The Colourful Life of an Engineer

The world travels and adventures of a consulting engineer working for Balfour Beatty & Co. (BB) and living in London in the 1920s and 30s make fascinating reading of a bygone era. Harry joined BB in 1924 after 4 years in Mesopotamia, returning on the SS Empress of Canada via Bombay and Vancouver and visiting ten countries on the way. In Hawaii he was in the crater of Mt Kilauea when the volcano erupted and was lucky to escape with his life. He undertook safari surveys in Kenya to assess the hydro-electric potential of the Tana and Maragua rivers for the East African Power and Lighting Company (EAP&L) and became their London manager. In 1929 Harry travelled to Shanghai on the Trans-Siberian Express to submit BB’s bid for the Shanghai Municipal Electricity Dept., returning by ship via Japan and Canada and completing his second journey around the world. He spent several months in Madras in 1929 visiting the site and negotiating a contract for the Pykara Falls hydro-electric scheme, returning via Kenya to attend a Tribunal for EAP&L. His survey of the Government Electrical Installations in Nigeria in 1932 involved travels throughout the country and several weeks enjoying the hospitality in Government House, Lagos. In London Harry produced reports for BB on new power and infrastructure projects in many countries, living in the West Side Country Club in Ealing and making full use of London’s best hotels and restaurants for entertaining friends. He joined the Constitutional Club, went to the latest plays and films in London’s theatres and new cinemas and was an active member of the Royal Geographical Society and the Institution of Civil Engineers. Most weekends were spent in the country at East Bergholt where his father was farming again. There were also visits to the Continent and bachelor weekends with friends in Paris and Le Touquet. After buying his first car, a Clyno Tourer in 1926, he went on weekend outings with friends to fashionable south coast hotels. After 30 years with Balfour Beatty, Harry retired in 1955 at the age of 72.

Victorian Childhood and College Life in Edwardian London
(1883-1907)
- Lott family roots in Flatford - links to Willy Lott’s Cottage
- My grandparents and parental influences
- Childhood in Ashen, Essex, where my father started farming
- Life in the farming villages of East Anglia during my boyhood
- Schooldays in Dorchester and nature field trips
- Appointment as an organist in Dorchester churches
- College life in digs in Edwardian London
- My first job as a tutor to Cyril Skinner
- Assistant engineer on the 1905 Atlantic Cable expedition
- Practical experience at Marshall’s of Gainsborough
- Decision to emigrate
Volume 2
Emigration and the Adventures of a Young Engineer in Canada
(1907-1914)
- Emigration to Canada in 1907
- Life in Montreal and finding a job in testing and inspection
- Inspector of bridge works in New Glasgow and St Casimir
- Inspector of bridge construction on the Red River, Winnipeg
- Toronto, Niagara, and ice-yachting on Lake Ontario in 1909
- Two years in construction camps north-east of Winnipeg
- Inspector of transmission line to Pointe du Bois power plant
- Hunting moose and caribou in Manitoba and Quebec
- Canoe trips on the Winnipeg River and later in Montreal
- Supervision of drilling for a dam on the North Saskatchewan River
- Consulting engineer in Montreal with T. Pringle & Son
- Survey for a hydro-electric scheme on St Maurice River
- Chief designer of a new factory for Kodak in Toronto
- Leaving Canada to join up for World War I in 1914
- Across Canada on return from Mesopotamia in 1924
Volume 3
The Life of a Pioneer and Engineer on the Western Front
(1914-1919)
- Joining the 8th Battalion, Royal Sussex (Pioneer) Regiment
- Training in England and arrival in France, July 1915
- Life and work in the trenches
- The Loos Show - September to October 1915
- Appointment as Captain in ‘B’ Company
- The Somme 1916 and award of the Military Cross
- Transfer to the Royal Engineers
- Commander of No.5 Army Tramway Company
- John English Lott - killed in action - May 1917
- The Battle of Passchendaele - July to Nov 1917
- Wounded and convalescence - Oct 1917 to Feb 1918
- Back to the Somme - the German Spring Offensive
- Controller of Foreways, 5th Army - promotion to Major
- Armistice Day and Spanish Flu - Nov/Dec 1918
- Clearance of the Battle Areas - 1919
Volume 4
Mesopotamia
(1919-1924)
The Story of an Engineer with the British Army of Occupation
- Transfer to Mesopotamia and journey to Baghdad in 1919
- Appointment as Assistant Director of Works in Baghdad
- Visit to Persia for Christmas 1919
- The Arab Revolt, 1920
ix
- Spring and Autumn in Baghdad, 1921
- Deputy Director of RE Services in Basra, 1922
- Engineering projects and a new Chief Engineer, 1923
- Ur of the Chaldees and Babylonian tablets
- The Marsh Arabs and shooting trips in the Marshes
- Social life and staff reductions in Basra, 1923
- My dinners with King Feisal in June 1923
- Inspection flights with the RAF
- Work with Air Marshall Sir John Salmond
- Managing my Arab and Indian workforce
- Farewell to Iraq in February 1924
Volume 5
World Travels and London Life between the Wars
(1924-1933)
- Returning from Iraq around the world in 1924
- In the crater during the eruption of Mt Kilauea, Hawaii
- In Kenya with the East African Power and Light Co. 1924
- Start of my 30 year career with Balfour Beatty in 1925
- London life and visits to the Continent in 1926/27/28
- Princess Nina Mdivani and Charles Huberich
- Safaris in Kenya surveying sites for hydro-electric schemes
- Bidding for the Shanghai Electricity Department
- On the Trans-Siberian Railway and around the world in 1929
- Negotiations with the Madras Government for Pykara Falls
- World Power Conference, Berlin, in June 1930
- Club life and fine dining in London in 1932
- Survey of Government Electrical Installations in Nigeria, 1932
- The end of my first half-century – 1933