John Blackwell

John Blackwell (c. 1775 – 1840) was an English civil engineer, known for his work as superintending engineer of the Kennet and Avon Canal under John Rennie and later as the canal company's resident engineer.

Career Blackwell was employed as an engineer on the Kennet and Avon Canal in 1806, working primarily as site agent on the Caen Hill Flight in Devizes, Wiltshire. While John Rennie designed the flight, it was likely that construction was undertaken by the Kennet and Avon Canal Company and its engineers.

Blackwell was appointed the company's resident engineer on 19 July 1814, with a salary of £300 (plus £50 expenses to cover a horse). The meeting came during Brunel's work on an alternative route to the Black Dog Turnpike near Claverton. The canal company was concerned that the new road may cause the clay hillside to slip into the waterway. Brunel, in return, was disparaging of the canal's upkeep, was dismissive of Blackwell for suggesting a landslide might be caused by the new road, and said that past slips were "considerably assisted by the bad management of the canal". He felt that Blackwell refused to justify his concerns.

In the early 1830s, a huge programme of work was undertaken, including the conversion of numerous turf-sided locks on the Kennet Navigation into brick and masonry lock chambers.

One of Blackwell's later projects was Wilton Water. Initially, Crofton Pumping Station used water from natural springs. In 1836, Blackwell created the spring-fed reservoir to provide a greater water supply. Blackwell's sluices and outfall from the reservoir were given Grade II listed status in 1986.

Personal life Blackwell married Frances "Fanny" Cooper in Burbage, Wiltshire, on 23 August 1808. They had five children—Emma (born in Burbage in 1808), Eliza (born in Great Bedwyn in 1811), Harriet (born in Devizes in 1814),

alt=A stone plaque reading "THIS TABLET IS ERECTED BY THE KENNET AND AVON CANAL COMPANY TO THE MEMORY OF JOHN BLACKWELL, WHO DURING THIRTY-FOUR YEARS SUPERINTENDED THE WORKS OF THE CANAL AS THEIR ENGINEER WITH FIDELITY, VIGILANCE, AND ABILITY" Blackwell died in Hungerford, Berkshire, on 28 September 1840. He was buried in a vault in the churchyard at St Lawrence's Church in the town. A memorial to Blackwell in the church reads:

quote|IN MEMORY OF JOHN BLACKWELL, ESQ. FOR MANY YEARS A RESIDENT OF THIS TOWN, WHO DIED SEPT 28TH 1840, AGED 65 YEARS. AND OF FANNY, HIS WIFE; WHO DIED FEB 15TH 1840, AGED 56 YEARS. THEY DIED AT HUNGERFORD, AND WERE INTERRED IN A VAULT IN THE ADJACENT CHURCHYARD

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