Jervis, John Bloomfield

Jervis, John Bloomfield

▪ American engineer
born Dec. 14, 1795, Huntington, N.Y., U.S.
died Jan. 12, 1885, Rome, N.Y.

      American civil engineer who made outstanding contributions in the construction of U.S. canals, railroads, and water-supply systems.

      Jervis worked as an axman on the survey for the Erie Canal and earned rapid promotion on that project thereafter, serving as chief engineer from 1821 to 1825. In 1827 he became chief engineer for the Delaware and Hudson Canal project, which was designed to carry coal from Pennsylvania to New York City via the Hudson River. This project consisted of building and linking together a 174-km (108-mile) canal and a 26-km (16-mile) railway, which involved the construction of numerous bridges and inclines in the mountains. Jervis planned and designed every facet of the railway, and he drew up the specifications for its locomotive, the Stourbridge Lion, which was the first functioning locomotive in the United States.

      Jervis next became chief engineer of the Mohawk & Hudson Railway, New York state's first railroad. In this post he designed the Experiment (1832), the first locomotive to have four of its six wheels mounted on a swiveling truck. This radical innovation enabled the Experiment to reach speeds of up to 96 km (60 miles) per hour, making it the fastest locomotive in the world.

      From 1833 to 1836, Jervis was chief engineer of the Chenango Canal in New York, which was the first canal to use artificial reservoirs as part of its water supply. In 1836 he took charge of construction of the Croton Aqueduct, New York City's first water-supply system, and he directed the construction of the Croton Dam and Reservoir as well as the Aqueduct Bridge, which was built on 15 stone arches and crossed the Harlem River. In 1846 Jervis served as the consulting engineer for the Boston water-supply system.

      Jervis returned to railroads in 1847, and over the next 14 years he worked as a consulting or chief engineer for several railroad companies, including the Hudson River Railroad and the Michigan Southern and Northern Indiana Railroad. In 1854 he became president of the Chicago and Rock Island Railway and in 1861 general superintendent of the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne and Chicago Railway.

Frances C. Robb
 

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Jervis Public Library — U.S. National Register of Historic Places …   Wikipedia

  • John B. Jervis — Infobox Person name = John Bloomfield Jervis caption = birth date = 1795 birth place = death date = 1885 death place = Rome, New YorkJohn Bloomfield Jervis (1795 ndash; 1885) was an American civil engineer. Working as chief engineer for the… …   Wikipedia

  • railroad — /rayl rohd /, n. 1. a permanent road laid with rails, commonly in one or more pairs of continuous lines forming a track or tracks, on which locomotives and cars are run for the transportation of passengers, freight, and mail. 2. an entire system… …   Universalium

  • Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad — Rock Island Line redirects here. For the Metra commuter rail line, see Rock Island District. For the song performed by Leadbelly, see Rock Island Line (song). For the Johnny Cash album, see Rock Island Line (album). Chicago, Rock Island and… …   Wikipedia

  • Chronologie de l'histoire des techniques — Si l’histoire des techniques ne peut se résumer à la seule histoire des inventions, elles en constituent néanmoins une composante importante. Au delà des grands faits historiques ou des découvertes scientifiques associées, la chronologie de… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Chronologie des techniques — Chronologie de l histoire des techniques Si l’histoire des techniques ne peut se résumer à la seule histoire des inventions, elles en constituent néanmoins une composante importante. Au delà des grands faits historiques ou des découvertes… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Histoire des techniques (chronologie) — Chronologie de l histoire des techniques Si l’histoire des techniques ne peut se résumer à la seule histoire des inventions, elles en constituent néanmoins une composante importante. Au delà des grands faits historiques ou des découvertes… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • List of high schools in New York — For schools located in New York City (Bronx, Kings, New York, Queens, and Richmond counties), refer to List of high schools in New York City. This is a list of high schools in the state of New York. Albany County Academy of the Holy Names, Albany …   Wikipedia

  • List of Veterans Affairs medical facilities — See also: List of Veterans Affairs medical facilities by state Contents 1 VISNs 1 through 23 …   Wikipedia

  • List of heritage buildings in Vancouver — Vancouver Heritage Register Vancouver Neighbourhoods Heritage Building Classification Class A: Primary Significant Class B: Significant …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”