Hubert John Pragnell's Books

The Early History of Railway Tunnels

By: Hubert Pragnell

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The Early History of Railway Tunnels

By: Hubert Pragnell

To the early railway traveller, the prospect of travelling to places in hours rather than days hitherto was an inviting prospect, however a journey was not without its fears as well as excitement. To some, the prospect of travelling through a tunnel without carriage lighting, with smoke permeating the compartment and the confined noise was a horror of the new age. What might happen if we broke down or crashed into another train in the darkness? To others it was exciting, with the light from the footplate flickering against the tunnel walls or spotting the occasional glimpses of light from a ventilation shaft. To the directors of early railway companies, planning a route was governed by expense and the most direct way. Avoiding hills could add miles but tunnelling through them could involve vast expense as the Great Western Railway found at Box and the London and Birmingham at Kilsby. Creating a cutting as an alternative was also costly not only in labour and time, but also in compensation for landowners, who opposed railways on visual and social grounds having seen their land divided by canals. Construction involved millions of bricks or blocks of stone for sufficiently thick walls to withstand collapse. However, the entrance barely seen from the carriage window might be an impressive Italianate arch as at Primrose Hill, or a castellated portal worthy of the Middle Ages as at Bramhope. This book sets out to tell the story of tunnelling in Britain up to about 1870, when it was a question of burrowing through earth and rock with spade and explosive powder, with the constant danger of collapse or flooding leading to injury and death. It uses contemporary accounts, from the dangers of railway travel by Dickens to the excitement of being drawn through the Liverpool Wapping Tunnel by the young composer Mendelssoln. It includes descriptions from early railway company guide books, newspapers and diaries. It also includes numerous photographs and colored architectural elevations from railway archives.

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Page Count

406

Publisher

Pen and Sword Transport

Published Date

ISBN 10

1399049429

ISBN 13

9781399049429

Industrial Britain

An Architectural History

By: Hubert J. Pragnell

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Industrial Britain

An Architectural History

By: Hubert J. Pragnell

A fascinating insight into Britain's industrial past as evidenced by its buildings, richly illustrated with intricate line drawings. Industrial Britain goes far beyond the mills and machine houses of the Industrial Revolution to give an engaging insight into Britain's industrial heritage. It looks at the power stations and monumental bridges of Britain, including the buildings and engineering projects associated with the distribution of manufactured goods – docks, canals, railways and warehouses. The gasworks Temples of mass production The mill Warehouse and manufactory Dock and harbour buildings Water power and water storage Waterways: canals and rivers The railway age Breweries and oast houses Markets and exchanges The twentieth century: industry on greenfield sites It's a story of industrial development, but also a story of its ultimate decline. As manufacturing has been increasingly replaced by services, new uses have been found for at least some of the country's great industrial buildings. Not least as containers for art and heritage, such as the Bankside Power Station (Tate Modern) and Salts Mill. Other buildings featured are still used as originally intended today, such as Smithfield Market in London and the Shepherd Neame brewery in Faversham. Illustrated throughout with over 200 original line drawings, Industrial Britain is a celebration of industrial architecture and its enduring legacy.

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Page Count

576

Publisher

Batsford Books

Published Date

ISBN 10

1849947333

ISBN 13

9781849947336

Britain

A Guide to Architectural Styles from 1066 to the Present Day

By: Hubert Pragnell

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Britain

A Guide to Architectural Styles from 1066 to the Present Day

By: Hubert Pragnell

Designed to encourage exploration, this pocket-sized guidebook to British architecture provides a delightful primer on building styles. It’s packed with informative, charming drawings; presents an outline of how different movements developed; and places each building in its cultural and historical context. The buildings that receive specific attention are Burghley House and Castle Howard.

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Page Count

360

Publisher

Sterling Publishing Company, Inc.

Published Date

ISBN 10

0713487887

ISBN 13

9780713487886

The Stone Gallery Panorama

Lawrence Wright's View of the City of London from St Paul's Cathedral, C. 1948-56

By: Hubert John Pragnell,Patricia Hardy,Elain Harwood

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The Stone Gallery Panorama

Lawrence Wright's View of the City of London from St Paul's Cathedral, C. 1948-56

By: Hubert John Pragnell,Patricia Hardy,Elain Harwood

This book celebrates the work of an artist whose work has been overlooked in recent years and reproduces his most impressive work: a panoramic view from the Stone Gallery of St Paul's Cathedral made between 1948 and 1956. Lawrence Wright's limpid watercolours, predominantly in shades of blue and grey, show the City of London after the devastation of the Second World War, but now in sunshine with bombed sites cleared and ready to be redeveloped in the optimistic new Elizabethan era. Hubert Pragnell describes how artists and photographers during the War had portrayed destruction as it happened in far grittier views. Patricia Hardy's essay on Lawrence Wright's career discusses also the important role of W.F. Grimes, then director of the London Museum, who was determined to preserve records of London at this significant moment for its history and topography. Elain Harwood gives a detailed account of the buildings that rose on the bombed sites, many of which have disappeared in their turn as London continues to develop and change."--Front jacket flap.

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ISBN 10

0902087681

ISBN 13

9780902087682

Book's by Hubert John Pragnell

The Early History of Railway Tunnels

The Early History of Railway Tunnels

Industrial Britain

Industrial Britain

Britain

Britain

The Stone Gallery Panorama

The Stone Gallery Panorama

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