148, 160 Saunders, C. A., 92, 117, 119 Screw propeller, the, adopted for the ‘Great Britain,’ 254. Communications on, with the Board of Admiralty, 283. Trials with the ‘Polyphemus,’ 284. With the ‘Rattler,’ 287. Report recommending adoption of, 539 Shield, Thames Tunnel, the, 11, 12 ‘Sirius’ steam-ship, 241 Skew bridges, 177 Smith, F. P., the screw propeller, 253, 287. Consulted by Mr. Brunel on the ‘Great Eastern,’ 297, 298 Smith, Sir F., member of the Gauge Commission, 117 Smyth, C. Piazzi, Astronomer Royal for Scotland, correspondence with Mr. Brunel on astronomical instruments for the ‘Great Eastern,’ 322 Sonning Cutting brickwork bridge, 175. Timber bridge, 179 South Devon and Tavistock Railway, 87. Viaducts, 188 South Devon Railway, 87. Course of the line, 132. Atmospheric System adopted on the, 138. Viaducts, 182 South Wales Mineral Railway, 89 South Wales Railway, 88. Viaducts, 183, 194 Standard drawings, 172 note² Stationary and locomotive power, comparison of, 142, 166 Statue of Mr. Brunel, 520 note¹ Stephenson, George, 61, 62, 70, 74, 99 Stephenson, Robert, 62, 106, 107, 134 Atmospheric System, 136, 137 note¹, 138, 144. Conway and Britannia bridges, 221, 223. Launch of the ‘Great Eastern,’ 375, 376, 377, 378, 384 note¹, 485, 516, 517, 521 Stonehouse viaduct, 181

Taff Vale Railway, 89, 104 note¹ Tamar, plans for crossing the river, 5 note², 46, 211 Telford, T., appointed referee to decide upon the plans for the Clifton Suspension Bridge, 51. Rejects Mr. Brunel’s plan, 51. Designs one himself, 52. His plan described, 52 Thames Tunnel, project of, first occupies Sir Isambard Brunel’s attention, 5. Plans suggested for the construction of a tunnel, 6. Borings, 7. Remarks on borings, 8 note¹. Commencement of the work, 9. Construction of the Rotherhithe shaft, 9. Description of the shield, 12. Journals of Sir I. Brunel of the progress of the work, 10, 11, 16. Mr. Brunel appointed resident engineer of, 25 note¹. First irruption of the river, 29. Second irruption, 35. Works suspended, 37. Resumed, 38. The Wapping shaft, 38. Completed and opened, 39. Its subsequent history, 39 note¹ Thompson, Dr. Seth. Letter on the half-sovereign accident, 511 Timber bridges and viaducts, 179 Timber, experiments on strength of, 182, 227 Torquay branch of the South Devon Railway, 87 Trussed bridges, 199

Uxbridge branch of the Great Western Railway, 86

Vale of Neath Railway, 89. Viaducts, 171 Vick, Alderman William, his bequest for a bridge at Clifton, 47 ‘Victoria’ steam-ship, built under Mr. Brunel’s direction, 290 Vignoles, C., 74

Walker, J., 107 Walkham viaduct, 189 Wapping shaft of the Thames Tunnel, construction of the, 38 Watcombe, Mr. Brunel’s life at, 514 Watt, James & Co., 148. Tender accepted for screw engines of the ‘Great Eastern,’ 301 West Cornwall Railway, 87. Viaducts, 189 Westminster Abbey, memorial window in, 520 note¹ Wilts and Somerset Railway, 88 Windsor branch of the Great Western Railway, 86 Windsor bridge, 200. Description of superstructure, 200. Mode of forming piers, 201 Wire gun, 453 Witness, Mr. Brunel’s reputation as a, 69, 93, 505 Wood, Nicholas, 101. Report on broad gauge and permanent way, 107 Wrought-iron bridges, 192 Wrought-iron girder, experiments on, 193 Wyatt, Sir M. D., 84 Wycombe extension of the Great Western Railway, 86