Ref.: thisisbath - 11:00 - 10 April 2006
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Remembering the men who built for Brunel
A museum in Bath is holding an exhibition examining the lives of the working men who made Brunel's engineering dreams come true. There are no shortage of iconic monuments to the genius of Britain's greatest Victorian engineer, and every day people in Bath, Wiltshire and the west are reminded of his achievements when they look at the Great Western Railway, the SS Great Britain or Clifton Suspension Bridge.
But the Museum of Bath at Work in Julian Road opened an exhibition last night dedicated to the armies of navvies and contractors who built Brunel's creations.
The Mayor of Bath, Cllr Peter Metcalfe, opened A Railway Landscape, and was shown around the various exhibits, including tools that the thousands of workers used, plans and pictures of the Great Western Railway, and even recordings of the trains that used the tracks.
Museum director Stuart Burroughs said: "Although we hear a great deal about Brunel and his ability, his fame tends to obscure the fact that some of the projects that he was involved in were technological or commercial disasters.
"Due attention should be paid to those thousands of labourers and contractors who made it possible to deliver such projects as the Great Western Railway.
"There were thousands involved, and they worked in armies.
"They lived and died on the construction sites.
"They had a social effect, as well as a geographical one."
The museum is open from 10.30am-5pm, and the exhibition is free with admission to the museum.
Remembering the men who built for Brunel
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dragonryder
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