The Newcomen Society
for the study of the history of engineering and technology




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Programme of evening meetings

Birmingham
Manchester
Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Portsmouth
Bristol
Edinburgh / Glasgow

(Meetings resume in October)

Birmingham (Midland) Branch

Meetings are held on the first Wednesday of the month in the Thinktank, the Birmingham Science Museum at Millennium Point, Curzon Street, Birmingham 4. (NB Due to building work this year, the entrance to the car park is now from Curzon Street to the south of the site). Doors open at 6.30pm for the meetings at 7pm. There is a pay-bar which may be serving snacks and drinks in the building before the meeting. Visitors are welcome and admission is free with, from 5.30pm, a small charge for parking on site.

7/10/2009Birmingham Copper and Brass 1851 – 1951 by Vin Callcut (Member).
4/11/2009The Sinking and History of Lea Hall Colliery by Dennis Jackson (Cannock Chase Mining Historical Society).
2/12/2009The History of World War II Liberty Ships by David Aris.
6/01/2010Archaeology and Birmingham’s Industries by Dr Mike Hodder (Birmingham’s Planning Archaeologist).
3/02/2010Boulton, Watt & Wilkinson – the birth of the improved steam engine by Dr Jim Andrew (Member).
3/03/2010William Barlow 1812 – 1902, an Eminent Victorian Engineer by Chris Lewis (Member).
7/04/2010Three Short Papers on Water Management:
- A Polish Canal Incline Plane by Mike Constable (Member)
- The Warwick Siphon by John Brace (Member)
- A Canadian Boat Liftby Dr Jim Andrew (Member).

Newcastle (North Eastern Branch)

Unless otherwise stated, all meetings will be held in the Education Room (adjacent to Reception) of Discovery Museum, Blandford Square, Newcastle upon Tyne and will start at 6.00 pm (refreshments at 5.30pm). Visitors are welcome and admission is free.

15/09/2009 Annual General Meeting followed by: Sir Charles Parsons by John Bolter (Member).
17/11/2009Joint meeting with IMechE, Tyne & Wear, and SLS Newcastle branch: Robert Stephenson – Mechanical Engineer by Dr Michael Bailey (Past President). This meeting will be held in the Great Hall of the Discovery Museum.
27-28 Nov 2010Visit to Tyneside: Tyne and Wear Metro and Seminar on the History of Industrial Development on Tyneside (See Visits).
19/01/2010'A Collector of Nothing' - The J H Holmes collection of historic electric lamps and accessories at Discovery Museum by John Clayson.
16/03/2010The Resurrection of Souter Point Lighthouse and its History by Michael Ennis (Member).

Manchester (North Western Branch)

Unless otherwise stated, meetings are held at the Museum of Science & Industry in Liverpool Road, Manchester and start at 6.30pm. Parking is available on site. Visitors are welcome and admission is free. Members and guests meet beforehand for a meal at a nearby restaurant from 5pm.

29/09/2009Robert Stephenson – Chief Telegrapher? by Dr Neil Barton (Member).
27/10/2009Building Knowledge - British Engineering Design in the late 19th Century by Dr Klaus Stauberman.
24/11/2009Joint meeting with the Manchester Association of Engineers: Dalton’s Manchester – The First Industrial City by Rev Dr Richard Hills (Member).
26/01/2010Robert Angus Smith – Bridging Technology and the Environment by Dr Peter Reed.
23/02/2010Joint meeting with the Manchester Association of Engineers: Chemists in the Railway Industry by Dr John Hudson.
30/03/2010Engineering Innovations in HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, 1845 by William Battersby.

Bristol (Western Branch)

Meetings are held at the Bristol Aeroplane Welfare Association (BAWA), Southmead Road, Filton on the north of Bristol. We have good facilities in the room, the use of the bar next to the room, and there is ample free parking. A location map will appear in the next edition of Western Courier in September. All meetings commence at 7:00pm. Visitors are welcome and admission is free.

15/10/2009History of Pickfords by Ashley Jones.
19/11/2009Presidential Address: 'Days at the Factories' by Professor David Perrett.
21/01/2010Joint meeting with the Bristol Industrial Archaeology Society: Programme to be announced
18/02/2010Bristol Engines before Rolls Royce by Patrick Hassell (Vice Chairman, Rolls Royce Heritage Trust).
18/03/2010Old Bristol Industries on Film by John Penny.
15/04/2010The Western Canal by Ian Broom (Member).

Portsmouth (Southern Branch)

Meetings will be held in Room 0.27 in the Portland Building of the University of Portsmouth commencing at 6.30 p.m. Portland Building is on St James Street off Queen Street, Portsea. Free parking in adjacent University car parks is available from 4.30pm. Visitors are welcome and admission is free.

7/10/2009Portsmouth University Public Lecture: The Battle of the Solent 1545 by Dr Dominic Fontana. To be held at 6:00pm in Portland Building, Room 1.53 (contact events@port.ac.uk or 023 9284 3757 for tickets.)
17/11/2009Development of 21 inch Torpedoes by the RN between 1909 and c 1939 by Mark Brady.
8/12/2009Presidential Address: 'Days at the Factories' by Professor David Perrett.
19/01/2010John Ericsson 1803 – 1889, Engineer Extraordinary by Martin Gregory.
16/02/2010New Kid on the Blocks: Samuel Bentham, the Panopticon Principle and the Portsmouth Block Mills by Katariina Mauranen.
16/03/2010Misconceptions about Civil Engineering Education in the Nineteenth Century by Michael M Chrimes (Member).
20/04/2010Thomas Hawksley 1807 – 1893 – Water Engineer by Dr Bob Otter (Member).
18/05/2010John Penn and Sons – Marine Engineers of Greenwich by Richard Hartree.

Edinburgh / Glasgow (Scotland Branch)

Visitors are welcome and admission is free.

11/11/2009Joint meeting with Panel for Historical Engineering Works: Penmanshiel Tunnel Collapse – Revisited 30 years after the event by Norman Butcher and John Anderson.
Venue: The James Clark Maxwell Foundation, 14 India Street, Edinburgh 5:30pm for 6:15pm.
25/03/2010Joint meeting with Panel for Historical Engineering Works: Thomas Telford in Ireland by Ron Cox.
Venue: Glasgow Caledonian University, Cowcaddens Road, Glasgow, G4 0BA. 5:30pm for 6:15pm.

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