James Bolland
James Bolland (1835-1885)
1885 Obituary [1]
JAMES BOLLAND was born in Liverpool on the 27th of January, 1835. His parents having removed to Chester, he was educated at a private school in that city, and at an early age he became a pupil in the office of the late Mr. W. Bragge, at that time the engineer of the Birkenhead, Lancashire, and Cheshire Junction Railway, and for whom he was engaged to about the year 1852, upon the projected Parahiba Railway, Brazil.
In 1853-54, he was the resident engineer during the construction of the Rio de Janeiro Gasworks; and for two years held a similar position under the late Mr. E. B. Webb, M.Inst.C.E., on the Mangaratiba High Road, in the province of Rio de Janeiro. He was afterwards occupied on the preliminary surveys of the Sao Paulo Railway, under Mr. D. M. Fox, M.Inst.C.E.
In 1858-69 he was employed, by the late Mr. W. Marchant, on works of construction (afterwards abandoned) of an inclined-plane railway up the Tijuca Serra, in the neighbourhood of Rio de Janeiro.
In 1860, on the commencement of the construction of the Sao Paulo Railway, he was appointed resident engineer of the Serra section, Mr. James Brunlees, Past-President Inst. C.E., being the Engineer-in-chief, and did important work in laying out that difficult length of line.
He was then engaged, for Mr. E. B. Webb, on the original surveys of the Paraguassu Railway, now the Bahia Central Railway, in the province of Bahia.
During the years 1864-67, in conjunction with Mr. Webb, he made surveys and studies for two lines of railway in the Spanish colonial island of Porto Rico, as well as for irrigation-works, and for waterworks for San Juan, the capital ; but these works were not carried out. Subsequently he was in general practice in Westminster, during which time he was connected with projects for various works in Spain, and was consulting engineer of the Newfoundland Railways.
In 1874 he prepared a comprehensive scheme for an iron-breakwater and harbour at Buenos Ayres, of which Mr. Brunlees was consulting engineer; but the project was not carried out.
He died of congestion of the lungs, on the 30th of March, 1885, after a few days’ illness.
Mr. Bolland had been a Member of the Institution since February 1867.