William Crichton (engineer)
| William Crichton | |
|---|---|
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| Born |
29 November 1827 Leith, Scotland |
| Died | 10 April 1889 (aged 61) Turku, Grand Duchy of Finland |
| Nationality | Scottish |
| Citizenship | British |
| Occupation | engineer |
| Employer |
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| Successor | John Eager |
| Spouse(s) | Annie Elizabeth née Owen |
| Children | Louisa Gifford Elisabeth (b. 1856) George (b. 1858) William (b. 1860) Alexander Owen (b. 1862) Anne Mary (b. 1864) John Allan (b. 1865) Alfred (b. 1868) Rurik (b. 1870) Lilly Vera (b. 1872) James Dunlop (b. 1874) Margaret Jemima (b. 1876) Fanny Julin (b. 1879) |
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William Crichton (29 November 1827 – 10 April 1889) was a Scottish engineer and shipbuilder who spent most of his career in Turku, located in the Grand Duchy of Finland.
Crichton moved to Turku at the age of 23 to lead a steam engine construction project at Cowie and Eriksson, a local engineering company. After two years, he moved to Helsinki to work for Fiskars, but because of the Crimean War he was arrested due to his nationality and transferred to Saint Petersburg. He was soon released with help from family connections and he remained working for Izhorsk Works for eight years.
In 1862, Crichton returned to Turku after receiving an offer to buy half of Cowie & Eriksson Company. The company was renamed W:m Crichton & C:o and under Crichton's leadership it developed into the largest company in Turku. The company built predominantly ships and steam engines and its main customer was the Imperial Russian Navy.
Crichton led the company until his death in 1889. He was survived by twelve children who soon sold the company to investors. Crichton's name remained in use until 1965.
Crichton was born in Leith, Scotland. His father George Crichton was a shipowner, whose company became one of the first steam ship companies in Scotland. Its ships operated between Leith and London. Crichton's mother, née Allan, was also from Leith; her father was a log dealer, whaler and shipowner. He had four brothers and one sister. His older brothers Alexander and Edward studied at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich and were then employed by Scottish engineering companies. The example set by his older brothers inspired Crichton. He studied in Leith until he was ten years old, after which he went on to Hill Street Institution, Edinburgh where he graduated at the age of 14. His father died in 1841. Crichton followed his brother Alexander to Greenock, where he worked as an intern at Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company. After two years he moved to Shotts Iron Company where his brother Edward worked. When this engineering works was closed, Crichton moved to Glasgow where he worked for Robert Napier and Sons as a draftsman. In 1848 he went to sea to work as an engineer on SS Royal Victoria, which operated between London and Granton. During the winter season he studied, and in the following year he worked on SS Isabella Napier. While his brothers Alexander and Edward often worked at different occupations, Crichton's interest was focused on designing and drafting.
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