Articled as an apprentice to John J. Myres of Preston when he was aged 15, he gained experience in surveying and levelling, and in the valuation of damage caused to various properties by the construction of railways [REF].
In 1844 he joined the civil engineering business of Charles Cawley, and was directly responsible for setting out the first few miles of the Manchester, Bury and Rossendale Railway (MB&RR) [REF].