FROM THE MWH ARCHIVES
H 9T
N TU CE
THOMAS HAWKSLEY
RY
Begins his career with an apprenticeship. He was largely self-taught age
15
age
23
Most engineers at the time had given up on the idea of a pressurized water supply due to heavy leaks
G
R ENGINEE WATE R IN EST T TH A E E R 1
Author: Lana Piskorowski
TH E
When cholera struck 16 years later, the town was virtually unscathed, thanks to his concept age
age
25
Appointed Chief Engineer to Trent Waterworks Company Determined, Hawksley collaborated with an ironworks company and local plumbers to design robust, easily repairable pipe fittings His persistence triumphed with the construction of Trent Bridge Pumping Station, the country’s first pressurized system, which served Nottingham
41
age
59
Starts a partnership with his son, Charles, T&C Hawksley, which later merges with JD & DM Watson to become Watson Hawksley, the “W” in MWH
A LIFETIME OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS
age
Hawksley lead the design and construction of
64
OVER 150
Becomes president of the Institution of Civil Engineers
waterworks systems in the UK and abroad
age
69
Becomes president of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers
36
He was knighted by Austria, Denmark, Brazil and Sweden for his contributions to water infrastructure