James Henry Greathead

James Henry Greathead
Statue of Greathead in London which was erected in 1994
Personal information
Birth date	6 August 1844(1844-08-06)
Birth place	Grahamstown, South Africa
Date of death	21 October 1896 (aged 52)
Place of death	Streatham, London
Work
Significant projects	Tower Subway Blackwall Tunnel Waterloo & City Line
Significant Awards	Elected to the Council of the Institution of Civil Engineers, 1884

James Henry Greathead (6 August 1844 - 21 October 1896)^[1] was an engineer renowned for his work on the London Underground railway.

Early life

Greathead was born in Grahamstown, South Africa; of English descent, Greathead's grandfather had emigrated to South Africa in 1820. He was educated at St Andrew's College, Grahamstown, and the Diocesan College private school in Cape Town, and completed his education in England between 1859 and 1863 at the Westbourne Collegiate School, Westbourne Grove. He returned briefly to South Africa before finally moving to London in 1864 to serve a 3 year pupillage under the civil engineer Peter W. Barlow. He spent some time (around 1867) as assistant engineer on the Midland Railway between Bedford and London (working with Barlow's brother, William Henry Barlow).

Tunnelling

Soon after, in 1869, he rejoined Barlow and they began work on designs for the Tower Subway, only the second tunnel to be driven under the river Thames in central London. Barlow was the engineer for the tunnel and Greathead was in charge of the actual drive. The tunneling shield for driving the Tower Subway, while designed by Greathead, was inspired by Barlow's ideas for a circular tunneling shield which he had patented in 1864 and 1868. The shield was named the Barlow-Greathead shield and consisted of an iron cylinder 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m) in diameter fitted with screw jacks which enabled it to be jacked forward. In use, the shield was inched forward as the working face was excavated, while behind it a permanent tunnel lining of cast iron segments was fitted into place, itself an important innovation.^[2] Greathead patented many of his improvements including the use of compressed air and forward propulsion by hydraulic jacks, both of which are now standard features of tunnel construction.

He was also a consultant in relation to the construction of the Blackwall Tunnel .

Railways

In 1873 Greathead became resident engineer on the Hammersmith extension railway and the Richmond extension of the Metropolitan District Railway, a post which he leld for 4 years. After this he assisted in the preparation of the Regents Canal Railway (1880), the Metropolitan Outer Circle Railway (1881), a new London-Eastbourne line (1883) and in various light railways in Ireland (1884). Also in 1884, Greathead was engaged as engineer on the London (City) & Southwark Subway, later the City & South London Railway (and now part of the Northern Line) which was, when it opened in 1890, the world's first underground electric railway. In 1888, he became joint engineer with Sir Douglas Fox on the Liverpool Overhead Railway and also worked with W.R. Galbraith on the Waterloo & City Railway. His final work was on the Central London Railway with Sir John Fowler and Sir Benjamin Baker.^[3]

Honours

• An English Heritage blue plaque marks his home in Barnes, south-west London, 3 St Mary's Grove, where he lived between 1885 and 1889.
• In January 1994 the statue shown on this page was erected outside the Bank Underground Station next to the Royal Exchange in the City of London. It was unveiled by the Lord Mayor of London and is positioned on a plinth which hides a ventilation shaft for the Underground. While Bank Station was being refurbished a section of the Barlow-Greathead shield was discovered in a passageway between the Underground and the Waterloo and City Railway. The section has been painted red and a brass plate erected as a further memorial to his achievements.

References

Further reading

• "James Henry Greathead". Greathead One name study. http://greathead.org/James_Henry_Greathead.htm. Retrieved 2008-04-30.  (Family records)
• "James Henry Greathead". Greathead One name study. http://www.greathead.org/greathead2-o/p95.htm#i2358. Retrieved 2008-04-30.  (Genealogy)
• Cartwright, Rob (September 1997.). "James Henry Greathead (1844‑1896) - Tunnelling Pioneer". FOWNC Newsletter No 30.. http://www.fownc.org/newsletters/no30.doc. Retrieved 2008-04-30.  (Newsletter of the Friends of West Norwood Cemetery, where Greathead is buried)