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William McWhirter
Edit ProfileEducation
He was apprenticed to his uncle who was a baker.
Career
He went to school at Newton on Ayr Academy. He joined the telegraphic department of the Glasgow and South Western Railway, becoming a divisional inspector. In 1882 he worked for Messrs Norman & Sons, setting up the first electrical lighting at Glasgow Central station.
There were no power stations in Glasgow at the time, and under the arches of the railway viaduct on Argyle Street, a makeshift generator was built from a Robey boiler and engine, with dynamos with copper wire brushes.
A nearby shop was also lit with electricity, by an arc lamp, and this new contraption drew large crowds. In 1884 he formed McWhirter & Company, which opened a works in Govan.
This site made big improvements to the efficiency and commutation of the dynamo. Inventions
In 1883 he patented a combined voltmeter and ammeter, a prototype multimeter.
lieutenant was later manufactured by the General Electric Company.
Institutions
In 1880 he joined the Institution of Electrical Engineers (now the Institution of Engineering and Technology). He was one of the founders of the Scottish Electrical Contractors" Association (now known as SELECT). Research
In research he cooperated with Professor Silvanus P. Thompson, Professor William Edward Ayrton, Professor John Perry, Professor Andrew Jamieson, and the American Frank J. Sprague.
He also worked with Hugo Hirst, 1st Baron Hirst.
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Born
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Died
March 6, 1933 (aged 82) -
Nationality
Scottish