Parents Robert Stevenson Role Designer | Name David Stevenson Occupation Lighthouse engineer Siblings Thomas Stevenson | |
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Children David Alan Stevenson, Charles Alexander Stevenson Books The world's lighthouses before 1820 Similar People | ||
David Stevenson MICE FRSE FRSSA (1815 – 1886) was a Scottish lighthouse designer, who designed over thirty lighthouses in and around Scotland, and helped continue the great dynasty of lighthouse engineering founded by his father.
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Life
He was born on 11 January 1815 at 2 Baxters Place at the top of Leith Walk in Edinburgh, the son of engineer Robert Stevenson, and his wife, Hean Smith. He was brother of the lighthouse engineers Alan and Thomas Stevenson. He was educated at the High School in Edinburgh then studied at Edinburgh University. In 1838 he became a partner in his father's (and uncle's) firm of R & A Stevenson.
In 1844 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh his proposer being David Milne-Home.
In 1853 he moved to the Northern Lighthouse Board.
Between 1854 and 1880 he designed many lighthouses, all with his brother Thomas. In addition he helped Richard Henry Brunton design lighthouses for Japan, inventing a novel method for allowing them to withstand earthquakes. His sons David Alan Stevenson and Charles Alexander Stevenson continued his work after his death, building nearly thirty further lighthouses.
In 1868/9 he served as President of the Royal Scottish Society of the Arts.
He died in North Berwick on 17 July 1886.
Publications
Family
He married Elizabeth Mackay in 1840. Their children included Charles Alexander Stevenson and David Alan Stevenson.
His daughter Jane Stevenson (d.1909) married William Mackintosh, Lord Kyllachy.
His nephew was Robert Louis Stevenson.