The Beginnings of the American Society of Civil Engineers

Abstract

The founding of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) is a story of emulation, of slow and difficult beginnings, of halting early progress, of overcoming adversity, of learning from failures, and, ultimately, of monumental achievement. In short, the story of the founding of the ASCE mirrors the story of a great engineering project. A ModelIn the latter part of the eighteenth century, it was the example of pioneering British engineers like James Brindley and John Smeaton that defined the identity of the civil engineer as a member of a developing profession distinct from that of the military engineer. Establishing themselves, in modern terminology, as consulting engineers, the likes of Brindley and Smeaton asserted their intellectual and professional independence from those who hired them. These civil engineers engaged in assessment and design projects but did not necessarily serve as constructors. By 1770 there were of the order of a dozen civil engineers who were well-known among each other and throughout Britain. (Watson, 1988)