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bridge is regarded as an engineering marvel. It is 8,296 ft (2,529 m) in length, and the double track is elevated 151 feet (46 m) above high tide. It consists of two main spans of 1,710 feet (520 m), two side spans of 675 feet (206 m), 15 approach spans of 168 feet (51 m) and five of 25 feet (7.6 m) ). Each main span comprises two 680 ft (210 m) cantilever arms supporting a central 350 ft (110 m) span girder bridge. The three great four-tower cantilever structures are 340 ft (104 m) tall, each 70 ft (21 m) diameter foot resting on a separate foundation. The southern group of foundations had to be constructed as caissons under compressed air, to a depth of 90 ft (27 m). At its peak, approximately 4,600 workers were employed in its construction. Initially, it was recorded that 57 lives were lost however after extensive research by local historians, the figure has been revised upwards to 98. Eight men who fell from the bridge were saved by boats positioned in the river under work areas. More than 55,000 tons of steel were used, as well as 18,122 m³ of granite and over eight million rivets. The bridge was opened on 4 March 1890 by the Prince of Wales, later
412:, the builder of the first railway bridge across the Tay, he performed his role with independence and tenacity. His testified against the theory that the bridge was blown over by the wind that night. He made a meticulous survey of structures at or near the bridge, and concluded that wind speeds were not excessive on the night of the disaster. The official analysis of the failure suggested that a wind pressure of over 30 pounds per square foot was needed to cause toppling of the structure. Baker examined smaller structures in the vicinity of the bridge and concluded that the pressure could not have exceeded 15 pounds per square foot on the night of the bridge failure. Such smaller structures included walls, ballast on the track on the bridge, and both signal boxes either on or very near the bridge.
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A contemporary repainting of the bridge commenced with a contract award in 2002, for a schedule of work expected to continue until March 2009, involving the application of 20,000 m of paint at an estimated cost of £13M a year. This new coat of paint is expected to have a life of at least 25 years. In
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can use the bridge, which was designed to accommodate heavier steam locomotives. Up to 190–200 trains per day crossed the bridge in 2006. A structure like the Forth Bridge needs constant maintenance and the ancillary works for the bridge included not only a maintenance workshop and yard but a railway
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Baker was also the author of many papers on engineering subjects. In 1872 Baker wrote a series of articles titled, "The
Strength of Brickwork." In these articles Baker argued that the tensile strength of cement should not be neglected in calculating the strength of brickwork. He wrote that if the
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The bridge has a speed limit of 50 mph (80 km/h) for passenger trains and 20 mph (32 km/h) for freight trains. The weight limit for any train on the bridge is 1,422 tonnes (1,442,000 kg) although this is waived for the frequent coal trains, provided two such trains do not
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had originally been awarded the contract but he lost it after the Tay Bridge
Inquiry reported in June 1880. The bridge was built entirely in steel, much stronger than cast iron. He used hollow steel tubes to create the cantilever, and it was then the largest bridge of its kind in the world. The
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The use of a cantilever in bridge design was not a new idea, but the scale of Baker's undertaking was a pioneering effort, later followed in different parts of the world. Much of the work done was without precedent, including calculations for incidence of erection stresses, provisions made for
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He published a timely book on Long
Railway Bridges in the 1870s which advocated the introduction of steel, and showed that much longer spans were possible using this material. The book is remarkably prescient for the way the properties of steel could be exploited in structures.
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Baker also played a large part in the introduction of the system widely adopted in London of constructing underground railways in deep tubular tunnels built up of cast iron segments. He was also involved in an unsuccessful scheme in 1899 proposed by the
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and, at the age of 16, became an apprentice at Messrs Price and Fox at the Neath Abbey Iron Works. After his apprenticeship he spent two years as an assistant to Mr. W.H. Wilson. Later, he became associated with Sir
496:, who drove home the last rivet, which was gold plated and suitably inscribed. A contemporary materials analysis of the bridge, c. 2002, found that the steel in the bridge is of good quality, with little variation.
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By this time he had already become established as an authority on bridge construction. Shortly afterwards he was engaged on the work which made his reputation with the general public: the design and erection of the
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He obtained an extremely large professional practice, ranging over almost every branch of civil engineering, and was more or less directly concerned with most of the great engineering achievements of his day.
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in 2007 which reviewed the alternative options for a second road crossing, it was stated that the estimated working life of the Forth Bridge was in excess of 100 years.
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Baker said in his statement to the court that he had built over 12 miles (19 km) of railway viaduct, referring to his design of the
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2008 the total cost was revised upwards to £180M, and projections for finishing the job to 2012. In a report produced by JE Jacobs,
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in
Oxfordshire, next to his mother. He is commemorated in a stained glass window on the northside of the nave at
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disaster, in which part of the bridge failed and collapsed into the water. Although he was acting on behalf of
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Ironworks, and Sarah Hollis. There is a plaque on their house in Butts Hill. He was educated at
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Beautiful
Railway Bridge of the Silvery Tay: Reinvestigating the Tay Bridge Disaster of 1879
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simultaneously occupy the bridge. The route availability code is RA8, meaning any current
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Fellows of The Royal Society of Edinburgh 1783–2002; Biographical Index, Part One
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On the completion of this undertaking in 1890 he was appointed Knight
Commander of the
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reducing future maintenance costs, calculations for wind pressures made evident by the
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recognised his scientific attainments by electing him one of its fellows. In 1892 the
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report on contemporary maintenance, such a practice never existed, although under
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Battle for the North: The Tay and Forth bridges and the 19th century railway wars
918:'The Abbey Scientists' Hall, A.R. p45: London; Roger & Robert Nicholson; 1966
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cement was neglected then several structures of his time should have collapsed.
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between May 1895 and June 1896. He was elected a
Foreign Honorary Member of the
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and Baker gave numerous lectures on the principles which lay behind his design.
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management, and before, the bridge had a permanent maintenance crew.
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recognised the work of Fowler and Baker by the joint award of the
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794:. Vol. LIV – From July to December, 1892. 1892. p. 782.
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Apprenticed to Messrs Price and Fox at the Neath Abbey Iron Works
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Badsey-Ellis, Antony (2005) . "Building on
Success: the 1890s".
515:'s first attempts at his bridge can also be seen on the island.
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Benjamin Baker – Celebrating Frome's forgotten engineering hero
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Forth
Replacement Crossing Study Report 5 : Final Report
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Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George
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in New York City in 1868, some of which still survives in
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Where possible, the bridge used natural features such as
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Disaster on the Dee: Robert Stephenson's Nemesis of 1847
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Presidents of the Smeatonian Society of Civil Engineers
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disaster. Later, he helped design and build the first
756:. JE Jacobs Faber Maunsell / AECOM. 2007. p. 24.
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270:in London. He took part in the construction of the
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1207:Presidents of the Institution of Civil Engineers
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249:Cleopatra's Needle from the River Thames, London
695:. The Royal Society of Edinburgh. July 2006.
253:He was born in Keyford, which is now part of
1098:(11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
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447:. It was an almost unique design as a large
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1025:Thomas Bouch: the builder of the Tay Bridge
829:, London: Thomas Telford Ltd, p. 252,
343:. Unsourced material may be challenged and
221:, but he is best known for his work on the
1227:Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath
1217:People associated with transport in London
894:. London: Fourth Estate Limited. pp.
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1237:Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
890:Who Lies Where – A guide to famous graves
363:Learn how and when to remove this message
1187:People educated at Pate's Grammar School
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483:after the Tay bridge collapse. It was a
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850:"Book of Members, 1780–2010: Chapter B"
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608:(KCB). He served as president of the
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1247:19th-century British businesspeople
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961:. London: Eyre & Spottiswoode.
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580:at the site of Baker's former home
379:Original Tay Bridge from the north
72:Benjamin Baker as a young engineer
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959:The Forth Bridge and its Builders
814:. 30 December 1902. p. 8968.
792:Engineering: A Weekly Illustrated
588:(KCMG), and in the same year the
586:Order of St Michael and St George
524:"colony" of some fifty houses at
479:, he designed and engineered the
419:A street railway in New York 1876
1065:Works by or about Benjamin Baker
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400:In 1880, Baker was called as an
387:Fallen Tay Bridge from the north
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293:, London, was brought over from
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229:at the public inquiry into the
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213:. He helped develop the early
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776:. 4 March 1890. p. 1200.
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439:(1890) in collaboration with
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274:(London). He was also a key
27:British engineer (1840–1907)
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1089:"Baker, Sir Benjamin"
637:line in north-west London.
471:Stability of the cantilever
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929:London's Lost Tube Schemes
886:Kerrigan, Michael (1998).
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618:Royal Society of Edinburgh
594:French Academy of Sciences
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949:Long-span Railway Bridges
631:North West London Railway
565:Honours and Old Aswan Dam
533:Painting the Forth Bridge
297:to England in 1877–1878.
263:Cheltenham Grammar School
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1004:McKean, Charles (2006).
966:Lewis, Peter R. (2004).
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404:to the inquiry into the
1095:Encyclopædia Britannica
1232:People from Pangbourne
957:Hammond, Rolt (1964).
825:Watson, Garth (1988),
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1023:Rapley, John (2006).
989:. Tempus Publishing.
931:. Capital Transport.
654:He died at his home,
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241:Early life and career
985:Lewis, P.R. (2007).
788:"INSTITUT DE FRANCE"
712:on 19 September 2015
624:Underground railways
337:improve this section
272:Metropolitan Railway
215:underground railways
113:, Berkshire, England
502:Tay Bridge disaster
396:Tay bridge disaster
164:Structural engineer
94:, Somerset, England
1074:Sir Benjamin Baker
1027:. Stroud: Tempus.
946:Baker, B. (1873).
811:The London Gazette
773:The London Gazette
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542:New Civil Engineer
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287:Cleopatra's Needle
282:disaster of 1879.
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190:Sir Benjamin Baker
152:Engineering career
18:Sir Benjamin Baker
1177:People from Frome
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1146:Succeeded by
996:978-0-7524-4266-2
876:, pp. 79–83.
874:Badsey-Ellis 2005
668:Westminster Abbey
606:Order of the Bath
485:cantilever bridge
449:cantilever bridge
425:elevated railroad
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481:Forth Bridge
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1172:1907 deaths
1167:1840 births
806:"No. 27510"
768:"No. 26029"
633:to build a
574:Blue plaque
431:(unused).
268:John Fowler
127:Citizenship
119:Nationality
103:19 May 1907
1161:Categories
1078:Structurae
1008:. Granta.
970:. Tempus.
827:The Civils
674:References
660:Pangbourne
578:Cheltenham
509:Inchgarvie
158:Discipline
143:Occupation
111:Pangbourne
84:1840-03-31
1135:President
732:"Plaques"
620:in 1902.
602:Aswan Dam
429:Manhattan
353:July 2010
324:does not
235:Aswan dam
178:Aswan dam
135:Education
716:26 March
537:Sisyphus
176:, First
170:Projects
146:Engineer
1137:of the
1067:at the
952:. Spon.
641:Writing
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278:in the
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740:2019
718:2015
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635:tube
557:and
443:and
328:any
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206:FRSE
198:KCMG
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