Born on this day 1806 in Portsmouth,
Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the mechanical and civil engineer who is considered to be the most ingenious and prolific engineers of the Industrial Revolution. In a 2002 BBC poll to select the greatest ever Briton, Brunel came second. Brunel built railways, bridges, tunnels, dockyards and steamships including the SS Great Britain, first propeller-driven ocean-going iron ship which at the time was the largest ship ever built.
Brunel was the chief engineer of the Great Western Railway, that revolutionised public transport in Wales. His original intention was to connect London with Ireland and New York via Gloucester and Abermawr near Fishguard where he proposed to build a seaport. However, due to financial restraints, the plan changed and the western terminus was established at Neyland (then called New Milford). The Neyland dock and port closed in 1906, being replaced by Fishguard Harbour in Goodwick.
There are a significant number of Brunel's other works in Wales, such as the Taff Vale Railway (which included re-routing the River Taff), the Vale of Neath Railway (including the Dare Valley Viaduct), the Llynvi Valley Railway and South Wales Mineral Railway. Other notable works of Brunel were the tubular suspension bridge across the River Wye at Chepstow, the viaduct over the River Tawe at Landore, the stone viaduct at Goitre Coed and the flying arches across the track at Llansamlet.
Other connections between Brunel's work and Wales;
* There is a statue of Brunel at Neyland.
* The gigantic steamship, the Great Eastern had its chains made in the Brown Lennox works in Pontypridd.
* Much of the ironwork in the Great Western Railway, as well as that in Brunel’s bridges, was manufactured in Merthyr Tydfil.
* The SS Great Britain sailed on its last commercial voyage from Penarth Dock to Panama.
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