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Clarification on day to day construction of the line
Henry Orlando Bridgeman entered a career in civil engineering, working on the Syston & Peterborough Railway, and in 1848 was first employed by [[John Fowler]] as Resident Engineer on the Lincoln branch of the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway. Presumably it was his relationship with <noglossary>Fowler</noglossary>, rather than his local connections, which led to his employment by <noglossary>Fowler</noglossary> as Resident Engineer on the Severn Valley Railway.
In his capacity as Resident Engineer, Bridgeman was responsible for day-to-day oversight of construction work on the lineby [[Peto, Brassey and Betts|Thomas Brassey]]. He also laid the foundation stone of [[Victoria Bridge]], in a ceremony held on [[The Severn Valley Railway under GWR/BR ownership# Construction: 1858-1861 | 24 November 1859]]. During the ceremony a glass bottle was deposited under the foundation stone, containing silver and copper coins and a paper signed by the principal persons present. The paper read:
:''The foundation stone of this bridge was laid by Henry Orlando Bridgman '' (sic) ''Esq., C.E., resident engineer on the 24th day of November, in the year of our Lord, One Thousand, Eight Hundred and Fifty Nine, and the twenty third year of the Reign of Her Majesty, Queen Victoria. ''