Edward Cruttwell

George Edward Wilson Cruttwell (5 December 1857 - 10 November 1933), known as Edward, was an English civil engineer. He worked with John Wolfe Barry and Henry Marc Brunel on London's Blackfriars Railway Bridge, and was the first superintending engineer of Tower Bridge in London, and remained associated with Tower Bridge until his death in 1933.

Early life and education

Cruttwell was born on 5 December 1857 to Wilson Clement Cruttwell, a solicitor, and Georgiana Daniel, in Frome, Somerset. He was one of eleven children. Like his brothers, he was educated at Clifton College from 1869 to 1874, then King's College, Cambridge. In 1878, he was apprenticed to railway engineer Robert Pearson Brereton who was responsible for completing many of Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s projects after his death.

Career

Cruttwell later joined the firm of Sir John Wolfe Barry and Henry Marc Brunel, working at 17–18 Duke Street, Westminster (later 21–23 Delahay Street). As resident engineer he was responsible for the construction of Blackfriars Railway Bridge between 1883 and 1886.

However, Cruttwell achieved national prominence as the engineer in charge of the construction of Tower Bridge from its inception in 1886 to its opening on 30 June 1894. Appointed to that post aged 28, Cruttwell was credited alongside Wolfe Barry (the bridge's chief engineer) with the work on the Bridge having "proceeded entirely under Mr Barry and his able resident engineer Mr Cruttwell." After working for Wolfe Barry and Brunel for 16 years, Cruttwell was nominated for membership of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in 1898; Brunel summarised Cruttwell's career to that year:

"[He was educated] at King's College, London (Applied Science Department) from 1874 to 1876... From 1878 to 1894, Cruttwell was employed continuously by Mr (later Sir) John Wolfe Barry and Mr Henry Marc Brunel initially in their office, then in sole charge as resident engineer at Blackfriars Railway Bridge from 1883 to 1886, and then at the Tower Bridge from 1886 to 1894."

Following the opening of Tower Bridge, the Corporation of London "secured the services of Mr E W Cruttwell who so very ably filled the post of resident engineer during the whole period of construction" as the engineer in charge of the now operational Tower Bridge, a post for which he was paid £500 per year. He would remain in this role until 1897 when the role of engineer was merged with that of bridge master. At the same time, he was also appointed engineer for Southwark and London Bridges which were also managed by Bridge House Estates.

Sole practice

While retaining the role of consulting engineer to Tower Bridge, a position he held until his death in 1933, Cruttwell went into independent practice at 14 Delahay Street, Westminster, in 1897. He became consulting engineer to the Orange Free State Government.

In 1900, Cruttwell was engaged by Bridge House Estates for the widening of London Bridge from 53ft 5in to 65ft to cope with increased passenger and vehicle traffic. The project was to be achieved without ever closing the bridge.

In 1901, he won the first prize of £1,000 for the best design for what would ultimately be called Sydney Harbour Bridge, although his design was not proceeded with for financial, design and political reasons.

By 1911 Cruttwell's name as "someone who occupies a high place in the engineering profession" was known more widely around the world with his arrival in Canada warranting a headline in the Canadian press when Cruttwell arrived to design the Second Narrows Bridge in Vancouver. In 1912 he designed an ingenious hydraulic drawbridge over the river Hull.

Sir John Wolfe Barry & Partners

In 1901, Sir John Wolfe Barry invited Cruttwell to rejoin his firm but now as Barry's partner. Cruttwell would be responsible for various docks and harbour projects, and bridges including the Connel Bridge and various bridges on the Bengal-Nagpur Railway. With fellow partner, and Wolfe Barry's second son Kenneth Arthur Wolfe Barry, Cruttwell surveyed over 600 miles of canals and waterways for the Royal Commission on Canals and Waterways in 1908 and 1909.

During World War I, Cruttwell was in charge of the contracts departments at the Department of Explosives Supply. On the death of Sir John Wolfe Barry in 1918, Cruttwell became senior partner in the firm of Sir John Wolfe Barry & Partners, by then long-established as a "world-famous engineering firm". He continued to travel widely for major engineering projects around the world, in 1923 arriving in Sydney to tender for Sydney Harbour Bridge with his arrival heralded as the "famous designer arrives." In 1925 he was appointed consulting engineer to the Imperial War Graves Commission which was responsible for all war graves for troops killed during the First World War.

Legacy

In June 2024, rare photos of Tower Bridge's opening day, discovered by family descendants of Cruttwell, were displayed on monoliths in an open-air exhibition across the Bridge.

Personal life

Cruttwell was the older brother of art historian and critic Maud Cruttwell.

Cruttwell married Gwenydd Erskine, fifth daughter of Captain David Erskine, 92nd Gordon Highlanders, on 21 December 1893 at Bapchild, Kent. Edward and Gwenydd Cruttwell had three sons: Clement Henry, born on 16 July 1896; Patrick Erskine, born on 28 June 1899; and Colin Edward, born on 19 March 1901.

During his career, Cruttwell accumulated considerable wealth. By 1927 he had the 2024 equivalent of around £5 million and owned several properties inside and outside London, but he lost most of his fortune (held in railway shares) during the Great Depression. Cruttwell died on 10 November 1933 of cerebral thrombosis and artery sclerosis.