Luke Livingston Macassey

Luke Livingstone Macassey (1843 – 9 May 1908) was an Irish civil engineer and barrister, notable for his contributions to public health by improving the water supply in the north of Ireland (today Northern Ireland).[1] In 1874 he was appointed consultant hydraulic engineer by the Belfast City and District Water Commissioners in which capacity he was instrumental in finding new sources of water for the expanding city of Belfast.[2] He proposed the Silent Valley Reservoir project in the Mourne Mountains, the first phase of which was completed in 1901,[3] though he died before work began on the reservoir itself.[4]

Luke Livingstone Macassey

The Macassey blue plaque in Belfast

He also was the first to propose a direct rail link connecting Scotland with Ireland.[5]

Macassey is the subject of an Ulster History Circle blue plaque in Belfast.

Selected publications

• Report of the proposed Railway Tunnel between Scotland and Ireland. With plan, etc. Belfast, 1868. (With Scott William)
• Hints on the Water Supply of Small Towns and Villages. London & Belfast, 1877.
• The Law relating to Civil Engineers, Architects and Contractors. Primarily intended for their own use. Stevens & Sons, London, 1890. (With James Andrew Strahan)

References

1. http://www.newulsterbiography.co.uk/index.php/home/viewPerson/929
2. Luke Livingstone Macassey (1843 - 1908). Patrick Devlin, Dictionary of Ulster Biography. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
3. "A Century of Water from the Mournes - a concise history". BBC News. 16 October 2014. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
4. "A Century of Water from the Mournes - Part 2 A concise history - The Silent Valley Reservoir - 1910 - 1933". BBC News. 16 October 2014. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
5. Scotland-Ireland undersea rail link plan 'a surprise'. Steven McKenzie, BBC News, 9 October 2011. Retrieved 29 January 2018.