John Smeaton ( 1724 - 1792 )

Birth: Austhorpe, near Leeds, Yorkshire, England (08 June 1724) Death: Austhorpe, Yorkshire (28 October 1792) Burial: In the chancel of Whitkirk parish church, Yorkshire Profession: Engineer Research Field: Civil engineering Career: Employed in the office of his father, an attorney; went to London, gave up law, and entered the service of a scientific instrument maker; later started his own similar business; designed and built the Eddystone Lighthouse (1756-1759) Lord Macclesfield proposed Smeaton for the Royal Society's prestigious Copley Medal for his "Experimental inquiry concerning the powers of water and wind in the moving of Mills" (published in 'Philosophical Transactions' volume 51 1759-1760, pp 100-174) on 22 November 1759.