He is thought to have been born in Carmarthen, south Wales, where he became employed by noted architect and planner John Nash – an association which was to last some 40 years.
That same year, Nash was approached by Thomas Homer to join a venture to construct a canal across north central London.
Morgan, again, became responsible for the project's details, his plans formed the basis for the Regent's Canal Act passed by Parliament in 1812 and he was subsequently appointed the company’s engineer.
Although not a civil engineer of anything like the stature of contemporaries such as Thomas Telford, Morgan rose to the challenge of designing and supervising bridges, tunnels, basins and docks.
Perhaps his most notable achievements were the Maida Hill and Islington tunnels – the latter was the longest on the canal, and when Telford himself was invited to inspect it in 1818, he opined: "materials and workmanship excellent, and its direction perfectly straight".