Memorable Manitobans: Richard E. Speakman (1857-?)

Engineer.

Born in Cheshire, England on 2 January 1857, he graduated from Shrewsbury Grammar School and in 1876 apprenticed to an engineer. He came to Brandon in 1892, and began his engineering career in Canada with involvement in the city’s sewage and waterworks system. He moved to Toronto in 1895 and established a large engineering consultancy business. In 1903 he became city engineer at St. Catharines, then city engineer at Calgary where he designed the sewage system, erected the waterworks, installed the municipal electric light plant, and designed the Calgary Street Railway System. He was lured to Brandon in 1909 and was offered inducements to remain.

Sources:

The Story of Manitoba by F. H. Schofield, Winnipeg: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1913.

Dictionary of Manitoba Biography by John M. “Jack” Bumsted, Winnipeg: University of Manitoba Press, 1999.

Page revised: 28 December 2009

Memorable Manitobans

Memorable Manitobans

This is a collection of noteworthy Manitobans from the past, compiled by the Manitoba Historical Society. We acknowledge that the collection contains both reputable and disreputable people. All are worth remembering as a lesson to future generations.

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