Robert Pearson Brereton came from a Norfolk family that produced other notable Victorian engineers Cuthbert A. Brereton and Robert Maitland Brereton.
Brunel's assistant
Brereton was recruited by Brunel staff in 1836 to be one of seven resident engineers supervising the construction of the Great Western Railway. He lost an eye in a work accident and is depicted in a portrait with an eye patch. After the Great Western railway was completed, he carried out similar tasks on other railways that Brunel was building. For example, in 1845 he was one of Brunel's resident engineers on the Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway and was sent to Italy to sort out problems with the construction of the Turin–Genoa railway. He became Brunel's chief assistant in 1847 and remained in this post until Brunel's death in 1859. His signature appears on drawings for the Chepstow Bridge which were prepared in Brunel's London office around 1850. One of Brunel's major and long-running projects was the construction of the Royal Albert Bridge across the River Tamar for the Cornwall Railway. In 1854 Brereton was sent as Brunel's assistant to help William Glennie, the resident engineer on the bridge, who was in poor health. Much of his time in the next five years was spent on this project. He was instrumental in developing ways to excavate underwater to prepare for the construction of the central pier. In 1857 he assisted Brunel when the first span was floated into position, and he then supervised the lengthy process to raise it to the top of its piers. Brunel's poor health increasingly prevented him from attending work in Cornwall, and so Brereton supervised the floating out of the second span in 1858 without Brunel's help. He then saw through the raising of this span, the completion of the bridge and opening of the line in May 1859.
After Brunel
After Brunel's death in September 1859 Brereton took over his role as chief engineer for many railway companies, designing new works and alterations. He ran his business from Brunel's old office in Duke Street, London, while Brunel's widow Mary continued to reside in the rooms above. Some of Brunel's railways were still under construction, including the
Brunel described Brereton in 1845 as "a peculiarly energetic persevering young man". The Chairman of the Cornwall Railway, speaking in 1859 following the opening of the Royal Albert Bridge, described him as "always ready, always able, always full of energy." He has a memorial brass in the church in Blakeney.
