Herbert John Gough, 1890-1965

Abstract

Herbert John Gough’s name is one which will always be chiefly associated with the ‘fatigue of metals’, for it can be justly claimed he was one of the pioneers of research into this subject. Born on 26 April 1890 in Bermondsey, he was the second son of Henry James Gough, a civil servant in the Post Office, and of Mary Ann Gillis. His father, who had a delightful personality, was of very precise and meticulous habits from whom Gough probably gained many of his thorough and accurate ways. It is understood, however, Gough was the first in his family to be attracted to engineering and/or science. He first attended primary school in Ealing and afterwards at the Regent Street Polytechnic Technical School from which he proceeded to University College School by gaining a studentship. At school he was very fond of games, particularly football and boxing. For a time he was an L.C.C. pupil teacher but found teaching with no other outlet incompatible with his temperament and took up an apprenticeship with Messrs Vickers, Sons and Maxim from 1909-1913, followed by a year as a designer draughtsman on naval and military weapons and other armament with Vickers Ltd. During this pre-war period he obtained an Honours B.Sc. degree in the faculty of Engineering of London University and in 1914 joined the scientific staff of the engineering department at the National Physical Laboratory, where he began his first study of fatigue of metals under the tutelage of Stanton and Bairstow.