Home > William Jessop

Jessop was born in Devonport, Devon in 1745, the son of a shipwright known to leading civil engineer John Smeaton through his work on the Eddystone Lighthouse. When Jessop's father died, William Jessop was taken on as a pupil by Smeaton (who also acted as Jessop’s guardian), working on various canal schemes in Yorkshire. After working for some years as Smeaton's assistant, Jessop increasingly began to work as an engineer in his own right.

In 1790Events January 8 George Washington gives the first State of the Union Address. January 30 The first boat specialized as a lifeboat is tested on the River Tyne. February 1 In New York City the Supreme Court of the United States convenes for the first time., he founded (with fellow engineer Benjamin Outram ) an ironThis article is about metallic iron. For the ironing device, see ironing manganese iron cobalt Fe Ru Full table General Name, Symbol, Number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metal Group, Period, Block 8 (VIIIB), 4 , d Density, Hardness 7874 kg/m3,-works in DerbyshireDerbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, which boasts some of England's most attractive hill and mountain scenery. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps wit, the Butterley Iron Works, to manufacture cast-iron edge rails – a design Jessop had used successfully with flanged wheels on a horse-drawn railway scheme for coal wagons in Loughboroughcarillon Loughborough (pronounced 'luffbura' or 'luffbruh') is a town in Leicestershire, England. It was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086. In 1995 the population of the town was estimated at 55,300, and it is the administrative centre for the Charnw, LeicestershireLeicestershire (abbreviated Leics is a landlocked county in central England. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester which has traditionally been its administrative centre, but is now a unitary authority administratively separate fr ( 1789Events January 7 First nationwide United States election January 21 The first American novel, The Power of Sympathy or the Triumph of Nature Founded in Truth is printed in Boston, Massachusetts January 23 Georgetown College becomes the first Catholic coll).

His projects included:

• the Calder and Hebble NavigationThe Calder and Hebble Navigation is a canal system in West Yorkshire, England. Construction was started in 1757 by the civil engineer John Smeaton (assisted by William Jessop) to provide a navigable waterway between Wakefield and Halifax. The River Calder (1758-70)
• the Aire and Calder NavigationThe Aire and Calder Navigation is a river and canal system of the River Aire and the River Calder in the county of West Yorkshire, England. Much of the design was completed by civil engineers John Smeaton and William Jessop during the late 18th century.
• the Ure and Ripon Canal (1767)
• the Barnsley Canal (1792-1802)
• Grand Canal of Ireland between the River Shannon and Dublin (1773-1805)
• the Grand Junction Canal (1793-1805 - later known as the Grand Union Canal)
• the Cromford Canal, Derbyshire/ Nottinghamshire
• the Nottingham Canal (1792-1796)
• River Trent Navigation
• the Grantham Canal (1793-1797 - the first English canal entirely dependent on reservoirs for its water supply)
• oversight of the Ellesmere Canal – (1793-1805 - detailed design undertaken by Thomas Telford)
• Rochdale Canal (1794-1798)
• West India Docks and Isle of Dogs canal, London (1800-1802)
• the Surrey Iron Railway, linking Wandsworth and Croydon (1801-1802 – arguably Britain's first public railway – albeit horse-drawn)
• the 'Floating Harbour' in Bristol (1804-1809)
• harbours at Shoreham-by-Sea and Littlehampton, West Sussex

Jessop lived for some years (1784-1805) in Newark in Nottinghamshire, where he also twice served as town mayor.