first to solve the problem of skew arches. Outram also built railways for the Ashby-de-la-Zouch Canal such as the Ticknall Tramway and was asked to advise on railways for the Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal. He predicted within a few years of their introduction that railways would become the principal mode of transport. In 1799 he wrote, while building the Ashby-de-la-Zouch Canal railway at four-foot two-inch gauge, "it appears that many hogsheads and packages require carriages . . . wider than those at Derby and Crich" and "it seems desirable that all extensive railways should be of the same width and that width should be sufficient to suit all the purposes of trade". His sudden death, leaving no will, led to considerable confusion in resolving the company's affairs, and it was not until 1815 that the company's affairs and liabilities with his wife and family were settled. See also Canal Little Eaton Gangway Narrowboat National Tramway Museum Peak Forest Tramway Ticknall References External links Biography of Benjamin Outram at David Kitching's Home Page 1764 births 1805 deaths People of the Industrial Revolution English canal engineers British railway civil engineers British railway pioneers People from Alfreton British surveyors English businesspeople