Robert Edward Johnston (1841-1913)
1914 Obituary [1]
ROBERT EDWARD JOHNSTON, son of the late Mr. Walter Johnston, of Ledsham, died suddenly at Birkenhead on the 28th September, 1913, aged 72.
After serving as a pupil and later as an assistant to Mr. George Douglas, he was appointed to succeed him in 1863 as Engineer-in-Chief of the Birkenhead Railway, and in 1866 he assumed charge of the joint lines of the London and North Western and Great Western Railways in the Shrewsbury district.
After an association with these railways extending over 53 years, he retired in December, 1908. During this long tenure of office he carried out a variety of important work, including the construction of a tunnel between Birkenhead Town and Woodside, the widening of the line between Birkenhead and Ledsham, the erection or alteration of a number of stations, the enlargement of Chester Station, and the construction of various branch lines. A notable undertaking was a difficult extension of Shrewsbury Station and approaches, successfully carried out without interruption to the traffic.
He was elected President of the Liverpool Engineering Society in 1892, his address dealing with the development of railways and improvements in their construction and operation.
Mr. Johnston was elected a Member of The Institution on the 5th March, 1867