Elias Dorning
Elias Dorning (1819-1896)
1896 Obituary [1]
ELIAS DORNING, born on the 25th of January, 1819, was articled to the late Mr. William Benson, of Bury, in 1836.
After serving a pupilage of five years, he was engaged from 1841 to 1843 as Resident Engineer on the Bury Waterworks.
Mr. Dorning then commenced to practise on his own account in Manchester as a civil and mining engineer, surveyor and land agent. He became connected with many large works during the early stages of railway development, including extensive Parliamentary surveys and valuations of properties involved, and rapidly extended his business.
He was associated with Sir Thomas Bouch in the purchase of land for the Eccles, Tyldesley and Wigan branch of the London and South Western Railway, and he performed similar work for the North Union Railway, the Cheshire Lines Committee and the Wirral Railway Company.
He acted as surveyor for the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway until that Company appointed a permanent surveyor on its staff. He again acted for the Company, however, in connection with the purchase of land for the Manchester, Swinton and Hindley line to Wigan.
As a consulting engineer Mr. Dorning acted for the Earl of Derby, the Earl of Sefton, the Earl of Wilton and many other landowners in the north. He was standing arbitrator for the Corporation of Manchester, for which body he purchased 25 miles of land required for the Thirlmere conduit pipe.
He was frequently engaged for other corporations in Lancashire and also as a witness in engineering and compensation cases involving large public and private interests. Mr. Dorning had been sitting for three days as arbiter in a case arising out of the purchase of land by the Liverpool, St. Helen’s and South Lancashire Railway Company, when he was taken ill.
He died at his residence, Pendlebury Cottage, Manchester, on the 18th of July, 1896, at the age of 77. Mr. Dorning was elected a Member on the 6th of December, 1864.
See Also
Sources of Information
- ↑ Institution of Civil Engineers Minutes of the Proceedings