Record

Authorised form of name	Yeoman; Thomas (1708 - 1781)
Dates	1708 - 1781
Nationality	British
Date of birth	1708
Place of death	Castle Street, Leicesterfields, London
Date of death	24 January 1781
Occupation	Surveyor, mechanical engineeer
Activity	Career: Reported on Edward Cave's cotton mill in Northampton, 1742; erected the machinery for the world's first water powered cotton mill beginning operations on the banks of the River Nene at Northampton in 1743; surveyed the River Frome for the Stroudwater Canal schem in 1755. Earliest publicity ad fame from the construction of ventilators and machines for cleaning corn, and from 1743 a fruiend of Rev. Stephen Hales FRs, inventor of ventilators. Yeomasn involved in fitting ventilators into many institutions, such as Northampton General Hospital (17480, Northampton Gaol (1749), also gaols in Shrewsbury, Maidstone, Bedford and Aylesbury, and in various naval properties such as their Haslar Hospital and the prison at Porchester. Also into both houses fo Parliament and the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. In charge of all ventilation arrangements aboard all naval ships, and was appointed Chief Marine Superintendent of the navy. Became involved with inland navigation, surveying the Frome and the River Ivel, the River Lea around Waltham Abbey, and the River Chelmer, the River Stour in Kent, and improving the port of Sandwich in 1765. In 1766 assisted John Smeaton in making a survey of the River Lea., and in 1767 with others he produced the first of four reports on the embankment of the Thames. Elected President of the Society of Civil Engineers in 1771. Surveyed again in 1774 for the Stroudwater Canal Commisisoners, and a third time in 1775 before giving evidence in Parliament.
Membership category	Fellow
Date of election	12/01/1764
Source	Sources: Bulloch's Roll; DNB (MP) References: T E Allibone, 'The Club of the Royal College of Physicians, the Smeatonian Society of Civil Engineers and their Relationship to the Royal Society Club' in NR 1967 vol 22 pp 186-192 Michael Handford 'The Stroudwater Canal' 1979, Alan Sutton Publishing Ltd.
Code	NA8315

Archives associated with this Fellow

RefNo	Title	Date
EC/1763/15	Yeoman, Thomas: certificate of election to the Royal Society

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