caption boards death_date death_place birth_place relatives birth_date alt residence image article_title name occupation
studio portrait of selfe president 1889 -rrb- , board of technical education -lrb- 1887 -- 15 october 1911 sydney , australia teddington , england maybanke -rrb- anderson -lrb- sister -rrb- harry wolstenholme -lrb- nephew 09 december 1839 bust-length grey beard , looking into the distance . black and white portrait of selfe with long `` gilligaloola '' , normanhurst , new south wales norman selfe.jpg norman selfe
 norman selfe civil engineer
norman selfe

norman selfe -lrb- 9 december 1839 -- 15 october 1911 -rrb- was an australian engineer , naval architect , inventor , urban planner and outspoken advocate of technical education .
after emigrating to sydney with his family from england as a boy he became an apprentice engineer , following his father 's trade .
selfe designed many bridges , docks , boats , and much precision machinery for the city .
he also introduced new refrigeration , hydraulic , electrical and transport systems .
for these achievements he received international acclaim during his lifetime .
decades before the sydney harbour bridge was built , the city came close to building a selfe-designed steel cantilever bridge across the harbour after he won the second public competition for a bridge design .
selfe was honoured during his life by the name of the sydney suburb of normanhurst , where his grand house `` gilligaloola '' is a local landmark .
he was energetically involved in organisations such as the sydney mechanics ' school of arts and the australian historical society .
as president of the board of technical education , he fought consistently for the establishment of an independent system of technical education to serve the needs of a rapidly industrialising society .
he was acknowledged upon his death as one of the best-known people in , and greatest individual influences upon , the city of sydney .
