Education
As a result, aged 16 he joined Bligh’s engineering works in Limehouse as an apprentice, and then studied at the Mechanics" Institute.
architect engineer civil engineer
As a result, aged 16 he joined Bligh’s engineering works in Limehouse as an apprentice, and then studied at the Mechanics" Institute.
Fascinated by engineering from a young age, while still a boy he submitted a design for a passenger carriage to the London and Greenwich Railway company. His innovation was to place the wheels beneath the carriage as opposed to the side, freeing more room for the passengers. Later in his life, particularly during his travels, Birch produced beautiful watercolour paintings, particularly those of Italy, Egypt and Nubia during his winter of 1874-1875 tour.
He also undertook various projects within the British Empire, travelling to India to advise on the design and construction of the Calcutta to Delhi railway of the East Indian Railway Company.
He also designed the Devon and Somerset Railway, Exmouth docks, Ilfracombe harbour, and West Surrey waterworks. Piers
On his return to England, Eugenius brought his global experiences to bear on the developing English fascination with seaside holidays, specifically the construction of piers.
With the railways now allowing easy and cheap access to the seaside, and the known health benefits of clean air, businessmen in coastal towns were competing against each other to create the longest and most ornate piers to attract the greatest number of tourists. In 1853, a group of Margate businessmen approach Birch to build a pier.
In its design and construction, he brought two innovations:
His time spent in India brought about style innovations which were directly influenced from the continent
As opposed to the then accepted wooden pile hammering to create the pier, Birch fitted screw blades to his iron piles, to create a deeper and far more resilient base support
The result was a stylish and resilient Margate Pier, which survived storms and two world wars until a storm in January 1978, while its foundations survive today despite direct attempts at demolition.
The result was a series of new commissions, which eventually ran to 14 piers in total, the most famous of which is the West Pier, Brighton. His effect on pier construction techniques can be measured in the fact that, from 1862 to 1872, 18 new pleasure piers were built, the majority using screw piling. His last pier was Plymouth, opened in the year he died, 1884.
Margate Pier, Margate (1856-1857)
Aberystwyth Royal Pier (1865) Contractor Journal of Economics Dawson
Eastbourne Pier (1866-1872)
Birnbeck Pier, Weston-super-Mare (1867) (Currently closed to the public)
(1867) Contractor Journal of Economics Dawson
Scarborough North Pier (1866-1869)
Hornsea Pier (1880)
Bournemouth Pier (1880)
Plymouth Pier (1884) with Civil Engineering Daniel Engineer
also
Brighton Aquarium (1869-1872).