Robert Bald

Infobox Engineer

---

image_size =
caption = Robert Bald, painted by Sir John Watson Gordon
name = Robert Bald
nationality = Scottish
birth_date = 1776
birth_place = Fife (then Perthshire), Scotland, United Kingdom
death_date = 1861
death_place = Clackmannanshire
education =
spouse =
parents = Alexander Bald
children =
discipline = Civil
Mining
institutions = Royal Society of Edinburgh
Society of Antiquaries of Scotland
Geological Society of London
Institution of Civil Engineers
Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland
practice_name =
significant_projects = Göta Canal
Geological Map for Scotland
significant_design =
significant_awards =

Robert Bald (1776 – 1861) was a surveyor and mining engineer. Born in Culross, Scotland. Bald was one of the earliest and most eminent mining engineers and land surveyors in Scotland.

The son of Alexander Bald (1753 - 1823), colliery agent of Alloa. His brother was Alexander Bald, poet and friend of James Hogg.

His life

As a young man Bald helped Thomas Telford (1757 - 1834) survey the Göta Canal from Lake Mälaren (Stockholm) to the lakes of Vänern and Vättern in central Sweden.

Between 1808 and 1825, Bald published reports (NAS ref. CB27) on the mineral deposits, workings, buildings and drainage at collieries across Scotland. One of Bald’s earliest publications was "A General View of the Coal Trade in Scotland" (1808). Bald worked with his cousin, William Bald (1789 - 1857) the civil engineer and cartographer, between 1829 and 1833 to produce a geological map for Scotland on behalf of the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland.

For much of his life, Bald was employed by the Earl of Mar to manage collieries in Alloa. Together they condemned the practice of employing women and girls underground in the coal mines. 'In 1822 I tried to stop the employment of women and children as coal bearers, but the women had no other work so there was a great deal of hardship.' Together they started Friendly Societies to offer miners the opportunity to save money, they gave a small pension to retired miners, and set up a court system where miners could deal with their problems and settle differences between themselves.

Bald acted as a mentor for the teenaged James Nasmyth, engineer and inventor of the steam hammer, introducing him to noted engineers and taking him on trips to engineering sites. Nasmyth mentions Bald in his autobiography:

“His sound judgment and long practical experience in regard to coal-mining and the various machinery connected with it, rendered him a man of great importance in the northern counties, where his advice was eagerly sought for. Besides his special knowledge, he had a large acquaintance with literature and science. He was bright, lively, and energetic. He was a living record of good stories, and in every circle in which he moved he was the focus of cheerfulness. In fact, there was no greater social favourite in Edinburgh than Robert Bald.” [ [http://www.fullbooks.com/James-Nasmyth-Engineer-An-Autobiography2.html James Nasmyth: Engineer, An Autobiography. - Full Text Free Book (Part 2/8) ] ]

Later in his life, Bald went into partnership with John Geddes as consulting engineers in Edinburgh.

Bibliography

* 'An Enterprising Family: The Balds of Alloa', by Isabel Grant Stewart

* James Nasmyth: Engineer, An Autobiography

* The Emergence of the Professional Manager in the Scottish Coal Industry, 1760-1815, Baron F. Duckham. The Business History Review, Vol. 43, No. 1 (Spring, 1969), pp. 21-38
* A Biographical Dictionary of Civil Engineers in Great Britain and Ireland. A. W. Skempton

External links

* [http://www.iee.org/TheIEE/Locations/SEC/Famous/sts_b.cfm The Institution of Engineering and Technology - Famous Scottish Technologists and Scientists]
* [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=GikBAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=A+General+View+of+the+Coal+Trade+of+Scotland A General View of the Coal Trade of Scotland (1812) by Robert Bald at Google Books]

References

Persondata
NAME=Bald, Robert
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Civil engineer and canal builder.
DATE OF BIRTH=1776
PLACE OF BIRTH=Fife, Scotland
DATE OF DEATH= 1861
PLACE OF DEATH=