OBITUARY

Evening Post, Volume CXVI, Issue 110, 6 November 1933, Page 9

OBITUARY

MR. J. C. RUSSELL

The death occurred at a private hospital yesterday afternoon of Mr. Jacob C. Eussell, who held, until his retiremont last December, the responsible post of officer in charge of the Wellington tramways permanent-way. The lato- Mr. Eussell was in the finest sense a valued servant of the city and a man of high character. He had suffered ill health for some months past. Tho late Mr. Eussell was a man of very wide experience and as a young man travelled extensively, seeing much of the world before coming to Wellington about 30 years ago. Ho was born in Denmark during the PrussianDanish war, when the provinces of Sehleswig-Holstein were lost to Denmark. In this war his father took part as a telegraph operator. At the conclusion of the war his father joined the Great" Northern Telegraph Company, and went out to Nagasaki in Japan, taking his wife and family with him. On reaching, the age1: of ten, young Eussell was sent back to Denmark, and on completing his education he'rejoined his father, who had [been transferred to Vladivostok, Siberia, as the company's superintendent; Obtaining an appointment with the Telegraph Company, young Eussell was stationed at Vladivostok until 11883, and then transferred to Shanghai, where he, remained until the following year, when he was ordered to proceed to Newcastle, England.

After spending some time in the •company's service at Newcastle, he decided to try his fortune in the southern hemisphere, and on reaching Australia he had a varied experience until in 1895 he received an appointment with the company (installing the electric tramways in Hobart, the first south of the Lino. He remained in the company's service until 1900. Attracted by the dredging boom, he then proceeded to Dunedin, and joined the firm of Messrs. Turnbull and Jones, and1 was employed oh the installation of high tension lines and the erection of electric machinery for several gold dredges on the : Clutha Elver,,.including the Earnscleugh No. 3. in'l9O2 he joined tho firm of J. G. White and Co., who had sebured the contract for installing the tramways in Auckland/ and he romained with' the company , until the work was completed. Proceeding to Wellington, Mr. Eussell obtained an appointment with' McCartney/ Mcllroy, and Co., the tramway contractors, and was employed on the construction of tho overhead system until 1904, whon tho city tramway engineer, Mr. W. B. Wright, selected him for the position of clerk of works on.the construction..

After the commencement of the service, Mr. Kusscll was appointed superintend ent ,of overhead .equipment, and in 1906, when it was decided to proceed with the installation of the directcurrent, pWer .supply reticulation in the city, he-was given charge of this system. In 1917, on the death of the superintendent who had been in charge of the permanent way from the inception of the service,. Mr. Kussell took over his duties and held the dual post of overhead and permanent way superintendent until his retirement last December. ~ ■,'■.'.•••■:■■. . \ ' ■

When work commenced in 1923 with the installation of high-tension lines and underground cables by the electricity department in readiness for the supply' from ttho Government hydroelectric system and the Evans, Bay station, Mr. Eussell took charge of this construction. In addition to tho high tension system the whole af tho extensive low tension underground reticulation necessitated by the change-over to the Dominion standard.voltage, and the erectibn of upwards of eighty substations have been carried out under the supervision of Mr. KusselV He was an officer who won and retained the cooperation and respect of all with whom he worked by his high capabilities, his enthusiasm in .his ■ work, and Ms fair sense of discipline and,consideration for others. He leaves a widow; there is no family. :■:■■-■'■ : •". ]•. ,■ '•'• •■,'• .