Sir Francis Brain (General)

by jimashton , Thursday, July 10, 2008, 07:18 (5979 days ago) @ LOTTABOTTLE

Sir Francis William Thomas Brain, born Hope Mansell 28 Oct 1855, died 31 August 1921 Bristol would have been my 4th cousin 3 times removed. He was the son of Cornelius Brain 1830 & Anne Tommey Brain 1835. Cornelius Brain 1830 being the son of Cornelius Brain 1790 & Ann. Anne Tommey Brain being the daughter of Thomas Brain 1806 & Mary Ann Bennett 1802.

1871 Census Walford
Cornelius Brain 40 Miller Ruardean
Anne T 35 H Mansell
Francis W T 15 H Mansell

1881 Census
Dwelling:
Census Place: (Westbury On Severn) East Dean, Gloucester, England
Source: FHL Film 1341609 PRO Ref RG11 Piece 2522 Folio 70 Page 32
Marr Age Sex Birthplace
Francis W. BRAIN U 25 M Hope Mansell, Hereford, England
Rel: Head
Occ: Mining Engineer (Certificate Of Competence)
Ann T. BRAIN M 45 F Hope Mansell, Hereford, England
Rel: Mother
Occ: Farmers Wife
Benjamin PRICE M 67 M Monmouth, England
Rel: Servant
Occ: Labourer
Ellen PRICE M 67 F Monmouth, England
Rel: Servant
Occ: Dom Servt

1891 Census
RG12/2005/25
Francis W T Brain 36 Colliery Manager
Dorothy A 39 ? Montgomeryshire
Dorothy A 5 East Dean
Margaretta 3 East Dean
+ 3 servants & boarder

1901 Census Westbury on Trym
Francis W T Brain 45 Coal Owner, Electrical Fuse Manager
Civil Engineer Hope Mansell
Dorothy A Brain 49 Montgomery
Dorothy A dtr 15 East Dean
Margeretta P dtr 12 East Dean
Margaretta P Roberts sister in law Dorrington Shropshire
Eliza Watkins 50 Visitor
Emily Hopkins servant 27
Edith Beech 22 servant
Lewis Roberts boarder widower 81

An extract from some of my notes for this obviously very clever man :

Francis William Thomas (Frank) Brain had been associated with the use of electric floodlights on the Severn Bridge in 1879 where they had been used to enable construction work to continue at night to make the best use of the tides. After use on the bridge, the apparatus, consisting of a couple of powerful lamps supplied by a Gramme machine, was re-erected at Trafalgar on the surface to light the colliery yard, and a football match was even played at night! Frank Brain was also connected with the Electric Blasting Apparatus Company who made fuses for simultaneous shot firing underground, and had buildings close to Trafalgar Colliery.
Electricity was also used at Trafalgar when the first underground pumping plant was installed in December 1882. The installation at Trafalgar was the first recorded use of electric power in mines. The equipment consisted of a Gramme machine on the surface driven by a steam engine and a Siemens dynamo used as a 11/2 horse power motor belted to a pump underground. The Gramme machine still exists today, preserved in the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff. It attained such success that three additional plants were erected in May 1887 and these did the larger part of the pumping.

Jim Ashton