1896: The Passing of a Civil Engineer Whose Legacy Encompasses a Variety of Transportation Modes and Infrastructure

September 18, 1896

Edward Orpen Moriarty, a civil engineer who had undertaken a wide range of public works projects across the globe, died in the community of Southsea within the city and unitary authority of Portsmouth in southeastern England. He was 71.

Moriarty was born on October 11, 1824, in County Kerry in southwestern Ireland. He earned both his bachelor of arts and master of arts degrees at Trinity College in Dublin. Moriarty subsequently worked for the English firm of Acraman, Morgan and Company, and used his civil engineering skills there to design a large number of steamships that included Avon, Severn, and Little Western. He then returned to Ireland to help build railways in that region of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.       

In 1848, Moriarty left that part of the world for the colony (now state) of New South Wales (NSW) in Australia. Over the next four decades, he made notable contributions to large-scale engineering initiatives in Australia as well as what was then the colony of New Zealand.

The transportation-oriented infrastructure in NSW that Moriarty helped design included the following:

• Mort’s Dock, which had the distinction of being the first dry dock in all of Australia and was built in what became the Sydney suburb of Balmain;
• Sutherland Dock, a dockyard on Cockatoo Island;
• The original version of the Pyrmont Bridge spanning Cockle Bay in Sydney;
• Kiama Light, a lighthouse in the coastal town of Kiama;
• Warden Head Light (also called Ulladulla Lighthouse), a lighthouse on the headland of Warden Head and just south of the town of Ulladulla;
• Wollongong Breakwater Lighthouse (also called Wollongong Harbour Lighthouse), located on the southern breakwater of Wollongong Harbour in the city of Wollongong; and
• Tathra Wharf, located in the seaside town of Tathra.

Moriarty’s personal activities included being a member of the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron, a still-existing yacht club located in what is now North Sydney. After retiring in 1888, Moriarty made his way back to England and spent the remaining years of his life there.

Photo Credit: Public Domain

For more information on Edward Orpen Moriarty, please check out  https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Edward_Orpen_Moriarty and  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Orpen_Moriarty