Isambard Kingdom Brunel

Vocation

Notable

Traits

Family

British chief engineer of the Great Western Railway in 1833. He built the Thames tunnel, the docks at Bristol, the London-Bristol line, and, at the height of his fame in the 1850s, Paddington Station. Raised in an engineering environment he was strongly influenced by his imaginative and supportive father. His dad gave him drawing lessons when he was four and soon after, started him on Euclid. By 1825 at the age of 19, he was helping his dad with the great Thames Tunnel project. Marc Brunel had invented the "shield" which made such a project possible. During the three-year difficult and dangerous job, Isambard quickly assumed responsibility under his dad. However, the project ended in disaster when the Thames broke in and Isambard was severely injured through the inrush of water which flooded the tunnel. The unfinished "great bore" was sealed up and remained so for seven years. In 1829 he made designs for a bridge to gap the River Avon at Clifton, and through this work was engaged upon designing new docks at Bristol. His workmanship impressed many influential people in Bristol, and as a result he was given a job which was designed to prove the greatest in his career. He was appointed chief engineer to the Great Western Railway Company. This was at age 24. Brunel was married in 5/1936; they had three kids. The first born, a son, was crippled, and followed by two daughters. Witty, kind and considerate, he was loved by his many friends. It was said that "No one ever saw him out of temper or heard him utter an ill-natured word." He died on 15 September 1859, 10:30pm, Westminster, London. Link to Wikipedia biography