George Furness
George Furness (31 October 1820 – 9 January 1900) was an English Victorian construction engineer and benefactor.
Furness took advantage of this new type of business; from 1842 onwards, he worked on the construction of major railways in the Midlands, Western and Southern counties of England.
He worked on extensive dredging contracts in Italy (Spezia, Ancona, Livorno and Palermo) for the next 30 years of his life.
[3] Halfway through the 19th century, the rapid growth of population and the poor state of public works in London caused high pollution of the River Thames.
In 1856, the Metropolitan Board of Works was formed and was put in charge of constructing London's first sewage system.
Furness bid for the major section of the Thames Embankment (from Westminster to Waterloo Bridge) and won the contract for £520,000.
Despite slow progress created by friction with his partner, problems with materials, and also financial difficulties, his large section of the embankment was complete by 1870.
[2] His other, and somewhat smaller, contract was the Northern Lower Level Sewer Isle of Dogs Branch, in 1865, valued at £75,456.
These were developed, from pasture land, into residential premises, providing houses, roads and drainage to the whole community.
[3] Furness married Sarah Rebecca (1835 – 1902) in his early forties and they moved into the Roundwood House in 1856, an Elizabethan-style mansion, which was originally built around 1836 for Lord Decies.
[5][6] The old Croft House in Great Longstone, Derbyshire (Furness' hometown), continued to remain among their property.
[1][3][7][8] His obituary stated: "In public affairs his tenacity of purpose, liberal views, and ready regard for divergent opinions were as noticeable in his private and professional life.
"[3] In May 1902, Sarah Rebecca, Mary Woodwis, and Matthew Thomas Bladen were all drowned in a boating accident on the Lakes of Killarney, in Ireland.
Only the body of Sarah Rebecca was recovered, and her corpse was brought back to Willesden and buried next to her husband.
George James, Furness' eldest son and only surviving heir, carried on the tradition of his father in Willesden.
