A plaque commemorating the engineer who designed the first iconic Hammersmith Bridge has been unveiled.
William Tierney Clark was immortalised with a bronze plaque yesterday (June 24) on the promenade in front of new residential development, Fulham Reach with the new bridge in the background.
The engineer and architect, who lived in Hammersmith, designed the first Hammersmith Bridge which was completed in 1827 and was also the first ever suspension bridge across the Thames.
It was replaced by the current bridge in 1887 but the celebrated engineer, who died in 1852, owed a lot to the West Middlesex Waterways Company who let him build the original bridge as it led to him designing the famous Scechenyi Chain Bridge across the Danube in Budapest, Hungary.
The Hungarian ambassador, János Csák, joined Gordon Masterton, past president of the Institution of Civil Engineers who officially unveiled the plaque which was funded by St George, the developers of Fulham Reach.
Hungarian architect, Sandor Vaci, spoke about the importance of Clark’s bridge in the world of engineering. He said: “The plaque has already attracted a lot of attention from people walking along the promenade which is very apt as William Tierney Clark did more than most for the civic health of Hammersmith by providing a waterway for the area. He was strong-minded and fearless and when he was asked to build a bridge across the icy Danube in a country he knew nothing about he simply said why not?”
He added that without Hammersmith Bridge, Hungary would not have a bridge which means so much to them, even appearing in their passports.
