Panel for Historical Engineering Works (PHEW)

The panel helps to organise groups of civil engineers in the regions who are interested in the history of their profession, and publishes a quarterly newsletter, regional guides and leaflets on the subject. The panel also work with the regions to commemorate structures and engineers by putting up plaques and creating maps to bring these to public attention.

Meet the panel

The Panel for Historical Engineering Works (PHEW) is made up of a variety of industry experts. Find out more about our panel chair and details of the panel's members.

Panel Chair

Gordon Masterton, OBE, HonDEng, HonDTech, BA, MSc, DIC, FREng, FRSE, FICE, FIStructE, FIES

Gordon is a past president of the ICE, IESIS, and former chairman of CIC. He was vice president of Jacobs, vice chairman of RCAHMS and founder of Scottish Engineering Hall of Fame.

Other panel members

The panel identifies historical engineering works that are worthy of recording and, in some cases, preserving for posterity. This information is recorded in a searchable database. Data available includes historical details about the structure and its construction process.

Get the latest from the PHEW newsletter

The Panel for Historical Engineering Works produces a quarterly newsletter, providing stories and updates concerning some of the UK's most important historical structures.

Issue 175

For older issues of the PHEW newsletter, please see the PHEW newsletters library or contact us below.

Historical Engineering Works on Google My Maps

The ICE PHEW and Library and Archives have been using Google My Maps to create interactive maps of historic engineering works.

So far, we've created maps of the engineering works of John Smeaton and John Rennie. Alan Harding, an ICE Associate Member and engineering history enthusiast, has also created a map of Thomas Telford's works.

You can zoom in and out of the maps and click on locations to see a short description, image and links to further information. The maps also work on mobile phones, making it easy to explore historic engineering works wherever you are. 

We hope you enjoy browsing the maps that reveal how intrepid these early engineers were in reaching parts of the UK and Ireland before their own transport projects made it easier to get there. 

We welcome feedback and suggestions for future maps.

The engineering works of John Rennie the elder (1761 to 1821)

We've mapped 26 canals, 28 bridges, 34 harbours and coastal works, and six drainage projects of the pioneering engineer John Rennie. Rennie was one of the leading civil engineers of his time. His sons, George and Sir John Rennie, continued the family's engineering tradition. Sir John served as ICE President from 1845 to 1848.

Go to the map

The engineering works of John Smeaton (1724 to 1792)

John Smeaton is widely regarded as the first person to describe himself as a civil engineer. We've mapped 45 of his surviving canals, drainage works, harbours, bridges, mills and his revolutionary Eddystone Lighthouse. Most of the lighthouse is now rebuilt on Plymouth Hoe.

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The engineering works of Thomas Telford (1757 to 1834) 

The works of the ICE's first president have been mapped by ICE Associate Member Alan Harding and is included here with his kind permission. The map shows Telford's major contribution to connecting the countries of the United Kingdom.

Go to the map