Stevenson, Thomas

About the artist

Name

Stevenson, Thomas

Biography

Thomas Stevenson, the father of Robert Louis Stevenson, was born in Edinburgh on 22nd July 1818. He was a civil engineer, who like his father before him, designed lighthouses.

At seventeen Thomas became apprenticed to his father in the family engineering firm, where his growing interest in writing fiction was thoroughly disapproved of by his father. He went on to use his talent in writing however to submit articles to engineering journals and to write books such as "Lighthouse Construction & Illumination".

After his father's retirement Stevenson had continued to research and develop lighthouse illumination and harbour engineering, going on to become a leading authority in the area. The Stevenson's firm advised on the construction of lighthouses as far away as Japan, China and New Zealand. Between 1855-87 he held the post of engineer to the Northern Lighthouse Board. In this role, along with his brother David, he designed and built 28 beacons and 30 lighthouses.

Thomas suffered liver problems from 1885 which eventually led to jaundice. He died on 8th May 1887.

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