John Gilbert Marsh

MARSH, John Gilbert (Gil), BE FIEAust (1925-2017)

John Gilbert Marsh was born in Salisbury, England, on 22 November 1925, the son of John William Marsh and Isla a’Beckett Marsh nee Chomley. After migrating to Western Australia with his parents and two siblings in 1928, he lived on a farm near Kulin, attended Harrismith and North Kalgoorlie primary schools, and then went on to Eastern Goldfields High School. Subsequent enrolment at the University of Western Australia (UWA) led to the completion of a Bachelor of Engineering degree in 1947.

In such a large State, a major challenge for the Western Australian Main Roads Department has been the design and construction of bridges. Since the 1930s, bridge engineers Ernie Godfrey and Gil Marsh have provided WA with bridge designs that are internationally recognised for their excellence in overcoming Western Australia’s unique challenges.

From university, Gil (shortened from Gilbert) went straight to the Main Roads Department of Western Australia where he worked on road improvements in the Pinjarra District before joining the Bridge Branch in Perth. There, under the direction of the Bridge Engineer E. W. C. Godfrey, his most significant project was the design and construction, between 1947 and 1952, of the two steel and concrete composite bridges over the Swan River at the Causeway.

In 1948 he married Phyllis Morton and they had two children, Alison Margaret and John Lloyd. In 1948 he also rowed in the King’s Cup, in Hobart, representing Western Australia.

He was promoted to Assistant Bridge Engineer in 1954 and appointed Bridge Engineer in 1957. In 1954 government approval was given for the construction of a bridge over the Swan River at the Narrows. Gil was responsible for the design and supervision of the reclamation work for the northern and southern approaches and liaison with the overseas consultants appointed to design the Narrows Bridge.

In 1961 Gil was awarded a Gledden Travelling Fellowship by UWA which enabled him to travel to the United Kingdom for twelve months, where he worked with consultants and contractors for six months and then undertook studies in soil mechanics at Imperial College, London, under Professor Sir Alec Skempton. His particular interest was in techniques which could be used for the rapid consolidation of the mud under the future Narrows Interchange. Gil proposed compressing the mud by constructing vertical sand drains deep into the reclaimed area and this technique was tested in a small part of the Narrows reclaimed area in 1962. This gave Main Roads confidence to install forty three thousand sand drains and preloading the area using four million cubic yards of imported sand fill starting in September 1964.

During the 1960’s the Main Roads commenced a program of road construction, including freeways and arterial roads in the Perth Metropolitan area and the construction of a new National Highway across the northwest Pilbara and Kimberley regions. This involved the construction of many bridges. Between 1962 and 1985, Gil created and supervised a large professional organization which undertook the investigation and design of the majority of the bridges built during this period. Gil effectively held the position of Bridge Engineer in Main Roads for 28 years, from 1957 up to his retirement in 1985 even though he was promoted to Assistant Chief Engineer Investigation and Design in 1965.

Among the many innovations of historical significance introduced during Gil’s tenure as MRD WA Bridge Engineer were:

• the adoption of partial prestress in bridges, a footbridge over Canning Highway in Perth was the first partially prestressed bridge designed and built in Australia;
• the introduction of incremental launching technique for concrete bridges, the Mandurah Bridge was the first incremental launched bridge designed in Australia; and
• the initial development of “Culway”, a “Weigh in Motion” system for measuring and continuously recording axle loads of heavy vehicles as they pass over a culvert fitted with strain gauges.

Gil represented WA on the Bridge Committee of the National Association of Australian State Road Authorities. In 1992 the Australian Road Federation presented him with the John Shaw Award for Meritorious Contribution to Roads.

He joined the Institution of Engineers Australia as a Student Member in 1946 becoming a full Member in 1951. He became a Fellow after 1979. In 1999, Engineers Australia recognised his eminent standing within their profession by awarding him the John Connell Gold Medal. This medal is awarded to a structural engineer, widely recognized as holding eminent standing within the profession,

In his retirement, Gil stayed fit, played tennis, and participated in activities linked to nature. He contributed to the classification and conservation of the state's flora by working as a volunteer for the Department of Conservation and Land Management (now Biodiversity Conservation and Attractions). Other expeditions were undertaken with the Western Australian Naturalists' Club for which Gil served as the treasurer for many years. He also filled that role for the Kimberley Society for six years from 2006.

John Gilbert Marsh died on 22 June 2017. He was predeceased by his wife Phyllis in 1994, being survived by their son Lloyd and daughter Alison.

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References:
Richard Hartley, Interview with Mr John Gilbert Marsh,Oral History Program, Engineers Australia, 22 and 29 January 2009, pp. 60;
David Hough, Wide spanning career, Obituaries,The West Australian, 4 October 2017;
Leigh Edmondson, The Vital Link, University of Western Australia Press, Nedlands.

Bibliography of Selected Works of Mr J.G. Marsh (2009):

* Hondros, G. and Marsh, J.G., 'Load distribution in composite girder slab system', American Society of Civil Engineers. Journal of the Structural Division, 86, ST1 1, Nov. 1960: 69 109.
* Marsh, J.G., 'Reclamation for Narrows Bridge, Perth, Western Australia: stability and settlement considerations', Institution of Engineers, Australia, Journal, 33(7 8), July Aug. 1961: 271 77.
* Marsh, J.G., 'Report on a visit to England and Europe 1961 1962', Main Roads Department, Western Australia, Perth, 1962, 96p.
* Marsh, J.G., 'A test embankment with sand drains on a weak and compressible foundation at Perth, Western Australia', 4th Australian New Zealand Conference on Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, Adelaide, 1963:149 54.
* Marsh, J.G., Hondros, G. and Michael, K.C., 'Stiffness analysis in interconnected T beam bridge systems by digital computer', 2nd Australian Road Research Conference, ARRB Proceedings, 2 2, 1964: 1370 99.
* Marsh, J.G. and Jones, PH., 'Some problems in the construction of embankments for the Mitchell Freeway, Perth, Western Australia', Institution of Engineers, Australia, Transactions, CE7 (2), October 1965: 63 74.
* Marsh, J.G., 'Construction of large embankments on sand drains in soft clay in Perth, Western Australia: discussion paper', Symposium on Soft Ground Engineering Brisbane, 1965, 3p.
* Marsh, J.G., 'An application of sand drains to road construction in Western Australia', 13th Congress of Permanent International Association of Road Congresses: Question II Planning of projects Earthworks, Tokyo, 1967: 16p,
* Marsh, J.G., 'Soft soil stabilization by sand drains in Perth', Symposium on Foundations on Interbedded Sands, Perth, 1970: 112 16.
* Marsh, J,G., 'A recent steel and concrete composite bridge design in Western Australia', Concrete Conference on Problems in Composite Structures, Adelaide. 1971: 8p.
* Marsh, J.G. and Michael, K.C., 'The distribution of shear forces resisted by shear connections in composite, single span, T bridges', 6th Australian Road Research Board Conference, ARRB Proceedings, 6 5, 1972: 343 65.
* Marsh, J.G. and Michael, K.C., 'The analysis of curved T beam and box beam bridge decks', Australasian Conference on the Mechanics of Structures and Materials, Brisbane, 1973: 152 165.
* Marsh, J.G. and Parsons, MW., 'Narrows Interchange bridges, Perth', Institution of Engineers, Australia, Annual Engineering Conference, Perth, 1973: 173 86.
* Marsh, J.G., 'Report on a study tour of the United States, Canada and Europe 1973', Main Roads Department, Western Australia, Perth, 1974: 44p.
* Marsh, J.G., 'ARRB creep and shrinkage research: what has been achieved and where do we go from here?', 10th Australian Road Research Board Conference, Sydney, ARRB Proceedings 10 3, 1980: 267 73.
* Marsh, J.G., 'Loads on road bridges', Institution of Engineers, Australia, Annual Engineering Conference, Canberra, 1981: 54 63.
* Marsh, J.G., 'Report on overseas visit, February March 1981', Main Roads Department, Western Australia, Perth, 1982: 20p.
* Marsh, J,G., 'Standard bridge types in Western Australia', Seminar on Practices and Developments in Bridge Design, Brisbane, ARRB, 1985: 187 202.
* Marsh, J.G. and Taylor, P., 'PC program for orthotropic plate box girder bridges', Institution of Engineers, Australia, 2nd National Structural Engineering Conference, Adelaide, lEAust National Conference Publication 90 10, 1990: 224 35.
* Marsh, J.G. and Jewell, R.J., 'Vertical pavement strain as a means of weighing vehicles', Journal of Transportation Engineering, 120 2, 1994: 617 32.