Adams' Building Construction
Henry Adams
Hardback £58.00 $116.00
Publication date 6 May 2011
632 pages
2284 illustrations
ISBN 978 1 873394 93 9
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Henry Adams' book on Building Construction is considered one of the finest text books of the Edwardian era. First published in 1906, this reprint of the 1912 edition is an ideal reference offering invaluable information on traditional construction techniques. The book is copiously illustrated with the author’s own excellent drawings.
From the new introduction by James Campbell:
Henry Adams’ Building Construction was first published in 1906. It was reprinted several times and revised in 1912 with the addition of 24 pages on reinforced concrete. Beautifully illustrated with over 2,300 engravings and twelve tinted plates, it is reprinted here, unabridged, for the first time in nearly one hundred years.
Adams’ work sits comfortably alongside the other great construction books of the period: Rivingtons (also facsimiled by Donhead) and Mitchell’s. The latter two were actually slightly earlier: Rivingtons had already reached its fifth edition by 1906, and Mitchell’s was in its seventh. Nevertheless Adams was hugely popular, selling over 40,000 copies in its first decade. There seems to be little doubt that its great advantage over its rivals was its format: while the others consisted of several volumes, Adams covered everything in a single one. As such it was more popular with students of building construction preparing for their exams and no doubt they kept it at their side for reference throughout their working lives.
Although a great deal has changed in building technology since 1906, there is still much to learn from this volume. Of course it will be particularly useful to those who own a building of the period or who are professionals charged with looking after such buildings. But for everyone it provides an invaluable insight into the thinking of the time and an extraordinary snapshot of building in the Edwardian era. Its great benefit is its clarity.
Introduction v Timbers used in building construction v Iron and steel used in building construction v Bricks and brickmaking v Foundations v Brickwork v Masonry v Limes, mortars and cements v Carpentry and joinery v Roof coverings and roof glazing v Iron, steel and fireproof construction v Staircases and iron and stone steps v Bridges v Plumbers’ work, drainage and sanitary fittings v Warming, ventilating, electric wiring, etc v Paint and painting v Stress diagrams for roofs v Strength of beams and girders v Strength of trussed beams and braced girders v Struts, stanchions, and arched ribs v Stability of walls v Architecture: notes and examples v Reinforced concrete.
Henry Adams was born in Limehouse in London on 24 March 1846. He began work as a clerk in his father’s office at the coal and goods department of the North London Railway Company. A year later, in July 1862, he moved to the locomotive department of the London Railway Company at Bow to work as an apprentice under his uncle William Adams, who was at that time the locomotive superintendent. In 1865 he moved on to become the manager of outside works for William Armstrong Limited, supervising the construction and installation of their products (cranes, hoists, lifts, bridges, lock gates and so on) in docks, warehouses, hotels, naval vessels and railway stations all over London. Henry’s father died in 1877 and Henry took over the family business as an independent civil engineer.
As his professional life flourished in the 1880s, Henry Adams became increasingly involved in joining and running professional societies. He had been a student member of the Institution of Civil Engineers since 1868 but it was not until 1883 that he became a full member, by which time he had been running his own consultancy for a number of years. Almost immediately he was in quick succession elected a member of the Civil and Mechanical Engineers Society (1883), a member of Council in 1886, Vice President in 1887 and President in 1889. He was elected a member of the Society of Engineers in December 1882, Vice President in 1887 and President in 1887. He was made the President of the Institute of Sanitary Engineers in 1908 and served on its Council and Committee until he was in his 80s.
Henry Adams was a member of the Society of Architects, becoming a Council member in 1886 and elected its President in 1893. As a consequence of this association, when the Society of Architects was subsumed into the Royal Institute of British Architects, he was elected an honorary Fellow. Henry formally retired on 31 March 1928, and died peacefully in his sleep on 13 August 1935, leaving behind a large family and a mass of papers and publications from a lifetime of hard work and dedication.
The value of all of these contemporary building books is that they explain how buildings were constructed in their day. That is essential knowledge for anyone involved with the alteration and repair of old buildings. Many of the period details one would not wish to replicate today, but that in no way detracts from its value...
Conservation practitioners build up their own libraries of construction books, and they are extremely valuable resources. If one had to choose a text which deals comprehensively with late nineteenth and early twentieth century construction, Adams would be a strong contender.
Journal of Architectural Conservation
The text is clearly written and includes sufficient detail to provide a good level of understanding. Much of the text is in the form of a commentary on the drawings, which are fundamental to the success of this work as a reference book. Taken as a whole, the text gives an interesting flavour of construction in the early twentieth century with regard to methods, materials, resources and calculations... Whilst being very detailed, the writing is remarkably easy to understand.
I would recommend this book to anyone requiring a well-ilustrated and interesting reference source on Edwardian construction, either for studies in historic building construction or the repair and maintenance of buildings from that period.
CHS Magazine
Fantastic binding and wonderful.... wonderful contents. I continually search book/charity shops for early prints of building books such as Mitchells etc as I find they are fantastic research documents that assist me in my profession as a chartered building surveyor. This book is the complete works of Shakespeare on building.
Maurice Chinnick, Chartered Building Surveyor