William Baker (engineer)

William Baker (19 May 1817 – 20 December 1878) was an English railway engineer.

Between 1834 and 1839 Baker was articled to George W. Buck and then worked on the London and Birmingham Railway between London and Tring. From 1837 he worked with Buck on the Manchester and Birmingham Railway. He later became engineer of the Manchester, South Junction and Altrincham Railway while also working on the Shrewsbury and Birmingham and Shropshire Union Railways. He became engineer of the Stour Valley Railway and was then appointed as engineer of the Southern Division of the London and North Western Railway.^[1]

He was a consulting engineer in the construction of the 1862 International Exhibition building.^[2]

Following the death of Robert Stephenson he was appointed chief engineer of the London and North Western Railway Company. He wholly constructed, or remodelled and extended, the stations of the company in London, Liverpool and Manchester, as well as the stations in Birmingham, Preston, Bolton, Crewe, Warrington and Stafford.^[1] He constructed a new harbour at Holyhead and was responsible for designing and overseeing the building of the Runcorn Railway Bridge.^[3] Baker was designer and engineer of the Battersea Railway Bridge.^[4] He also acted as consulting engineer to the West London Extension Railway and the North London Railway, and in Ireland he built the Dundalk, Newry and Greenore Railway and the North Wall Extension Railways. He was elected MICE in 1848.^[1]