John Smeaton was born in Austhorpe Lodge near Leeds, England, on June 8, 1724. John Smeaton’s prolific career mirrored the developments of the Industrial Revolution in Britain. He was one of the first people to call himself a civil engineer. He laid the foundations for the profession, as well as establishing consulting engineering and defining the role of a resident engineer.
Smeaton's achievements and interests were wide-ranging — from scientific instruments to steam engines, canals to harbors, bridges to lighthouses, and mills to astronomy. Wanting to know exactly how things worked, Smeaton spent hours making and testing models of his schemes. He recorded everything meticulously in his diaries and produced copious drawings and reports, many of which survive. He was happy to explain or demonstrate his ideas, with pencil or tools in hand. He continually refined his designs and, once convinced that he was right about a concept, would stick to it with determination. In 1748, early in his career, Smeaton worked in London as a maker of scientific instruments. He pioneered the use of hydraulic lime, which cures through hydration in concrete.
John Smeaton inspired people — whether site laborers or learned colleagues — and he always led by example, never asking anyone to do something he would not attempt himself. His recognition of the need for a multi-skilled approach to problem solving made him a pioneer in civil engineering.
Smeaton’s most famous work is the Eddystone Lighthouse, but he had notable successes with at least 35 other major civil engineering projects, including the Scotland-spanning Forth & Clyde Canal, Ramsgate Harbour, and the Perth Bridge, plus over 60 mills and more than ten steam engines. The challenge at the Eddystone Lighthouse was to create and situate a structure that would withstand the rigors of time yet be buildable with the materials and methods available at that time. The Eddystone Lighthouse was built from 1757 to 1759 on an isolated, exposed rock outcrop in the English Channel, 22.5 km (14 mi) south of Plymouth, England. The features that made it superior, durable, and a true product of civil engineered construction were that it was designed and erected by employing knowledge of natural forces and composition and behavior of materials, coupled with applications of mathematical principles. Its substructure was built with interlocked stone to deflect the waves. First lit on October 16, 1759, the tower was almost 22 m (72 ft) tall and 7.6 m (25 ft) in diameter at the base. Although the tower was moved onshore (to Plymouth Hoe) in 1882, its solid portion remains in place today. The lighthouse was honored by ASCE as an International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1991.
Described as a cultured man of means who traveled in the best circles, yet mingled with the construction workers with equal aplomb, “humanist engineer” Smeaton was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1753 and was honored with the Copley Medal in 1759 for his research into the mechanics of waterwheels and windmills. In London, he started meeting with fellow engineers informally to discuss topics of mutual interest. This subsequently became known as the “Smeatonian Society of Civil Engineers.” In 1776, he hung out a shingle outside a London office that proudly proclaimed “JOHN SMEATON, CIVIL ENGINEER.” Visitors to London today can find a Smeaton Street north of the River Thames, downriver from the Tower Bridge.
Smeaton was the first of a long line of civil engineers to appear in a court of law to act as what today is called an “expert witness.” Smeaton inspired future civil engineers to make life better for people. He died at Austhorpe on October 28, 1792.
References A Man for all Reasons, John Smeaton, FRS, the First Civil Engineer, by M.D. Morris, contained in American Civil Engineering History: The Pioneering Years, Proceedings of 4th National Congress on Civil Engineering History & Heritage, ed. B.G. Dennis et al, 2002, ASCE.
John Smeaton, FRS, by A.W. Skempton, publ. by T.Telford, 1981.
Engineer Biography, John Smeaton, Engineering Timelines written by Eleanor Knowles, retrieved 2021.
