John Smeaton was an English engineer, born in 1724 and died in 1792, widely regarded as the founder of civil engineering as a distinct profession: he was the first person to call himself a civil engineer, deliberately distinguishing his work from military engineering. His best known project, the third Eddystone Lighthouse built off Plymouth between 1755 and 1759, pioneered the use of hydraulic lime that could set underwater and interlocking dovetailed granite blocks, and the design stood until 1877, when erosion of its foundation rock led to its relocation, stone by stone, to Plymouth Hoe. He also advanced canal engineering, cement development and experimental research on waterwheels and windmills, work that won him the Royal Society's Copley Medal in 1759, and his measured Smeaton coefficient of air resistance was later used by the Wright brothers in their own aeronautical calculations.
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1. John Smeaton (Wikipedia)
Wikipedialead sentence, Wikipedia article "John Smeaton"
was an English civil engineer responsible for the design of bridges, canals, harbours and lighthouses.
lead sentence dates, Wikipedia article "John Smeaton" (birth date)
8 June 1724-28 October 1792
lead sentence dates, Wikipedia article "John Smeaton" (birth year)
8 June 1724-28 October 1792
lead sentence dates, Wikipedia article "John Smeaton" (death date)
8 June 1724-28 October 1792
lead sentence dates, Wikipedia article "John Smeaton" (death year)
8 June 1724-28 October 1792
In Field: Civil Engineering, Lead section
John Smeaton (8 June 1724-28 October 1792) was an English civil engineer responsible for the design of bridges, canals, harbours and lighthouses.
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Why is John Smeaton regarded as the founder of civil engineering?
He was the first person to call himself a civil engineer and built the third Eddystone Lighthouse.
Smeaton was an English engineer, 1724 to 1792, and the first person to call himself a civil engineer, deliberately distinguishing his work from military engineering. His third Eddystone Lighthouse, built off Plymouth between 1755 and 1759, pioneered hydraulic lime that could set underwater and interlocking dovetailed granite blocks, and the design stood until 1877. He also advanced canal engineering, cement development and experimental research on waterwheels and windmills, work that won him the Royal Society's Copley Medal in 1759.
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