William Henry Wheeler
William Henry Wheeler (1832-1915) of W. H. Wheeler and Co
Father to William Herbert Wheeler and Ralf Wheeler
1916 Obituary [1]
WILLIAM HENRY WHEELER, born at Hammersmith in 1832, died at Bromley, Kent, on the 20th October, 1915, aged 83.
He was educated at King’s College, London, and was trained under Messrs. Chambers and Parden, Engineers, of London.
In 1861 he was appointed Surveyor to the Boston (Lincs.) Corporation, and 2 years later added to these duties the office of Harbour Engineer.
He retained both these offices until 1905, a period of 44 years, when he retired owing to ill-health.
He also carried on a consulting practice, and was for a number of years Surveyor to the County Justices for main roads and to the Donington Turnpike Trust.
Mr. Wheeler became a recognized authority on the reclamation and drainage of fens and lowlands, improvement of tidal rivers and harbours, littoral action and cognate subjects, and as the author of various treatises and papers. He designed Boston Dock, improved the Witham outfall, and carried out numerous works of sewerage, drainage, embanking and road construction. His services were frequently retained in Parliamentary work and on arbitrations, and he was widely consulted upon engineering schemes within the field which he had made his own.
He was the inventor of an eroder-dredger, for which he received a bronze medal at the St. Louis Exhibition.
He was also awarded a Telford medal and premium for Papers contributed to The Institution.
Mr. Wheeler was elected a Member on the 3rd December, 1867.