William Kirkhouse
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William Kirkhouse (1776 - 1866) was a canal and mining engineer who lived in Neath, South Wales.
He was the son of Bedlington Kirkhouse and grandson of George Kirkhouse, both mining engineers.
George Kirkhouse and his family moved from Tyneside to the Neath area around 1750 to develop the Llansamlet Coalmines and the connecting wagon-ways.
William Kirkhouse was probably responsible for sinking the first deep mine (Big Pit) in South Wales at Bryncoch, near Neath. The mine closed in 1980 and is now a National Museum.
Between 1817 and 1824 Kirkhouse was engineer for the Tennant Canal (Neath & Tennant Canal), initially as an extension of the Glan-Y-Wern Canal, with the intention of linking the Tawe and Neath rivers. Work started in 1817, and the canal entered the River Neath at Red Jacket by 1818. However, barges from the Neath Canal could not cross the river, and so a further extension was started in 1820, to link with the Neath Canal basin at Aberdulais. The extension crosses the river on a 10-arched aqueduct, and the only lock on this section was situated at the south end of the aqueduct. The length of the canal, completed in 1824, was 8 miles, and it was built without an act of Parliament.
This part of the canal included several extensive engineering works. A deep cutting went through an area of quicksand and had to be reinforced with retaining walls and an inverted arch bed. The canal had to cross the River Neath, and this was done on a ten arched masonry and single span cast iron aqeuduct, the aqeuduct also crossed a previously built canal. The canal also crossed the Afon Clydach on a similar two arched aqeuduct.
The canal is still owned by the Coombe-Tennant family today.
Kirkhouse also built several short branch tramways from the Brecon Forest Tramway to the Onllwyn Colliery, and the Glyncorrwg Mineral Railway, which ran from the Neath Canal at Aberdulais to coal levels at Blaen Cregan, featuring seven inclined planes, deep rock cuttings and a masonry causeway.
In 1852 Kirkhouse was still acting as an agent for the Tennant Estate.
He died at the age of 90 at his home, Dulais House, Aberdylais which is in the Vale of Neath.
