John Metcalf
Born in 1717, John Metcalf was a road builder from 1755 until his retirement in 1792. Known as "Blind Jack of Knaresboro'" because he had lost his sight through smallpox at the age of six, he built over 180 miles of road. Much of this was in the difficult Pennine countryside of Lancashire and Yorkshire.
Metcalf brought a careful, well-planned approach to road building, as well as uncanny instincts. One story tells of him feeling the presence of an old Roman road many feet underground.
Metcalf built temporary housing for his workers near the site of the road and set up stables and stores of stone. He believed that foundations were vital and built up his roads in layers. On boggy ground he laid down heather as a first layer. He gave his roads a convex surface, topped with a thick layer of gravel and drainage ditches alongside.