#charles pearson

[livesunique]

Pitshill House, Parish of Tillington, West sussex, England,

Simon Johnson Garden & Landscape Design,

Christopher Smallwod & Giles Quarme & Associates Architects

[officialjanerusselltribute]

Charles Pearson’s unique artwork of Jane Russell, circa 1952.

Original Photo Caption:

CHARLES PEARSON IS SHOWN HERE PUTTING FINISHING TOUCHES TO A METAL PORTRAIT OF ACTRESS JANE RUSSELL.  THE GLENDALE, CALIF., ARTIST HAS RECENTLY PERFECTED A NEW FORM OF ART WHICH IS A COMBINATION OF BAS-RELIEF ON THIN COPPER AND AIRBRUSH PAINTING WITH SPECIAL PIGMENTS HE DEVELOPED TO ADHERE TO THE FINISHED METAL PORTRAIT. 

[autodidact-adventures]

100 Documents: First Underground Train System (1854-63)

By the 1850′s, London had a population of over 2.5 million.  It was the world’s richest city - and one of the most crowded.  Over 250,000 people used its roads each day, and horses left enormous amounts of droppings.  The traffic was a nightmare.

Charles Pearson (1793-1862) was born and lived in London.  He entered public service in 1816, and throughout his life was engaged in various social causes.  He was old enough to remember London before the Industrial Revolution, and he wanted to clear its streets.

Railroads were still quite new.  The first locomotive-driven railway between cities, the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, had only been around since 1830.  In 1845. Pearson (who was now a solicitor for the City of London) began thinking up a new smokeless public rail transportation system for the future.

In 1854, he wrote a research report that blamed much of London’s overcrowding on the poor traffic control of the increasing “migratory population”.  On August 7th, he helped to gain Royal Assent for the North Metropolitan Railway Act, which would lead to the opening of the first underground train system.

Pearson also worked out the financing scheme for the construction of the Metropolitan Railway, which would go north-west from the financial heart of the city, and cost about £1 million.

Constructing the underground railway was done with various methods.  Some sections were tunnelled beneath the city.  For other sections, the existing above-ground structures were levelled, and a deep trench was dug for the rail bed (later covered up again, so buildings could be built above it in the future.)

There were a number of accidents, collapses, floods, and other mishaps during the construction.  But by 1861, it was mostly finished, and the first trial run was carried out.

In May 1862, the first trial run over the entire railway line was carried out.  William Gladstone (Chancellor of the Exchequer) was one of the passengers.

Pearson died in September 1862 of dropsy, so was unfortunately not able to see the completion of the project.  On January 9th, 1863, the Metropolitan Railway had its opening ceremony, and on the 10th, it opened to the public.  It used steam locomotives, which pulled gas-lit carriages between Paddington and Farringdon Street.

The Metropolitan Railway was a huge success.  During its first year, it carried 9.5 million passengers; during 1864, 12 million passengers.

Illustrations of the Metropolitan Railway’s stations in the London Illustrated News, December 1862.

[frimleyblogger]

Sir Horace Jones

One man who can fairly claim to have put his stamp on the City of London and yet who is barely remembered is Sir Horace Jones. During his tenure as City Surveyor, a post he held from 1864 until his death in 1888, he was responsible for designing three of the capital’s most distinctive markets. The first was Smithfield Market, a huge and distinctive building with its colourful ironwork, which…

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[frimleyblogger]

Charles Pearson

The phenomenal growth of London in the 19th century brought with it many problems, not least the ever present issue of traffic congestion. Charles Pearson, solicitor to the City of London, was one man who exercised his mind on the problem, issuing a pamphlet in 1845 entitled “Trains in Drains”, proposing a railway running underground from King’s Cross to Holborn, powered by air pressure. It was…

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[agentpalmer]

A Book Review of Preston Tucker A Biography: The Indomitable Tin Goose by Charles T. Pearson

I saw my first Tucker at the America On Wheels Museum in Allentown, Pa., a few years ago. With just that taste, I found a thirst for more knowledge of this mesmerizing car, and I'm not what you would call a car guy.

This lead me to a the movie directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Jeff Bridges as Preston Tucker in Tucker: The Man and His Dream. But the movie wasn't enough, and I later ended up receiving Preston Tucker A Biography: The Indomitable Tin Goose by Charles T. Pearson as a gift from my family.

Read about the book...

[collincountymagazine]

Frisco ISD speeding up construction on new elementary

Frisco ISD speeding up construction on new elementary

The Frisco ISD Board of Trustees voted Monday evening to accelerate construction of a new elementary school to relieve Ashley Elementary in the northeast portion of the District.

Construction will now begin to ensure the campus is complete for the first day of school next fall.

The new school will be built on a site along Independence Parkway, across the street and just south of Independence High…

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