Major George Swetenham ( -1878)
1879 Obituary [1]
MAJOR GEORGE SWETENHAM was educated at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, and entered the corps of Royal Engineers on the 7th of April, 1856.
After serving in the mutiny campaign of 1858, on the amalgamation of the three Indian corps of Engineers with that of the Royal army, he joined the Public Works Department, as second grade Assistant Engineer, in January 1859, he being the first officer of the Royal corps who joined the Public Works Department of India.
In April 1865 he attained to t.he rank of Executive Engineer, third grade, and in April 1866 was promoted to the second grade. Up to this date he had been employed chiefly on military buildings at Fyzabad, in Oudh. He was then transferred to Hyderabad (Dekkan), and was in March 1868 raised to first grade Executive Engineer. During these ten years he on several occasions officiated as Superintending Engineer and Secretary to the Resident of Hyderabad in the Public Works Department.
As an Executive Engineer during this period he was wholly employed in the construction of military buildings in the, large cantonments of Secunderabad and Trimulgherry, and was the first to introduce granite, the material now generally used for these buildings. He rendered efficient service to the Government of India, which was on several occasions officially acknowledged.
As a military officer Major Swetenham possessed excellent abilities, being energetic and taking great interest in his work. He was wounded at the capture of Lucknow, and obtained a medal for services during the Indian mutiny, with the clasp for the capture of Lucknow.
Major Swetenham was elected an Associate of the Institution of Civil Engineers on the 23rd of May, 1871. He died of cholera, on the 10th of July, 1858, at Bolarum.