Rivington's Building Construction

Major Percy Guillemard Lewellin Smith was an Instructor in Estimating and Construction at the School of Military Engineering at Chatham, but for some reason, perhaps because the books were a commercial venture, the volumes were originally published anonymously.

The book is fascinating and highly relevant to anyone interested in Victorian buildings and not just those actively carrying out conservation. It is packed with forgotten history and an invaluable aid to dating. The answer is to look it up in Rivington. It is a mine of information, lavishly illustrated with beautifully clear drawings, a pleasure to handle. The Victorian His desire for attention to detail and best practice shines through in every section' 'These three volumes represent everything that a contractor, student or interested party would ever need to know about the intricacies of Victorian building... The layout is clear and readily understandable. Much of the contents could still be used as a best practice guide for today's buildings. This new publication represents a fascination insight into a bygone are and as such in highly recommended. Views, The National Trust Donhead have sensibly left the fourth volume on the shelf, for it is all about the calculations needed for building structures. A facsimile would therefore be of much less use than the other Parts, which are a permanent and invaluable record of the materials and details that will be bound in late Victorian and Edwardian construction. Church Building This reprint of the revised 1904 edition of Rivington's Building Construction (first published in 1875) makes compulsive reading for anyone interested in the study of developments in building construction during the late 19th century. It is also a valuable reference source for construction professionals involved in building rehabilitation. Concrete A set of books such as this will be of immediate value to anybody directly involved in understanding and conserving buildings of the late Victorian and Edwardian eras. These books are of immense interest for practitioners involved with buildings form a wide range of periods. They are likely to be of lasting value as long as normal discretion is applied. For students of architecture or building in general, whether of not they intend to specialise in conservation, they could also offer a level of understanding of the materials, methods and culture of building which is difficult to gain form other sources. Context All the materials of the day are here - fully described as to their sources, preparation and on-site uses and beautifully illustrated in hundreds and hundreds of clear, no-nonsense, uncluttered drawings. Construction National Much of the content is still relevant today backed up by the large number of clear and characteristic engraved illustrations. While understanding technical analysis of some material will have advanced, the comprehensiveness of Rivington's, and the efforts over a long period to keep it current makes it an invaluable aide memoir to the detail of late Victorian and Edwardian construction. - it is invaluable where specific information and understanding of the period is required. The handsome set of three are beautifully produced by Donhead to their usual impeccable standard and the sewn construction and cloth bindings maintain a tradition of durability inherited from the original Victorian editions which will ensure their endured use. Journal of Architectural Conservation

• Volume 1 Walling and arches - Walls, Arches, Parts of walls, Apertures in walls, Wood built into walls; Brickwork - Different bonds, Junction of walls at right angles, Gauged work, Brick arches, Arches over openings in external walls, Arches over openings in internal walls, Jambs of window and door openings, Parts of brick walls; Masonry - Walling, Stone arches, Joints and connections, Dressings;Brickwork and masonry - Compound walls, Prevention of damp in walls, Joints, Various bonds, Brick drains and sewers, Chimneys; Carpentry - Joints, Fastenings; Carpentry - Floors; Carpentry - Timber beams, Curved ribs, Trussed timber girders; Carpentry - Partitions; Carpentry - Centres; Carpentry - Timber roofs, Different forms, Scantlings, Parts of a King-post roof, Roofs of wood and iron combined, Parts of a Queen-post roof, Roofs of various shapes and their parts, Tredgold's rules for scantling of roof timbers, Best forms of roof for different spans; Roof coverings; Slating; Plumber's work; Steel and iron girders - Cast-iron girders, bressummers and cantilevers, Steel or iron girders, Steel skeleton construction; Riveting; Steel or iron roofs - Roofs with straight rafters, Parts of iron trusses; Index; Volume 2 Foundations; Excavations - Shoring, Scaffolding; Plumbing and sanitation; Sanitary fittings; Joinery - Joints, Framing, Doors, Windows, Window frames, Mouldings, Joints, Linings, Shutters, Skylights and lanterns; Stairs - Different forms of stairs, Stone stairs, Wooden stairs; Fireproof floors; Plasterer's work; Painting - Paperhanging, Glazing; Heating and ventilating buildings; Electric and gas lighting; Materials; Stresses in structures; Index. Volume 3 Stone - Characteristics of building stone, Examination of stone, Classification of stone, Granite, Igneous rocks other than granite, Slates, Serpentine, Sandstones, Limestones, Marbles, Compact limestones, Varieties of limestone in common use, Artificial stone, Preservation of stone, Tables illustrating the properties of different stones; Bricks, tiles, terra cotta - Bricks, Brickmaking, Burning, Classification of bricks, Varieties of brick, Characteristics of good bricks, Size and weight of bricks, Tests for bricks, Strength of bricks, Different forms of bricks, colouring bricks, Fireclay, Firebricks, Terra cotta, Stoneware, Pipes and miscellaneous clay wares; Limes, cements, mortar, concrete, plasters, and asphaltes - Terms in use, Cements, Scott's processes, Testing tensile strength, Lime and cement burning, Sand, Mortar, Concrete, Mortar-mixing and concrete-mixing machinery, Action of foreign constituents in limestones and cements, Efflorescence on walls, Plasters, Asphaltes, Whitening and colouring; Metals - Ores, Iron, Pig-iron Cast iron, Wrought iron, Tests for wrought iron, Descriptions and market forms of mild steel and wrought iron, Relative value of different forms of mild steel and wrought iron, Steel, Hardening Steel, Strength of cast iron, Wrought iron and steel, Safe or working stresses for cast iron, wrought iron and steel, Limit of elasticity, Elastic limit of cast iron, wrought iron and steel, Live and moving loads, Corrosion and preservation of iron and steel Copper, Lead, Zinc, Tin, Alloys, Solder, Tables; Timber - Market forms of Timber, Different kinds of timber, selection of timber, Seasoning timber, Decay of timber, Preservation of timber, Conversion of timber, Destruction of timber by worms and insects, Varieties of timber for different purposes, Strength of timber; Paints and varnishes - Bases, Vehicles, Linseed oil, Poppy oil, Oil of Turpentine, Driers, Colouring pigments, Blues, Lakes, Uses of pigments, Proportions of ingredients in mixed paints, Zinc paint, Coloured paints, Special paints, General paints, Varnish, Ingredients of varnish, Different kinds of varnish, Recipes for varnishes; Glass - Crown glass, Sheet glass, British plate glass, British polished glass, British polished plate glass, perforated glass, Cathedral glass, Other glass; Paperhanging; Miscellaneous - Glue, Size , Knotting, Paste, Gold leaf, Putty, Rust cement, Laths, Vulcanised Indiarubber, Tar, Creosote, Felt, Asbestos, Willesden fabrics, Nails, Screws; Index.