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The
Building of a Nation: African-Americans in Civil Engineering and Surveying
"The art of
developing solutions to real world problems is what makes engineering so
tremendously satisfying. In every instance, these solutions improve the quality
of life for those in need." Lt.
General Joseph N. Ballard, first black commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Our
African Heritage
The
African continent was the site of mankind’s first use of basic civil
engineering and surveying concepts. As early as 3500 B.C.,
practitioners
were designing, measuring the land, and overseeing the construction of the
world’s oldest civilizations.
Beginning
with the building of the great temples and pyramids of ancient
Egypt (2700 B.C.), shared
engineering and surveying techniques lead to the development of flourishing
cities in the regions that became Sudan,
Mali,
Zimbabwe,
Ethiopia,
Ghana,
Benin, and
Nigeria.
Trade
routes across the world’s most diverse and wild terrain consisted of a vast
infrastructure of trails, roads, bridges, canals, and ports that provided for
the shipment of Africa’s great riches, and the tragic capture and sale of
human beings.
Muscle
and Might of America
Since
their arrival as slaves beginning in 1526, African-Americans have been a major
force in the engineering and construction of our nation. Their skills
contributed to the creation of some of our earliest cities such as St.
Augustine, Florida (1565), Boston,
Massachusetts (1630), Annapolis,
Maryland (1649), and Charleston,
South Carolina
(1670).
Following
the Civil War and the
abolition of
slavery, most African-Americans continued to be
segregated to the lowest jobs of drudgery and despair.
The
death of railroad steel driver “Iron” John Henry
in the 1880s, following his
victory of a legendary race with a steam powered drill to break away rock for
the building of either the Big
Bend Tunnel in Talcott, West Virginia or the Oak
Mountain Tunnel in Leeds, Alabama came to epitomize the
plight of black workers and their many sacrifices.
During
the construction of the first New York City
Subway tunnels (1904), African-Americans were relegated to the “Digger” position since
it was thought that they could withstand the heat better than other workers.
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Alaska Highway
Builders
Throughout
the Great Depression, President Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration
employed more than a million black workers to construct infrastructure projects,
but it was not until the opening of the
Alaska Highway
in 1942 that black engineers and builders were widely recognized for their
accomplishments. The all-black 93rd, 95th, and 97th Regiments of the Corps of Army Engineers (3,695 troops) played a major role in
the construction of the 1,523-mile long military supply route between Dawson
Creek, British Columbia and Fairbanks, Alaska that was completed in just 8
months at a cost of $135 million.
Bridge
Builders
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Big Red Oak Creek
Bridge
Spanning the adversity,
there were African-Americans determined to excel in the building of our nation:
Julian
Abele (1881-1950), was an award winning designer of large, European style,
country homes located throughout the northeast, as well as the Philadelphia
Museum of Art, Philadelphia Free
Library, and buildings at
Duke
University
and New York University. He was a senior partner with the prestigious architectural firm
Horace Trumbauer & Associates.
Civil Engineer
Archibald
Alexander (1888-1958) was responsible for the design and construction of
infrastructure projects throughout the nation including the Kutz (Tidal
Basin) Bridge
and K Street Freeway in
Washington
,
D.C., a sewage treatment plant in
Grand Rapids, Michigan, and the heating plant and power station at the
University
of
Iowa.
Surveyor, astronomer, and
clock maker Benjamin
Banneker (1731-1806) was appointed by Major Andrew
Ellicott, in 1791, to be a member of
the survey crew responsible for laying out the original property boundaries and
streets of Washington,
D.C.
Builder Horace
King (1807-1885) constructed more than 100 covered bridges, including the
first major crossing of the
Chattahoochee
River
connecting
Columbus,
Georgia
and Phenix City,
Alabama, and the Big
Red Oak Creek Bridge, Georgia’s oldest covered bridge. He also
built homes and buildings throughout the south.
Builder Frederick
Massiah (1886-1975) was among the first successful black construction
engineers in the nation and an expert in the use of reinforced
concrete. His
many accomplishments included the elliptical dome of the Ascension of Our Lord
Church (the first of its kind in the
United States
), the William H. Donner Center for Radiology at the
University
of
Pennsylvania
, and the sewage disposal plant in Trenton, New Jersey.
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Morgan Traffic
Signal
Inventor Garrett
Morgan (1877-1963) was hailed for his contributions to public safety first
used in
Cleveland,
Ohio. His gas mask invention was worn by rescuers attempting to save workers
trapped in a gas-filled waterworks tunnel beneath
Lake Erie
in 1916, and his automated traffic signal, introduced in 1923, dramatically
improved roadway efficiency and reduced accidents.
Architect and Engineer William
Pittman (1875-1958) won a competition to design the
Negro
Building
at the Jamestown,
Virginia
Ter-Centennial Exposition in 1906. This accomplishment lead to a flourishing
career designing public buildings in
Washington,
D.C.,
Durham,
North Carolina,
Montgomery,
Alabama, and Dallas,
Texas, and the development of Fairmount
Heights,
Maryland.
Architect Wallace
Rayfield (1874-1941) worked closely with the black-owned Windham
Construction Company to become a leading designer of churches and other public
buildings. His notable projects included the 16th
Street
Baptist Church and the Day
Street
Baptist
Church
in Birmingham and
Montgomery, Alabama, as well as structures nationwide for the African Methodist
Episcopal Zion Church.
Architect Robert
Robinson Taylor (1868-1942) was the first accredited African-American
architect in the United States. He designed most of the buildings at Tuskegee
University built prior to 1932. The Tuskegee Chapel
was considered his finest
achievement.
Geology Engineer and
Geographer Marguerite
Williams (1895-1991) was the first African-American to earn a Ph.D. in Geology. She
dedicated her career to teaching at the
Miners
Teacher
College
(now part of the University of the District of Columbia), and served as Chairwoman of the Geography Department. She was an expert in
the fields of erosion and geographical history, and wrote her thesis about the
Anacostia
River
drainage basin.
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Theme Building at
the L.A.
Airport
Engineer and Architect Paul
Williams (1894-1980) was a designer of the Los Angeles International Airport and
more than 2,000 homes in the Hollywood area. Famous clients included Frank
Sinatra, Lucille Ball, and Cary Grant. He became the first African-American
member of the American Institute of Architects in 1957.
Keep the
Legacy Alive!
There is an ever-growing need
for students to enter the fields of Civil Engineering and
Surveying. Without the scientific professionals of tomorrow, we cannot continue
to address many of the technological and social problems that face our world.
Challenging our ways of life and mere existence are needs for improved nuclear
and toxic waste disposal, garbage recycling, water purification and delivery,
sewage treatment, housing, transportation, and energy development. Keep the
legacy alive by becoming a builder of dreams that benefit humanity.
National
Action Council for Minorities in Engineering
National
Society of Black Engineers
·
Become
a Civil
Engineer
·
Become
a Surveyor
The
Building of a Nation Brochure
(PDF)
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