JESSOP. 73 



William, the subject of this memoir, was born at Plymouth. When 

 he had attained the age of sixteen his father died, leaving the 

 guardianship of his family to Smeaton, who thenceforth adopted 

 William as his pupil, determining to bring him up to his own pro- 

 fession. Young Jessop remained with Smeaton for a period of ten 

 years, enjoying, during this the busiest part of Smeaton's active 

 career, many opportunities of acquiring an extensive knowledge of 

 the business of civil engineering. After leaving the service of 

 Smeaton, Mr. Jessop was engaged for several years in improving 

 the navigation of the rivers Aire and Calder, and of the Colder and 

 Hebble in Yorkshire. He was also employed on the river Trent in 

 Nottinghamshire, and he appears to have been principally occupied 

 on these works for some time subsequent to his leaving Smeaton. 



A few years before the retirement of the latter, which took place 

 in 1791, his pupil began to obtain active employment, and we find 

 him about the years 1788 and 1789, reporting on the navigation of 

 the Sussex Ouse, and the drainage of Laughton Level in the same 

 country, being called on, at the same time, by the Commissioners of 

 the Thames and Isis, to advise on the works they had undertaken, 

 and were about to execute, for the improvement of this important 

 navigation. 



In the three following years (1790-2) his professional employment 

 greatly increased. He was now actively engaged in prosecuting 

 various important canals in connection with the great central navi- 

 gation of the Trent. Amongst these were the Cromford Canal, 

 penetrating amongst the mountains of Derbyshire into the rich 

 mineral districts of that wild and romantic country ; the Notting- 

 ham Canal, which connects the Cromford with the Trent at 

 Nottingham; the Loughborough and Leicester navigation, con- 

 necting the Ashby Coalfield with the navigable part of the Soar 

 and with Nottingham, thus opening an important communication 

 with the Trent on the one hand, and with Nottingham and the 

 whole south of England on the other. In addition to this system in 

 connection with the Trent, he projected and commenced at this 

 time the Horncastle navigation, which, besides acting as a valuable 

 drainage for this part of the fens, was productive of great benefit 

 to a large district, by bringing it into communication with the river 

 Witham, which is navigable to the sea in one direction, and in the 

 other through Lincoln to the Trent. 



But a larger and more important work than these last named, 

 which Mr. Jessop was at this period engaged on, was the Grand 

 Junction Canal, which, joining the Oxford Canal at Braunston, in 

 Northamptonshire, connects the whole inland navigation with the 

 metropolis, by means of a comparatively direct line ninety miles 

 in length, traced in a diagonal direction across the two formidable 

 ranges of hills peculiar to the secondary formations of England. 



This canal communicates with the Thames by its main line at 



E 



