Image courtesy of wikipedia
On Lent's Lane (pedestrian) opposite the Knights of Columbus Hall, Port Hope
Commemoration
“The world of today differs from that of Napoleon Bonaparte more than his world differed from that of Julius Caesar and this change has chiefly been made by engineering.” These were the words of civil engineer Thomas Clarke, a New Englander who came to Port Hope in 1853 to work for the local railway. He married and raised a family here and in the 1860s was a partner in a Port Hope firm that constructed the East and West Blocks of the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa. Clarke then moved to the United States where he pioneered the modern iron viaduct and built massive railway bridges that brought him international acclaim. Clarke is buried in St. John’s Cemetery, Port Hope.
Background
Clarke was born in Newton, Massachusetts. He passed away in New York City. Much of his work was done in the United States. He is one of a number of American engineers who were attracted north by Canada’s railway boom.