Lieutenant Thomas Evans, Mr George Thomas and the survey of Liverpool

Abstract

Controversy over surveys of Liverpool and its approaches made by Lieutenant Thomas Evans and Mr George Thomas unfolded during the period when Captain Thomas Hurd, second Hydrographer to the Board of Admiralty, was urging the establishment of the specialist cadre which would evolve into the Royal Naval Surveying Service. His representations were made in an age of small government when the concept of career service with the necessary regulations had not been developed. Selection resulted from the interplay of outside interest, service patronage, and the influence of placeholders within the Admiralty. Employment in the field could be task-specific and short-term. This episode throws light on Hurd’s vision both for assured survey capability and for the quality of charting of British waters.