SIR HENRY JOHN ORAM H enry O ram

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2 SIR HENRY JOHN ORAM H enry O ram was born in June 1858, and though of somewhat frail health, from an early age he showed remarkable intelligence and aptitude for learning and always did well at school. In 1875 he went to the Engineering College at Keyham, which had not long been started. Having done very well at Keyham he went in 1879 to the Royal Naval College at Greenwich, where he stayed for three years, completing the course there with great distinction and obtaining a first-class certificate with an extraordinarily high percentage of marks. On leaving Greenwich he was appointed to H.M.S. Crocodile and served as a junior engineer in that ship and in H.M.S. Malabar for about two years, thus gaining sea experience. He was appointed at the Admiralty in 1884 and promoted to Engineer in the same year. From that time he was kept continuously employed at the Admiralty, passing through all Engineer grades until his final retirement as Engineer Vice- Admiral, having then occupied the great position of Engineerin-Chief of the Navy for a period of ten years. The fact of his being retained at the Admiralty over such a long period, viz., from 1884 to 1917, shows how very highly his services were appreciated by the Board of Admiralty, for it was a period when radical changes were taking place in the design and construction of engines and boilers for ships of the Fleet; and there is no question that his ability enabled him to keep abreast of and develop, the important departures and progress which were steadily and rapidly taking place. For six years Oram served as deputy under the Engineer-in-Chief, Sir John Durston, and during that period water-tube boilers were first adopted in the Navy, a most important departure which involved much study and experiment before the new form of boiler could be regarded as a thorough

3 156 OBITUARY NOTICES practical success; in fact, the original types were supplanted by improved arrangements which enabled higher steam pressures to be adopted and increased power and speed to be obtained. A still more important advance in machinery for ships took place when Sir Charles Parsons invented the Marine Steam Turbine. Oram was quick to see the importance of this invention, and after the Turbinia made her appearance, the new type of engine was tried first in torpedo boat destroyers. It was largely due to his advocacy that turbines were installed in a cruiser, H.M.S. Amethyst, while the usual reciprocating engines were fitted in sister ships; the improvement was most marked, some two knots extra speed being obtained in the turbine-driven ship. This outstanding success convinced the Admiralty of the merits and reliability of the steam turbine for larger ships, and it was decided to fit turbines in the Drea,the ba under Lord Fisher, was designed by Sir Philip Watts and was to have all the latest improvements, to include a more powerful armament than any previous ship of the line. Sir Charles Parsons was called upon to design the turbines and Oram was the Admiralty Engineer who worked with him and was jointly responsible for the success achieved. In December 1906, the Admiralty issued a minute including the following words: Their Lordships high appreciation of his work in connexion with the building of Dreadnought. The Engineer-in-Chief remarked that this officer (Oram) had been conspicuously successful in dealing with a somewhat difficult invention, and his untiring zeal, great scientific technical knowledge, and mature judgment, have been invaluable in bringing to a satisfactory issue this great departure from previous practice as regards machinery for warship propulsion and I submit his work deserves substantial recognition. Oram had been promoted Engineer Rear-Admiral in 1901 and made deputy Engineer-in-Chief in 1902, and not long after Dreadnought was completed he became Engineer-in-Chief, and was promoted Engineer Vice-Admiral in After being made C.B. in 1906 he received the further honour of K.C.B. in 1910.

4 SIR HENRY JOHN ORAM 157 During his period as deputy Engineer-in-Chief and finally as Engineer-in-Chief, the most important improvements and new types both of boilers and engines were introduced, involving immense care and drastic alterations in the regulations for the care and maintenance of entirely novel kinds of marine machinery, but during this period striking improvements were also made in the various auxiliary machines which form such a vital portion of the machinery equipment of a warship. It would take up too much space to give any kind of detailed account of these developments, but the advances made in the efficiency of electric generators, refrigerating machinery, ventilating, cooking, and many other auxiliaries involved a continuous amount not only of research work and careful testing, but continual observation to see that all worked well without breakdown or too frequent repair. Another great departure which took place during Oram s tenure was the adoption of oil as the fuel of naval ships instead of coal; this came as the result of the report of the Royal Commission on oil fuel and engines presided over by Lord Fisher, who addressed a memorandum to the Admiralty as follows: The Royal Commissioners desire to bring under the notice of the First Lord of the Admiralty the inestimable benefit they have derived from the great experience of the very eminent marine engineer and man of science Sir Henry Oram (the Engineer-in-Chief of the Fleet) without whose aid they could not have so confidently expressed their unanimous conviction of the vital necessity for fighting ships, of oil fuel and oil engines. [Signed) Fish er, Admiral o f the Fleet, It will be noted from the date of this memorandum that the decision to adopt it occurred only just before the Great War started; it involved a complete revision of the design of boilers and acceptance of what was at first thought to be a dangerous fuel to carry. Entirely new drill and regulations for the personnel in the boiler and engine rooms had to be initiated, and specifica-

5 1 5 8 OBITUARY NOTICES tions regarding the flash point of the oil and other particulars drawn up. All this was undertaken by Oram after consultation with the Director of Naval Construction and other Admiralty officers concerned, and the whole radical change was carried through without any serious accident and to the great advantage of the fighting efficiency of the Fleet. Regarding oil-engines, the adoption of Diesel-type machinery for the great number of submarines built before and during the War, called for the highest designing and constructive skill on the part of the engineers, under the guidance of the Engineer-in-Chief, and here again Oram showed himself capable of undertaking a new and strenuous task with complete success. His scientific attainments were recognized not only by the Naval authorities, but by the scientific world generally, and in 1912 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society. In 1919 he received the D.S.M. from the U.S.A. for services during the War. He was a member of several technical institutions, including that of the Civil Engineers and the Institute of Metals ; he was a past President of the Junior Institution of Engineers and a member of Council and honorary Vice-President of the Institution of Naval Architects, of which he had been a member since From the above account it will be realized that throughout his career Oram had kept at the top, from the time he passed with great distinction through College to the long period when he was responsible for the machinery of H.M. ships, not only as regards design and maintenance but also as head of the Engineering personnel. He was a charming man to work with and was most popular. He was master of his subject, and guided his subordinates with a firm though gentle hand, which ensured their grateful and devoted service. Lady Oram died eleven years ago, but he leaves two sons and two daughters. He died on 5 May 1939, and was buried at Rudgwick, where he had lived since his retirement. E. H. T e n n y s o n d EYNCOURT