Basic Biographical Details

Name: Benjamin Hall Blyth I
Designation:  
Born: 14 July 1819
Died: 21 August 1866
Bio Notes: Benjamin Hall Blyth was born at North Berwick on 14 July 1819, the son of Robert Brittain Blyth, a Birmingham iron merchant and his wife Barbara Cooper. They had Scottish connections and were related to the Peddies through the Coventry family.

Blyth trained as a civil engineer, almost wholly on railway construction with Grainger & Miller. He commenced independent practice in Edinburgh in 1848, soon moving to the 135 George Street office where the practice would remain for over 100 years. He went into partnership with his brother Edward Laurence Ireland Blyth, who had also assisted in the Grainger & Miller office, in 1854, the practice title being B & E Blyth, and they quickly established a reputation as consulting engineers. Work flowed in from the Caledonian, Glasgow & South Western, Scottish Central, Dundee & Perth, Great North of Scotland and Portpatrick railway companies. They had a reputation for efficiency and thoroughness. Benjamin Hall Blyth died from overwork at North Berwick on 21 August 1866 and was buried at Grange Cemetery. He left moveable estate of £56,052 in the United Kingdom and £1,250 in Australia. He was survived by his wife Mary Dudgeon Wright who died on 29 December 1868 and at least seven sons.

Private and Business Addresses

The following private or business addresses are associated with this :
 AddressTypeDate fromDate toNotes
Item 1 of 2132, George Street, Edinburgh, ScotlandBusiness1848Before 1854 
Item 2 of 2135, George Street, Edinburgh, ScotlandBusinessBefore 18541886 

Employment and Training

Employers

The following individuals or organisations employed or trained this (click on an item to view details):
 NameDate fromDate toPositionNotes
Item 1 of 2Grainger & Millerc. 1835(?)Before 1845Apprentice 
Item 2 of 2B & E Blyth18541866Partner 

Buildings and Designs

This was involved with the following buildings or structures from the date specified (click on an item to view details):
 Date startedBuilding nameTown, district or villageIslandCity or countyCountryNotes
Item 1 of 121858Glenluce Railway Viaduct  WigtownshireScotland 
Item 2 of 121859Loch Ken Railway Viaduct   Scotland 
Item 3 of 121859Portpatrick Railway ViaductPortpatrick WigtownshireScotland 
Item 4 of 121859Railway BridgesDalmarnock GlasgowScotlandAttribution
Item 5 of 121861Bervie Branch Railway ViaductBervie KincardineshireScotland 
Item 6 of 121861Edinburgh, Leith and Newhaven Railway  EdinburghScotland 
Item 7 of 121861Stranraer bridge over railwayStranraer WigtownshireScotland 
Item 8 of 121861Stranraer railway stationStranraer WigtownshireScotlandAlso adjoining workshops
Item 9 of 121861Water of Fleet viaduct  KirkcudbrightshireScotland 
Item 10 of 121864Tay ViaductPerth PerthshireScotland 
Item 11 of 121865Avon Railway ViaductChatelherault LanarkshireScotland 
Item 12 of 12c. 1865Edinchip BridgeLochearnhead PerthshireScotland 

References

Bibliographic References

The following books contain references to this :
 Author(s)DateTitlePartPublisherNotes
Item 1 of 4Bailey, Rebecca M1996Scottish architects' papers: a source book Edinburgh: The Rutland Press 
Item 2 of 4Blyth & Blyth1948A history of the firm of Blyth & Blyth, chartered civil engineers, consulting structural engineers … 1848-1948 Edinburgh: C J Cousland 
Item 3 of 4Glendinning, M, MacInnes, R and MacKechnie, A1996A History of Scottish Architecture   
Item 4 of 4Scotlands People Website Wills & Testaments  Edinburgh Sheriff Court Wills Sc70/4/106 and Edinburgh Sheriff Court Inventories SC70/1/131

Periodical References

The following periodicals contain references to this :
 Periodical NameDateEditionPublisherNotes
Item 1 of 1Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers1867XXVI pp556-560