Diaries of Sir Daniel Gooch, Baronet – Classic Review

Sir Daniel Gooch was the legendary Locomotive Superintendent during the early years of the Great Western Railway from 1837 to 1864. But his working life started as an apprentice in South Wales at the Tredegar Iron Company under Chief Engineer Thomas Ellis.

The Diaries of Sir Daniel Gooch, Baronet appeared in 1889 published by Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner and Co. Gooch sadly passed away in 1889 a few weeks after completing the manuscript and the diaries appeared posthumously. This is the third in a series of Classic Reviews of nineteenth century books by or about prominent engineers connected with South Wales. The other reviews of a book by George Overton can be found here and a biography of Richard Trevithick here. A download of the work is available free of charge.

The life of Daniel Gooch – more than just locomotives

Following a formal introduction by biographer and poet Sir Theodore Martin the diaries are structured in a purely chronological order. Containing few dates, apart from an indication of the year  Chapter 1 relates events in the first 20 years of Gooch’s life until his move to the Great Western Railway in 1837. Four chapters then deal with Gooch’s long and varied career which involved not only railways but the Great Eastern Steamship and transatlantic cable laying expeditions in 1865, 1866 and 1869. The final chapter covers his final years after 1870.

Nineteenth century books can sometimes be a testing experience for today’s reader. Fortunately, Gooch was blessed with strong storytelling skills and a direct style making the work very accessible. Undoubtedly, for the enthusiast of industrial history, his professional life makes this book fascinating, being personally acquainted with the giants of Victorian engineering including Stephensons, senior and junior, and Brunel with whom he had a long association. But he ranges much wider and describes some incredible stories involving the near death of a playmate during a childhood game of ‘hanging’ (!) and a brush with serial murderer William Burke (of Burke and Hare notoriety).

An apprenticeship at Tredegar: a time of near fatal accidents!

The author tells of hair raising incidents including near fatal accidents being suffocated or crushed inside a furnace blast engine and a close shave occurring when a large flywheel broke loose and flew through the roof of the workshop. Combined with nearly plummeting down a mineshaft (being 1834, this is presumably the freshly sunk Ty Trist) and a danger of being shot by troops during his presence at the Merthyr Riots and it was a wonder he survived to play an influential part with the Great Western at all!

In Summary

Daniel Gooch is a good storyteller. Combined with a direct and unfussy style, this results in an engaging and readable autobiography for the modern reader. Personal association with the giants of Victorian engineering make fascinating reading, but Gooch’s observations on moral and societal issues makes it worthwhile for a wider audience.

Note: In consideration of the unique nature of the books in the Classic Reviews I am not giving a Good/Not so Good roundup which is a feature of normal book reviews.

Outline Contents

1. Introductory notice by Sir Theodore Martin
   
2. Early life (1816-1837)
   
3. The Great Western Railway engines and the Broad Gauge (1837-1859)
   
4. The “Great Eastern” steamship and the atlantic cable-laying expedition of 1865 (1860-1865)
   
5. The Atlantic cable-laying expedition of 1866
   
6. The atlantic cable-laying expedition of 1869
   
7. Llater years (1870-1889)

Related reviews

A Description of the Faults or Dykes of the Mineral Basin of South Wales by George Overton
Life of Richard Trevithick with an account of his inventions by Francis Trevithick