Thomas Telford's genius is reflected in the variety and great technical skill of his achievements, most of which are still in use today. But it is perhaps Telford's work on Canalsin Britain which attracts most attention now: the Ellesmere Canal with its magnificent aqueducts at Pontcycyllte and Chirk; the Caledonian cutting its way through the Great Glen in Scotland. Telford's appointment as first president of the Institution of Civil Engineers showed that his generation recognised him as the real founder of his profession, and perhaps the naming of Telford New Town after him is an...