William Henry Grahame
William Henry Grahame (1858-1895)
1895 Obituary [1]
WILLIAM HENRY GRAHAME was born on the 3rd of April, 1858.
After serving an apprenticeship to a mechanical engineer, he entered in 1879 the service of the Public Works Department of New Zealand as a draughtsman and computer.
He was next engaged, from 1882 to 1885, in assisting Mr. Alfred Atkins in the design and construction of railway, road and bridge work in that colony, and then acted for about twelve months as contractor’s agent on the Wellington-Manawatu Railway.
In January, 1887, Mr. Grahame was placed in charge, by the contractors, of the construction of a short section of the New Zealand Midland Railway, and in April, 1889, he was appointed an Assistant Engineer on the Company’s staff. In that capacity he remained until 1894, when the cessation of the works necessitated a reduction of the staff.
Mr. Grahame then proceeded to Wellington, but unfortunately found much difficulty in obtaining work. After undergoing considerable privation he ultimately secured employment as a draughtsman in the office of Mr. William Ferguson, engineer to the Wellington Harbour Board. His health, however, never very good, had broken down, and on the 8th of May, 1895, he died at Wellington from an acute attack of erysipelas.
Mr. Grahame was elected an Associate Member on the 1st of December, 1891.