[3] He was educated at the Collegiate School, St Kilda, where he won the gold medal in two consecutive semesters in 1857[4][5] He went on to King's College, London, where he studied engineering and was articled to William Wilson M. Inst, C.E., of Westminster.
[7] His articles having expired, he returned to Australia and in 1864 at age 19 was employed by Peto, Brassey & Betts, building a railway from Ipswich to Grandchester.
[6] In 1871 construction of the northern section of the Overland Telegraph Line was a year behind schedule, so on 3 May Charles Todd's overseer of works, William McMinn, sacked the contractors and sent all their men back to Adelaide.
Whether he made up the lost time is debatable, as Patterson fared no better than his predecessors in the battle with the seasons and distances, finishing his section eight and a half months late.
[1] It was an expensive decision for the South Australian Government, as they not only had the costs incurred by Patterson, but were obliged to pay £11,000 compensation to the original contractors.
[12] He died following a cerebral haemorrhage which happened during a board meeting at Hobart on 21 June 1907,[7] and his remains were buried in Queenborough Cemetery.