Three years ago, Georgia Thompson wondered if the achievements of Black British engineers had been forgotten. Now, she reclaims those narratives.
In October 2021, I wrote a blog about the lack of historic achievements of Black British civil engineers, assuming they must’ve simply been forgotten.
There’s evidence of African people in Roman Britain in the third century, and of Black communities since at least 1500.
One can only assume Black people contributed to some of the roads, bridges and tunnels we see and use today.
Therefore, the question remains: Black excellence isn't new - so where are the UK's examples?
Finding examples close to me
Shortly after releasing the blog, I got a phone call from my uncle in Barbados who wanted to give me some examples.
It turns out (bear with me), that my uncle’s wife’s brother used to go to university with civil engineer David Waboso CBE. And, they had even spent Christmas’ together in warm Barbados!
What are the chances of that?
I was also lucky enough to meet David in October last year at an ICE event.
Talk about the six degrees of separation!
Reclaiming narratives
Black History Month 2024 has the fitting theme of reclaiming narratives.
It's about shining a brighter light on Black stories and our history.
It underscores a commitment to correct historical inaccuracies and showcase the untold success stories and the full complexity of Black heritage.
Black achievements have often been overlooked in history and still are today.
Black history in the UK is very complex. I think that’s part of the reason that finding Black contributions to the profession, industry and country itself can be quite difficult to uncover.
It may just be because nobody has looked in-depth enough, rather than it not being there at all.
Black excellence in engineering
I’ve drawn inspiration from our neighbouring engineering disciplines to demonstrate the reach Black people have had on infrastructure in the UK.
1. Elijah McCoy
To start, the phrase ‘the real McCoy’ comes from a man called Elijah McCoy, born in Canada in 1844.
In 1859 he was sent to Scotland to undertake an apprenticeship and study mechanical engineering at the University of Edinburgh.
An avid inventor, he held over 60 patents, some of which are still being used today.
He invented an automatic lubrication device to allow trains in motion to remain oiled.
To avoid being sold imitations, companies began requesting ‘the real McCoy’.
2. Andrew Watson
Andrew Watson was an engineer and the first Black British international footballer. A man of many talents.
Andrew was the son of a Scottish sugar plantation manager, Peter Miller, and moved to England shortly after his father died in 1869.
After attending King’s College School in Wimbledon, London he moved to Scotland to study natural philosophy, mathematics, civil engineering and mechanics at Glasgow University.
In 1882 he played his first international game for Scotland where he was captain against England in a match in London in 1881.
Scotland won 6-1, still a record home defeat for England to this day.
On top of that, Andrew spent 20 years working on ships and became a qualified engineer.
3. George Edward Bemand
George Edward Bemand was born in Jamaica in 1892 and moved to London in 1908.
Although there’s not a lot of history about him, we know he studied engineering at University College London before joining the army.
It’s possible he was one of the first Black officers to serve in the British Army. He died in battle in 1916.
4. Walt Braithwaite
Walt Braithwaite also born in Jamaica. In 1945, he moved to London and attended Hackney Technical College, working towards a certificate in mechanical engineering.
He ended up working for the world’s largest aerospace company, Boeing.
In 1975, when he was a senior engineer, he was responsible for the development and implementation of computer aided design (CAD) software at Boeing.
Many of us rely on CAD. I can imagine that without the influence of such a large, influential company, such as Boeing, we may not be able to do the impressive things we can do now – such as 4D, models twins and even 3D printing.
Imagine our lives without CAD!
Think about our present heroes
Although Black History Month focuses on historic contributions of Black people in the UK, there are present heroes contributing to our industry.
It’s equally important that we embody the theme to ensure that in 30, 50 or even 100 years, Black stories are being told and remembered.
