William Bridges Adams
| William Bridges Adams | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1797 Woore, Shropshire, England |
| Died | 23 July 1872 Cuthbert House, Broadstairs, Kent, England |
| Occupation | railway engineering |
| Known for | Adams axle and railway fishplate inventions |
William Bridges Adams (1797 – 23 July 1872) was an author, inventor and locomotive engineer. He is best known for his patented Adams axle — a successful radial axle design in use on railways in Britain until the end of steam traction in 1968 — and the railway fishplate. His writings, including English Pleasure Carriages (1837) and Roads and Rails (1862) covered all forms of land transport. Later he became a noted writer on political reform, under the pen name Junius Redivivus (Junius reborn); a reference to a political letter writer of the previous century.
He was born and grew up in Woore, Shropshire, close to Madeley, Staffordshire and was educated at the Madeley School. His father was a son of a yeoman farmer of Woore, who moved to London where he worked his way from a journeyman to master. His principal business was that of supplying leather to coachmakers from a shop in Dean Street, Soho. In due course Adams was apprenticed to the coach making firm of Baxter & Pierce of Long Acre, London. This was a well known firm and during his time with the company Napoleon's travelling carriage was brought there, after the battle of Waterloo, and Bridges Adams made a drawing of it.
In December 1819 he married Elizabeth Place, the daughter of Francis Place, the social reformer. Together they set out on a voyage to find their fortunes in a warmer climate. In 1820 they left for Valparaiso in Chile. In Valparaiso he was employed to manage Lord Cochrane's estate, for a salary of £200 per year. In 1821 he had a son, William Alexander Adams. The family survived the earthquake in Valparaiso of 19 November 1822. Elizabeth died on 8 August 1823, when giving birth to a second child, who also died. Following this tragedy Bridges Adams returned to England, with his son, by a long trek over the Andes to Buenos Aires and by ship back to London, via Falmouth, in 1826. After a further trip to the United States, Bridges Adams settled in London and took a position in the firm of Hobson & Co, Coachmakers.
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