Isambard Kingdom Brunel

Isambard Kingdom Brunel is born in Portsea, Portsmouth, the son of engineer Marc Isambard Brunel and Sophia Kingdom.

By the age of eight Brunel has learned Euclidean geometry and shows strong ability in mathematics and mechanics.

At the age of fourteen Brunel begins advanced studies at the Henri Quatre college in Caen.

Brunel develops advanced mathematical and drawing skills during his education in France.

Brunel continues technical studies in Paris before entering practical engineering work.

Brunel studies precision engineering and horology under the celebrated clockmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet.

Brunel gains precision engineering experience in Abraham-Louis Breguet's workshop.

Brunel continues his mathematical education at the Lycee Henri-IV in Paris.

Brunel is ruled ineligible for admission to the Ecole Polytechnique because he is a foreign national.

Brunel completes his education in France and returns to England to begin his engineering career.

Brunel becomes an assistant to his father and gains practical experience on a range of engineering proposals.

Brunel and his father experiment with a high-pressure gas engine as an alternative to conventional steam power.

Brunel works with his father on the shield system used for the Thames Tunnel.

Brunel joins the Thames Tunnel project after his father is appointed engineer for the crossing beneath the River Thames.

Brunel serves as assistant engineer under resident engineer John Armstrong during the early tunnel works.

Construction of the Thames Tunnel begins ceremonially and Brunel lays the second brick after his father.

Brunel takes over as resident engineer of the Thames Tunnel after John Armstrong resigns through illness.

Brunel becomes resident engineer after John Armstrong resigns because of illness and exhaustion.

Brunel uses diving equipment and surface inspections to locate and repair the breach above the flooded tunnel.

Brunel assumes full responsibility for directing the engineering work inside the Thames Tunnel.

The River Thames breaks into the tunnel and Brunel helps evacuate the workers before directing repairs to the breach.

A banquet is held inside the Thames Tunnel to demonstrate confidence in the pioneering construction project.

While recovering from his tunnel injuries Brunel develops ideas for a suspension bridge across the Avon Gorge.

Brunel leaves the Thames Tunnel project because his injuries prevent him from continuing as resident engineer.

Brunel is pulled from the flooded tunnel after being trapped by timber and swept through the workings.

A major tunnel flood kills six workers and seriously injures Brunel, forcing him to withdraw from the project.

Brunel submits designs to the competition for a suspension bridge across the Avon Gorge at Clifton.

Enters the competition while still a young independent engineer.

Submits designs to the first Clifton Suspension Bridge competition.

Brunel entered the competition to build a suspension bridge spanning the gorge between Clifton and Leigh Woods.

Isambard Kingdom Brunel submits four distinct proposals to the initial competition for an Avon Gorge suspension bridge, challenging conventional assumptions about span length.

Brunel becomes an associate member of the Institution of Civil Engineers.

Submits revised designs in the second competition for a bridge across the Avon Gorge.

Brunel continues promoting his Avon Gorge design after Thomas Telford rejects the first competition entries and proposes his own bridge.

A revised bridge competition considered competing proposals for crossing the Avon Gorge.

Brunel modifies his shortlisted bridge scheme to meet the competition restrictions on weight and persuades the judges that his amended solution is practicable.

Brunel is elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in recognition of his scientific and engineering promise.

Brunel is appointed engineer to Bristol Docks and begins improving the harbour's engineering works.

Brunel secures acceptance of his revised suspension bridge design and becomes project engineer.

Work begins on the Clifton Suspension Bridge, one of Brunel's earliest major independent projects.

Brunel estimates the suspension bridge project at about fifty-seven thousand pounds, including architectural treatment of the towers.

Brunel's accepted scheme uses a main suspension span of about 214 metres across the Avon Gorge.

Brunel took responsibility for investigating technical improvements to Bristol's commercial harbour facilities.

Brunel's revised suspension bridge proposal was selected for the planned crossing of the Avon Gorge.

Initial work commenced on the bridge project but civil disturbances in Bristol disrupted early progress.

The unrest in Bristol undermined investor confidence and contributed to suspension of early bridge work.

Brunel estimates the Clifton Suspension Bridge project at approximately fifty seven thousand pounds, including elaborate treatment of the towers and suspension works.

Construction of Brunel's proposed suspension bridge formally begins with the laying of a foundation stone on the Clifton side of the Avon Gorge in June 1831.

Brunel develops Egyptian inspired architectural features for the planned Clifton bridge towers, integrating monumental appearance with the proposed iron suspension structure.

Brunel is appointed engineer for the Clifton Suspension Bridge after his revised design is selected.

A ceremony marks the start of construction and work begins on the Clifton side of the gorge.

Construction is halted after the Bristol riots damage confidence and stop subscriptions to the bridge company.

Brunel designs a deep scouring sluice to draw accumulated silt from the harbour into the tidal River Avon.

Brunel designs three shallow sluices to regulate the water level within Bristol's Floating Harbour.

Brunel investigates the severe accumulation of mud and silt affecting shipping in Bristol's Floating Harbour.

Brunel recommends a dredging drag boat to scrape mud from the quay walls toward the harbour's scouring sluice.

Brunel meets Mary Elizabeth Horsley through his friendship with his brother-in-law Benjamin Hawes.

Brunel examined how silt accumulated along the quays and made parts of Bristol's Floating Harbour difficult to use.

Brunel proposed using controlled water flows beneath the harbour dam to discharge suspended silt into the New Cut.

Brunel recommended culverts equipped with sluices to help scour mud from the city docks.

Brunel concluded that a sustained movement of water would improve sediment clearance more effectively than occasional dredging alone.

Brunel proposed mechanical equipment to move mud away from the harbour walls toward the scouring watercourse.

Brunel evaluated how water levels could be managed while maintaining the harbour's commercial navigation.

Brunel surveys the proposed Great Western Railway route on horseback and negotiates with landowners.

Brunel completes an intensive survey of the proposed London-to-Bristol railway and presents a route engineered for speed and gentle gradients.

The Bristol Dock Company considered Brunel's proposals for combating silt and improving the harbour's operation.

Brunel surveyed a railway route through the Avon valley to connect Bristol with Bath and the line toward London.

Brunel surveyed the Wiltshire railway corridor while planning the Great Western line between London and Bristol.

Brunel's proposed Great Western route placed the London terminus at Paddington beside existing canal transport links.

Brunel is appointed engineer for the proposed railway between Bristol and London.

The proposed Great Western Railway route between Bristol and London is formally announced.

Brunel argues for a railway kept as level and straight as practicable so trains can run faster and more efficiently.

The dock improvement works developed the infrastructure needed to channel scouring water beneath the retaining dam.

Brunel assessed gradients and river crossings on the proposed western section of the Great Western Railway.

Parliament authorises the Great Western Railway and allows construction of Brunel's London to Bristol route.

Brunel proposes extending the Great Western transport system from Bristol to New York by steamship.

Brunel promotes the seven-foot broad gauge as a means of providing stability, speed and passenger comfort.

Engineered sluices enabled water released from the dock to carry suspended mud into the tidal New Cut.

Parliamentary approval allowed construction of the Great Western Railway through Bath and the neighbouring Avon valley.

Parliament authorised the railway through Chippenham as part of the wider Great Western main line.

Brunel proposed an ocean steamship to connect Bristol with North America and extend the transport ambitions of the Great Western enterprise.

The Great Western Railway Act enabled construction of the line from its London terminus toward Bristol.

Parliament authorises construction of the Great Western Railway between London and Bristol.

The Great Western Steamship Company is formed to develop Brunel's transatlantic steamship plan.

Brunel begins sinking exploratory shafts to examine the geology along the proposed route through Box Hill.

Brunel adopts a broad railway gauge of seven feet and one quarter inch for the Great Western Railway.

Construction resumes after renewed commercial confidence brings further investment to the project.

Large-scale construction begins on Brunel's Great Western Railway between London and Bristol.

Brunel's broad gauge determines the generous track widths and spans required for many early Great Western bridges.

Construction of the London-to-Bristol main line proceeds through multiple major contracts under Brunel's overall engineering direction.

The viaduct becomes an early showpiece of Brunel's railway engineering.

Brunel surveys a railway route between Exeter and Plymouth that later becomes the South Devon Railway.

Extends his railway engineering work into industrial South Wales.

Is appointed engineer for the Taff Vale Railway project.

Directs construction of the Wharncliffe Viaduct for the Great Western Railway.

Harbour operators used the culvert sluices to regulate scouring currents without draining the Floating Harbour.

Brunel designed the approach through the confined Bath valley with railway bridges and substantial masonry works.

Brunel planned the route through Chippenham to maintain gentle gradients suitable for broad gauge locomotives.

Construction resumed with a ceremony marking the foundation of the western bridge abutment.

Brunel designed a large wooden hulled ship propelled by steam powered paddle wheels for Atlantic crossings.

Brunel's engineering work extended to proposals for a pedestrian suspension crossing over the River Thames at Hungerford.

Contractors developed cuttings bridges and track formation for the western railway approaches to Paddington.

Great Western was planned with four masts and sails to supplement her steam propulsion during ocean crossings.

Brunel advocated a direct steamship service from Bristol to New York as an extension of modern British transport networks.

Brunel's design allowed substantial bunker space so the ship could make the Atlantic passage under steam without routine intermediate refuelling.

Brunel worked with Bristol investors to establish a company dedicated to regular steamship communication between Britain and New York.

Brunel's transatlantic vessel was designed with side paddle wheels driven by powerful marine steam engines.

The designers adopted a large wooden hull for Great Western while incorporating steam machinery intended for prolonged ocean service.

On 27 August 1836, the foundation stone of the Leigh Woods abutment is laid as bridge construction resumes after years of financial and political interruption.

Brunel proposes marriage to Mary Elizabeth Horsley during a family walk in London.

Brunel marries Mary Elizabeth Horsley and later establishes a home and office in Westminster.

Construction restarts with the foundation stone for the Leigh Woods abutment laid on the western side of the gorge.

The main contractors fail financially, but the bridge towers are raised in unfinished stone.

Brunel becomes a full member of the Institution of Civil Engineers.

The structure is the first major engineering work completed on the GWR.

William Patterson's Bristol yard constructs Brunel's large wooden paddle steamship for the Great Western Steamship Company.

The Wharncliffe Viaduct becomes the first major completed structure on Brunel's Great Western Railway.

Completes the Wharncliffe Viaduct on the Great Western Railway.

The railway engineering plans identified places where the main line would cross or run alongside the River Avon.

Work on the line toward Chippenham involved cuttings embankments and structures across the Wiltshire landscape.

Construction teams developed the masonry support at Leigh Woods for the planned suspended bridge deck.

Brunel's large paddle steamship entered the water before machinery fitting and sea trials were completed.

Plans progressed for a suspension bridge to connect the north bank of the Thames with the south bank near Hungerford Market.

Facilities were built to allow the Great Western Railway to start passenger services before a permanent terminus existed.

The London fitting out supplied the large boilers necessary to sustain Great Western's paddle wheel propulsion.

Great Western's exceptionally large dimensions made her one of the most ambitious merchant steamships of her time.

Great Western carried a four masted auxiliary sailing arrangement alongside her steam machinery.

The vessel's accommodation was arranged for paying cabin passengers and accompanying servants on the Bristol to New York route.

Great Western received side lever steam engines supplied by the engineering firm Maudslay Sons and Field.

After launching at Bristol, Great Western travelled to London for fitting out with her propulsion machinery.

The company undertaking work on the Leigh Woods abutment encounters financial failure, disrupting renewed construction on Brunel's Clifton suspension bridge.

The wooden paddle steamship SS Great Western is launched at Bristol under Brunel's direction.

Construction of Brunel's low-arched brick railway bridge across the Thames is completed.

The structure reflects Brunel's broad-gauge railway design.

Designs the sharply skewed Dumb Bell Bridge beneath the Great Western Railway.

The bridge preserves Brunel's early broad-gauge engineering approach.

The work is among Brunel's earliest iron bridge designs.

The first working section of the Great Western Railway demonstrates Brunel's broad-gauge track and early bridge designs.

The bridge forms part of Brunel's first London-to-Maidenhead contracts.

Early plans for Brunel's second major steamship envisage a wooden paddle vessel initially called City of New York.

Many booked passengers cancel after the fire, leaving only a small number aboard when Great Western departs for New York.

Completes the Leigh Road overbridge on the early Great Western Railway.

Completes an early Great Western Railway overbridge at Middlegreen Road.

Designs an early iron bridge across the Paddington Arm of the canal.

Completes the St Mary's Road bridge on the Great Western Railway.

Solves a difficult road crossing with an ingenious skew arch.

Brunel developed proposals to improve harbour entrances as increasing steamship dimensions challenged the original locks.

Contractors worked on embankments bridges and cuttings needed to carry broad gauge trains through the Avon valley.

The Great Western route incorporated a station site to serve Chippenham and surrounding communities.

Contractors continued the Clifton side tower and its supporting masonry above the Avon Gorge.

A fire aboard the vessel shortly before its maiden Atlantic voyage delayed preparations and injured Brunel.

Brunel assessed the Thames crossing and the foundation requirements for the proposed suspension structure.

The first public Great Western services operated between Paddington and Maidenhead in June.

The temporary terminus served trains built to Brunel's unusually wide railway gauge.

Brunel designed an iron bridge at the Paddington Arm as railway works crossed the canal network.

Brunel was injured during the response to a fire involving Great Western before the first Atlantic voyage.

A fire around Great Western's machinery during preparations for her inaugural crossing delayed the beginning of service.

Great Western's four masts provided auxiliary sailing capability alongside the paddle wheels during her early transatlantic operations.

SS Great Western completes an early sea trial before beginning her first Atlantic service.

Brunel is injured after falling about twenty feet during the confusion surrounding the Great Western engine-room fire.

An engine-room fire breaks out as Great Western prepares for her maiden Atlantic voyage but is extinguished with limited ship damage.

SS Great Western departs Bristol on her first Atlantic voyage to New York.

SS Great Western reaches New York and demonstrates the commercial practicality of regular steamship crossings.

The first public section of the Great Western Railway opens between Paddington and Maidenhead.

The first temporary Great Western Railway terminus at Paddington opens for services between London and Maidenhead.

Work begins on Box Tunnel through Box Hill for the Great Western Railway.

The Tudor-Gothic bridge forms part of Brunel's Bristol-Bath railway works.

Completes Brook Road Bridge for the Great Western Railway near Bath.

Supports installation of electric telegraph wires beside the Great Western Railway.

Brunel successfully defends his engineering decisions when dissatisfied shareholders attempt to remove him from the railway project.

Brunel and the building committee recommend changing the new steamship from wood to iron construction.

The Paddington-West Drayton link becomes an early commercial telegraph installation.

Brunel develops the masonry viaduct carrying the Great Western Railway across the River Avon in Wiltshire.

A railway overbridge at Brook Road formed part of Brunel's engineered approach toward Bath.

Railway builders prepared the stonework for an Avon crossing on the Great Western route through Wiltshire.

Brunel's engineering plans provided a railway crossing over the River Avon near Chippenham.

Masonry construction progressed on the rail viaduct required to carry the main line across the Avon valley.

Engineers excavated and built underground anchorage structures to resist the future suspension chain loads.

Design work considered a high central suspension span supported by masonry towers and anchored iron chains.

The steamship underwent a programme of alterations intended to provide additional passenger accommodation.

Refitting work in the period from 1839 to 1840 lengthened Great Western and increased her accommodation capacity.

Alterations to Great Western during the 1839 to 1840 period expanded the space available for commercial operations.

Maidenhead Railway Bridge opens to traffic and vindicates Brunel's unusually flat arch design.

Construction begins on Brunel's iron-hulled transatlantic steamship SS Great Britain.

Difficult rock strata and heavy water ingress delay excavation, with less than half of the tunnel completed.

Brunel studies Francis Pettit Smith's screw-propelled Archimedes during trials and demonstrations at Bristol.

The crossing carries the Great Western Railway through the city.

Designs the skew bridge immediately west of Bath Spa station.

A Brunel-designed accommodation bridge is completed on the Challow to Wootton Bassett section of the Great Western Railway.

Brunel's stone culvert over By Brook is completed as part of the Great Western route through the Box area.

The limestone bridge uses Brunel's characteristic elliptical arch.

The Copperhouse Foundry at Hayle receives the contract to manufacture suspension chains for Brunel's Clifton bridge.

The structure carries Brunel's Great Western route through central Bath.

Completes the original Gatehampton Viaduct across the River Thames.

The steamship directors accept Brunel's recommendation and approve converting the vessel to screw propulsion.

Designs a Great Western Railway bridge near Saltford.

Designs an accommodation bridge south of Kemble for the railway.

The bridge forms part of Brunel's Bristol-to-Bath railway section.

The viaduct forms part of the pioneering Great Western main line.

Completes the original Moulsford Viaduct across the Thames.

Designs the Great Western Railway crossing over the River Chew.

The masonry structure belongs to the pioneering Bristol-Bath section.

Completes the skew railway bridge over the Avon at Bath.

The elegant masonry crossing carries Brunel's broad-gauge railway.

The structure incorporates arches, railway facilities and workers' accommodation.

Completes the long Twerton Viaduct for the Great Western Railway.

Brunel incorporates railway facilities and workers' dwellings into the long masonry viaduct at Twerton.

Brunel's line used masonry bridges and viaducts to carry trains through the city and its narrow approaches.

The long masonry viaduct at Twerton provided a continuous rail alignment on the western approach to Bath.

The Great Western route crossed the River Chew at Keynsham on its passage between Bath and Bristol.

Railway structures near Saltford carried Brunel's broad gauge line through the Avon valley.

Railway passengers could travel between Bath and Bristol using the newly opened Great Western section.

Bath's Great Western Railway station commenced operations as the new Bristol to Bath section opened.

The broad gauge alignment relied on embankments to maintain manageable gradients beside sections of the Avon.

A railway bridge near Dorchester Street carried the Great Western route through Bath's built up centre.

Brunel's carefully surveyed route minimised steep railway gradients along the valley approaching Bath.

Brunel's river crossings were designed for the wider track gauge adopted by the Great Western Railway.

The Great Western Railway opened its section from Wootton Bassett to Chippenham in December.

The initial railway connection made Chippenham an operating terminus while the remaining route west was unfinished.

The arrival of the railway provided a new means of moving Wiltshire goods toward the growing Great Western network.

The new section used Brunel's broad gauge track system rather than the standard gauge used on many other railways.

The railhead at Chippenham served as an interim endpoint pending the completion of the line through Box Tunnel.

The bridge project arranged manufacture of its suspension chains at the Copperhouse Foundry in Cornwall.

Brunel adopted wrought iron suspension chains to support the bridge deck across the Thames.

Chain manufacture at the Copperhouse Foundry supported the large suspension bridge projects undertaken by Brunel.

The ship's refit produced a longer vessel better suited to carrying additional passengers on Atlantic passages.

The Clifton bridge undertaking contracts with Copperhouse Foundry in Hayle to produce suspension chains, although the project's financial difficulties later prevent their intended installation.

The Leigh Woods masonry abutment reaches an advanced state by 1840, forming a substantial foundation for the suspension structure planned across the gorge.

The Great Western section between Bristol and Bath opens, using Brunel's broad gauge and associated masonry structures.

Opens his original Bristol Temple Meads terminus.

Trains begin running from Brunel's Bristol station toward Bath.

Daniel Gooch proposes locomotive works at Swindon and Brunel supports creation of a major railway centre there.

Brunel submits a detailed report recommending screw propulsion instead of paddle wheels for the new Great Britain.

Brunel orders SS Great Britain to be redesigned for screw propulsion instead of paddle wheels.

Another section of Brunel's Great Western main line opens between Wootton Bassett and Chippenham.

The structure becomes a surviving element of Brunel's original railway.

The western entrance is finished with a more elaborate architectural treatment than the simpler eastern portal.

Brunel pushes the main contractor to increase the Box Tunnel workforce from about twelve hundred to four thousand men.

The viaduct opens with the completed Great Western route.

Completes the principal railway viaduct at Chippenham.

Brunel's railway viaduct at Chippenham opens with the completed Great Western route.

The completed London-to-Bristol main line extends roughly 116 miles and embodies Brunel's integrated railway design.

Completes the Quaker's Yard viaduct for the Taff Vale Railway.

Completes a railway footbridge through Sydney Gardens in Bath.

The crossing supports rail access for the South Wales iron industry.

Completion of the remaining main line made uninterrupted railway journeys possible between Bath and London.

Opening the Box Tunnel completed the route through the hills east of Bath and connected the Avon valley to Chippenham.

The fully connected Great Western route improved Bath's access to London and Bristol by rail.

The new route's masonry structures supported regular broad gauge passenger and goods trains through the Avon valley.

The completion of the eastern section established a continuous railway journey from Bath toward Chippenham.

Masonry work on the railway integrated bridges and station buildings with the region's Bath stone architectural tradition.

The railway approaches toward Box Tunnel carried trains eastward from Bath on the completed main line.

The viaduct carried regular railway traffic once the completed Great Western route opened through the town.

Opening the long Box Tunnel connected Chippenham by rail with Bath and the Bristol section beyond.

Passengers could travel directly from Chippenham to Bristol following completion of the main line.

The completed Great Western line enabled a continuous railway journey between Chippenham and Paddington.

Brunel's completion of the missing Wiltshire works joined the separately operating sections of the railway.

The town ceased to be a temporary terminus and became a through station on the London to Bristol main line.

The route's bridges and structures reflected the generous clearances adopted for Brunel's broad gauge trains.

Stone towers rose above the gorge while work on abutments and chain anchorage structures proceeded.

Work progressed on the foundations and river supports needed for the Thames pedestrian suspension bridge.

The opposing tunnel workings meet with an alignment error of less than two inches and construction is completed.

Box Tunnel opens as the longest railway tunnel in the world at the time.

The complete Great Western Railway route between London and Bristol opens for through services.

Completion of the main line allows continuous railway travel between London and Bristol in about four hours.

Brunel assists the Royal Navy in fitting HMS Rattler with screw propulsion and suitable engines.

The bridge towers, abutments and four anchor tunnels are substantially completed before the project again runs short of money.

The ship's machinery uses a large chain drive to transmit engine power to the screw propeller.

Work began on rebuilding the southern Cumberland Basin entrance to admit larger vessels using Bristol's port.

The Great Western Railway offered merchants a more direct land transport route for goods moving through the Bath area.

The towers abutments and principal anchor tunnels had been substantially completed by 1842.

Masonry towers were built to support the suspension chains and the elevated pedestrian deck.

Work on the original Clifton bridge scheme produces four anchorage tunnels by 1842, alongside the towers and abutments intended to secure the proposed iron chains.

The principal stone piers and abutments of Brunel's original design are substantially complete by 1842, despite the continued absence of a suspended roadway.

Funds are exhausted and construction stops before the chains and roadway can be completed.

Construction stalls because the bridge company lacks the funds needed to complete the chains and roadway.

SS Great Britain is equipped with a six-masted schooner rig designed to reduce the sailing manpower required.

Earlier survey work by Brunel helps shape plans for extending broad-gauge railway communication from Exeter toward Plymouth.

Brunel developed a large wrought iron caisson arrangement to increase the usable length of the improved entrance lock.

The Bath section became part of the established London to Bristol route serving passengers and freight.

Construction slowed dramatically when available capital proved insufficient to complete the deck and ironwork.

Workers installed or prepared the massive iron links required to suspend the bridge across the river.

With the masonry largely finished, the Clifton bridge project still requires roughly thirty thousand pounds for remaining ironwork, a shortfall that prevents completion of the crossing.

The Great Western Railway works open at New Swindon and become a major centre for locomotive engineering.

The Thames Tunnel opens to pedestrians after eighteen years of construction begun under Marc and Isambard Brunel.

Brunel accidentally inhales a half-sovereign coin and later designs equipment to help remove it.

SS Great Britain is launched as the largest ship in the world and a pioneering iron screw steamship.

Prince Albert attends the public launch of SS Great Britain in Bristol's Floating Harbour.

Brunel recommends atmospheric propulsion for the South Devon Railway, expecting savings and greater freedom in gradients and curves.

The rebuilt southern entrance was planned to accommodate larger steamships than the earlier Bristol dock entrance.

Construction progressed on the walkway suspended from the large iron chains over the Thames.

SS Great Britain is completed for service but remains delayed by limitations in Bristol Harbour.

Parliament authorises the South Devon Railway, enabling Brunel's route from Exeter toward Plymouth to proceed.

SS Great Britain finally leaves Bristol Floating Harbour after modifications are made to the harbour locks.

Brunel is elected to the council of the Institution of Civil Engineers.

Contracts are placed for stationary engines and equipment needed to operate Brunel's atmospheric railway system.

Its chains are later reused to complete the Clifton Suspension Bridge.

Completes the Hungerford Suspension Bridge across the Thames.

Brunel's entrance lock adopted an innovative single leaf caisson closure that maximised usable chamber dimensions.

Additional operations made the Avon valley an important through corridor in the Great Western system.

The bridge's standing towers showed the project's progress but the span still lacked its suspended roadway.

Brunel's suspension bridge opened for pedestrians between Hungerford Market and the southern Thames bank.

Users of the new crossing paid tolls to travel across Brunel's suspended Thames walkway.

The bridge improved pedestrian access across the Thames between the market district and the south bank.

SS Great Britain lost propeller blades during her first homeward Atlantic passage and relied on sail power to return to Liverpool.

SS Great Britain is completed and prepared for transatlantic passenger service.

SS Great Britain departs Liverpool for New York on her first transatlantic voyage.

SS Great Britain reaches New York after becoming the first iron steamship to cross the Atlantic Ocean.

The ship designed by Brunel reached New York on its inaugural Atlantic passage after departing Liverpool in July.

The new screw steamship departed New York for Liverpool on its first homeward passenger voyage.

Great Britain completed its inaugural return crossing and arrived in Liverpool after sailing from New York.

Great Britain began another westbound service when it left Liverpool for New York in late September.

Great Britain reached New York on its second westbound commercial voyage of the year.

The steamship sailed from New York for Liverpool on a further return crossing with a small passenger complement.

Great Britain arrived back at Liverpool after the late October departure from New York.

Brunel defends the Great Western broad gauge as Parliament regulates the gauges permitted on future railways.

SS Great Britain completes two transatlantic round trips during her second season of passenger service.

The owners faced acute financial strain in connection with the stranding of their other steamship Great Britain.

Great Britain sailed west from Liverpool in May on another scheduled crossing to New York.

The first South Devon section opens with conventional locomotives while the atmospheric equipment is still being installed.

Great Britain arrived at New York after its spring voyage from Liverpool.

The ship embarked on a June homeward crossing from New York to Liverpool.

Great Britain completed its June Atlantic return and reached Liverpool.

Great Britain departed Liverpool on another scheduled westbound voyage during July.

Great Britain reached New York on its July voyage while still operating on the North Atlantic route.

SS Great Britain runs aground in Dundrum Bay during a transatlantic voyage.

The South Devon Railway extends from Teignmouth to Newton while Brunel continues preparing atmospheric traction.

The Great Western Steamship Company sold its original paddle steamer to the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company in April 1847.

After the sale, Great Western entered Royal Mail Steam Packet Company service linking Britain with the West Indies.

The first piston carriage is delivered and makes an initial atmospheric test run from Exeter.

Brunel and Jacob Samuda take part in an early test journey that exposes weaknesses in pumps and traction pipes.

An atmospheric-powered train hauls eleven goods wagons on the South Devon Railway during experimental running.

SS Great Britain is refloated after remaining stranded in Dundrum Bay for nearly a year.

Brunel's atmospheric railway opens to Teignmouth using stationary engines and vacuum pipes for propulsion.

Regular passenger services begin using atmospheric propulsion between Exeter and Teignmouth.

The relatively level Exeter-to-Newton section uses fifteen-inch traction pipes to propel atmospheric trains.

A Brunel-designed viaduct opens on the South Devon route as part of the extension toward Plymouth.

Brunel plans larger traction pipes for the steeper section beyond Newton where greater pulling force is required.

A Brunel-designed elliptical railway overbridge is completed for the South Devon Railway near Plympton.

Early work begins on Brunel's proposed railway crossing of the River Tamar before the project is later restarted.

Atmospheric railway services reach Newton Abbot as Brunel continues testing the experimental system.

Atmospheric passenger working extends from Teignmouth to Newton on Brunel's South Devon system.

All scheduled trains between Exeter and Newton temporarily operate using Brunel's atmospheric traction system.

Brunel launches a survey cylinder into the River Tamar to investigate foundations for the future bridge.

The atmospheric railway closes after persistent leakage and high maintenance costs make it impractical.

Persistent leakage, unreliable equipment and high operating costs lead to abandonment of atmospheric traction on the South Devon Railway.

Designs a wrought-iron swing bridge for Bristol Harbour.

Begins work on the railway bridge across the River Wye at Chepstow.

Brunel develops tubular iron supports for the railway crossing of the River Wye at Chepstow.

The bridge forms part of Brunel's improvements to the entrance locks.

Designs the wrought-iron railway bridge carrying the Windsor branch over the Thames.

Brunel develops a wrought-iron bow-and-string railway crossing over the Thames for the Windsor branch.

The bow-and-string design anticipates later work at Saltash.

The tubular design influences Brunel's later Royal Albert Bridge.

Brunel substituted a wrought iron swing bridge for the rolling bridge originally considered for the improved entrance lock.

Brunel's father and engineering mentor Marc Isambard Brunel dies.

The Brunel Swivel Bridge is completed as part of improvements to the locks at Bristol Harbour.

Brunel becomes a vice-president of the Institution of Civil Engineers.

Brunel's swivelling iron bridge was completed over the entrance lock at Cumberland Basin during the autumn.

The enlarged entrance and its new bridge provided more practical access for the growing steamship traffic at Bristol.

The former Atlantic liner was sold to new interests for a change of service toward Australian passenger voyages.

The cost of recovering SS Great Britain after her 1846 grounding placed severe financial pressure on the original Great Western Steamship Company.

Gibbs Bright and Company bought SS Great Britain in 1850 and prepared the former Atlantic steamship for the growing Australia emigrant trade.

Material intended for the unfinished Clifton bridge is disposed of after the project loses its remaining construction funds.

Brunel is ordered to suspend the unfinished bridge works and sell materials and plant to satisfy creditors.

Financial problems forced the project's managers to halt work and seek ways to settle outstanding liabilities.

Brunel prepared a scheme for replacing the temporary terminus with a monumental iron roofed passenger station.

The ship underwent substantial preparation to serve the growing demand for passage to Australia.

Refitting SS Great Britain for the emigrant trade included a substantial deckhouse that provided more accommodation for long voyages.

Creditors direct Brunel to halt remaining Clifton bridge work and dispose of materials and plant in October 1851 as the undertaking struggles with its unpaid obligations.

Brunel presents preliminary plans for rebuilding Paddington as a grand permanent railway terminus.

Brunel arrives with a large workforce during a bitter contractor dispute at Mickleton Tunnel, prompting local magistrates to intervene.

Brunel completes the tubular railway bridge over the River Wye at Chepstow.

Brunel develops the concept of an exceptionally large steamship able to reach distant destinations without refuelling.

Brunel employs wrought-iron plate girders for approach spans and decking at the Chepstow railway bridge.

The Chepstow railway bridge uses Brunel's distinctive large inverted-W tubular girder over the River Wye.

Brunel develops a huge steamship intended to reach distant destinations without repeatedly stopping to take on coal.

Brunel developed plans for a steamship large enough to travel immense distances without frequent coaling stops.

The ship was fitted to accommodate substantially more travellers for its long voyages to Australia.

The Australian refit incorporated a propeller that could be raised to reduce resistance when sailing under wind power.

The former transatlantic liner received a three masted sailing arrangement suited to its longer Australian service.

During the 1851 to 1852 conversion SS Great Britain gained passenger accommodation for roughly 730 travellers serving the Australian emigrant route.

SS Great Britain was adapted to combine steam with ocean sailing, allowing her propeller arrangement to reduce resistance when winds were favourable.

The Great Western Railway opens its Birmingham station at Snow Hill.

Brunel designs the permanent station with architectural detailing undertaken by Matthew Digby Wyatt.

Brunel finalises the distinctive lenticular truss design for the railway bridge across the River Tamar.

The Great Eastern is designed with both paddle wheels and a screw propeller driven by separate machinery.

Brunel's Great Eastern design uses a double iron hull to provide exceptional structural strength and internal subdivision.

Brunel's broad-gauge engineering links major South Wales industrial routes with the wider Great Western system.

Project materials and equipment were sold as the original construction effort came to an end.

The first construction programme stopped without completion of the bridge across the gorge.

Brunel specified both side paddle wheels and a screw propeller to power his exceptionally large iron steamship.

The vessel's structural scheme used a cellular double iron hull to increase strength and resistance to damage.

The new station's broad train shed incorporated extensive wrought iron supports and glazed roof areas.

A refit of SS Great Britain after her first voyage to Australia included installation of a two blade screw propeller and changes to her sailing rig.

Iron chains originally acquired for the unfinished Clifton project are sold and subsequently used in Brunel's Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash after funding for Clifton collapses.

The Great Western Railway approves Brunel's plans for a grand permanent terminus at Paddington.

Construction of the Clifton Suspension Bridge is completely abandoned.

The unfinished project remains dormant when its statutory time limit expires.

The foundation for a Cornish-side pier of the Royal Albert Bridge is formally laid at Saltash.

Brunel submits designs for floating gun batteries intended for use during the Crimean War.

Because of the ship's enormous length and the narrow Thames, Brunel plans to launch Great Eastern sideways.

Major construction restarts on the Tamar railway bridge after the earlier preliminary phase.

Brunel chose a sideways launching system because the vessel was too long for a conventional end launch into the Thames.

Brunel's permanent station began handling railway services as work on its great roof continued.

The first Great Western Railway service departs from Brunel's new Paddington Station before completion of the roof.

Construction begins on Brunel's Royal Albert Bridge across the River Tamar between Devon and Cornwall.

The keel of SS Great Eastern is laid at John Scott Russell's shipyard in Millwall.

Brunel's permanent Paddington Station formally opens with a three-span wrought-iron and glazed train shed.

The giant steamship is designed with five funnels serving its extensive steam machinery.

The modular wards include dedicated washing, bathing and sanitary facilities rather than relying on improvised arrangements.

Brunel incorporates systematic drainage and sewerage into the hospital plan to improve sanitation.

Brunel develops a standard hospital unit divided into two twenty-five-bed wards for rapid prefabricated construction.

Standardised timber and iron components are manufactured in Britain for shipment to the Dardanelles site.

A small railway is incorporated into the site plan to move stores and patients from the landing jetty toward the hospital.

Purpose-built kitchens are positioned to serve groups of hospital wards efficiently.

Dedicated laundries are included in the prefabricated complex and connected with the hospital's drainage arrangements.

Brunel's prefabricated layout allows the hospital to expand rapidly as additional ward buildings are shipped and assembled.

Brunel develops a large modular plan capable of accommodating roughly one thousand military patients.

The hospital design includes planned ventilation so fresh air can be distributed through the prefabricated ward buildings.

Designs a prefabricated hospital for wounded soldiers.

Brunel designed extensive internal compartments as part of the ship's unusually advanced damage control arrangements.

The British government employed Great Western as a troop transport during the Crimean War after her civilian mail service.

The War Office asks Brunel to design a prefabricated military hospital for the Crimean War.

Brunel completes his modular hospital design six days after receiving the commission.

The prefabricated Renkioi Hospital is assembled and prepared to receive British military patients.

The central river pier is completed to the stage needed for erection of its upper iron support structure.

Work continues after disruption caused by John Scott Russell's financial difficulties and bankruptcy.

Financial arrangements were altered to enable continued construction after the contractor's difficulties.

Great Western was withdrawn and broken up on the Thames in 1856 after nearly two decades of service.

Work on SS Great Eastern stops temporarily after John Scott Russell's shipbuilding business becomes bankrupt.

Brunel prepares heavy chains and hydraulic equipment for the difficult sideways launch of the enormous ship.

The first sideways launching attempt failed and the operation caused a fatal accident among the workers.

Engineers adjusted the rams and chains intended to move the heavy ship sideways toward the Thames.

The first great main-span truss is floated into position on barges before being raised above the river.

Tugs, naval vessels and hundreds of workers manoeuvre the first main truss through the river into alignment with its piers.

Robert Howlett photographs Brunel standing before the launching chains of SS Great Eastern.

The first attempt to launch SS Great Eastern sideways ends in failure and the death of a worker.

After prolonged and difficult launch attempts the huge steamship entered the water in January.

SS Great Eastern is finally floated after repeated and costly launching attempts.

Hydraulic jacks lift the first main truss to its final height about one hundred feet above the water.

The second main span is floated into the Tamar to complete the paired crossing arrangement.

The crossing marks completion of one of his final major bridge projects.

Completion of the Tamar crossing allows the Cornwall Railway to connect directly with the South Devon broad-gauge network.

Crosses the completed Royal Albert Bridge while seriously ill.

The completed bridge is recorded as costing under two hundred and twenty-five thousand pounds.

The Cornish portal carries the prominent inscription 'I K BRUNEL ENGINEER 1859' as part of the completed bridge.

The completed bridge uses two principal spans of about 135 metres each across the navigable Tamar.

The bridge provides the high navigation clearance demanded by the Admiralty while carrying the railway across the Tamar.

Seventeen approach spans connect Brunel's two main river spans with the railway on both banks.

The structure becomes one of Brunel's rare surviving iron bridges.

Completes the combined road, rail and canal crossing known as Windmill Bridge.

Brunel died before the suspension bridge designed under his direction could carry passengers across the Avon Gorge.

Engineers readied the vessel's steam machinery ahead of its first substantial sea trials.

Brunel became gravely ill shortly before the immense vessel he had designed undertook sea trials.

Brunel combines tubular compression arches with suspension chains to create the bridge's distinctive bowstring structural system.

A South Devon locomotive makes the first test crossing of Brunel's Royal Albert Bridge.

The Royal Albert Bridge passes its official Board of Trade inspection and load tests.

Prince Albert formally opens the Royal Albert Bridge, although illness prevents Brunel from attending.

Public railway services begin across the Royal Albert Bridge as the Cornwall Railway opens through Saltash.

Brunel suffers a severe stroke shortly before the first sea trials of SS Great Eastern.

Isambard Kingdom Brunel dies at the age of fifty-three after a career transforming railways, bridges, tunnels and ships.

Chains from Brunel's dismantled Hungerford Suspension Bridge are purchased for use in completing the Clifton bridge.

The Great Western became an important early example of using large purpose built steamships for regular Atlantic travel.

Construction restarts under a revised design by William Henry Barlow and John Hawkshaw.

The completed structure is tested by placing about five hundred tons of stone across the bridge deck.

The Clifton Suspension Bridge opens to the public as a memorial to Brunel five years after his death.

The iron ship designed by Brunel made its final return to Liverpool from Australian passenger service and was laid up.

Commercial owners purchased Great Britain for a new working life as a cargo carrying sailing ship.

The vessel was converted to sail only service and its steam machinery was removed for cargo operations.

Great Britain entered sailing ship service transporting coal around Cape Horn toward San Francisco.

The vessel served the transoceanic cargo trade by returning with grain after delivering coal to California.

A violent storm damaged Great Britain and stripped away masts during an attempted cargo voyage around Cape Horn.

After storm damage Great Britain reached the Falkland Islands rather than continuing its planned cargo voyage.

Damage sustained near Cape Horn ended the vessel career as a seagoing cargo ship.

Great Britain entered a prolonged period of use as a stationary storage hulk at Port Stanley.

Great Britain was deliberately settled in shallow water at Sparrow Cove after years of work as a storage hulk.