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Hydraulic-Inclined Plane System of the Morris Canal
Society: ASCEMain Category: CivilSub Category: Water Supply & ControlEra: 1800-1829DateCreated: 1824-1836Phillipsburg to Newark BayState: NJCountry: USAWebsite: http://www.asce.org/project/hydraulic-powered-inclined-plane-system-of-the-morris-canal/

Morris Canal was built to transport coal from the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania to industrial markets in Newark and New York. The total length of the canal was 106 miles. The canal climbed an astonishing 914 feet from Newark Bay to the summit at Lake Hopatcong, and then dropped 760 feet to the Delaware River at Phillipsburg. This gave the canal an average vertical slope of 18 feet per mile, steep compared to the contemporary Erie Canal's relatively gentle slope of one foot per mile.  

YearAdded:
1979
Image Credit: Courtesy ASCEImage Caption: The Hydraulic-Inclined Plane System gave the Morris Canal an average vertical slope of 18 feet per mile. Era_date_from: 1824
Horseshoe Curve
Society: ASCEMain Category: CivilSub Category: Rail TransportationEra: 1840-1849DateCreated: 1847-1854Horse Shoe Curve ParkAltoonaState: PAZip: 16601Country: USAWebsite: http://www.asce.org/project/horseshoe-curve-pennsylvania-rr/Creator: Consolidated Rail Corporation

One of the earliest and most impressive of America's great railroad engineering feats, the Horseshoe Curve was built as a means of overcoming a straight-line grade over the geological feature known as the Allegheny Escarpment or Allegheny front, which separates the ridge-and-valley section of Pennsylvania (on the east) from the Allegheny Front (on the west). Such a straight-line route would have made commercial railroad operations unfeasible from both and economic and technical standpoint.

Image Credit: Courtesy Wikipedia/US Geological SurveyImage Caption: The Horseshoe Curve was built as a means of overcoming a straight-line grade over the geological feature known as the Allegheny Escarpment.Era_date_from: 1847
Hudson and Manhattan Railroad Tunnel
Society: ASCEMain Category: CivilSub Category: NuclearEra: 1900-1909DateCreated: 1908Hudson RiverNew York City to Hoboken State: NYCountry: USAWebsite: http://www.asce.org/project/hudson-and-manhattan-rr-tunnel/Creator: Haskin, DeWitt Clinton, McAdoo, William G.

A transportation tunnel under the Hudson River connecting Manhattan and New Jersey was first considered in the 1860s, fueled by New York City's rapidly growing congestion and the inadequacy of existing ferry service to population centers across the river. DeWitt Clinton Haskin, an engineer formerly with the Union Pacific Railroad, started the project in 1874 and subsequently endured an extended lawsuit, several failures of the tunnel wall, and an exhaustion of funds before quitting in 1887 with only 1,600 feet completed. 

YearAdded:
1978
Image Credit: Courtesy ascemetsection.orgImage Caption: The Hudson and Manhattan tunnel was the first large transportation tunnel constructed under a major river in the United States..Era_date_from: 1908
Hoosac Tunnel
Society: ASCEMain Category: CivilSub Category: Rail TransportationEra: 1850-1859DateCreated: 1855-1876North AdamsState: MAZip: 10013Country: USAWebsite: http://www.asce.org/Project/Hoosac-Tunnel/Creator: Shanley, Walter and Francis

When first proposed in 1819, the Hoosac Tunnel seemed so logical. It would provide an efficient and direct route for the Boston and Albany Railroad, whose pathway meandered 20 miles along precipitous grades. Early proponents, however, could not have imagined that blasting a 4.75 mile tunnel through the Hoosac Mountain would require over 20 years of labor. The project took so long to complete that it was commonly referred to as "The Great Bore." 

YearAdded:
1975
Image Credit: Courtesy Wikipedia/Acela2038 Image Caption: The 4.75 mile Hoosac tunnel, which was bored through the Hoosac Mountain, required over 20 years of labor.Era_date_from: 1855
Granite Railway
Society: ASCEMain Category: CivilSub Category: Rail TransportationEra: 1800-1829DateCreated: 1826Quincy and MiltonState: MAZip: 02169Country: USAWebsite: http://www.asce.org/Project/Granite-Railway/Creator: Bryant, Gridley

The Granite Railway Company of Quincy was the first commercial railway in the United States. Incorporated in 1826 and designed by Gridley Bryant, the railway relied on horses, rather than steam locomotives, to draw the cars along the tracks. Its primary purpose was to transport granite from Quincy to build the Bunker Hill Monument. 

YearAdded:
1975
Image Credit: Courtesy Library of CongressImage Caption: The Granite Railway Company of Quincy was the first commercial railway in the United States.Era_date_from: 1826
Forth & Clyde Canal and Union Canal
Society: ASCEMain Category: CivilSub Category: Water TransportationEra: 1750-1799DateCreated: 1768-1790Forth to Bowling on the Clyde, ScotlandGlasgowCountry: UKWebsite: http://www.asce.org/project/forth---clyde-canal/Creator: Smeaton, John

It took 22 years to complete the 35-mile waterway, as funding problems caused the work to shut down from 1777 to 1785.  

The notion of creating a canal that crossed Scotland was conceived in the 17th century during the reign of Charles II, but would not be realized for nearly 100 years.  The Forth and Clyde Canal, known as The Great Canal in its early years, was the first major transportation project in Scotland and the world's first man-made, sea-to-sea ship canal.   

YearAdded:
2000
Image Credit: Courtesy Wikipedia/Michel Van den Berghe (CC BY-SA 2.0) Image Caption: The Forth and Clyde Canal, known as The Great Canal in its early years, was the first major transportation project in Scotland and the world's first man-made, sea-to-sea ship canal. Era_date_from: 1768
Five Stone Arch Bridges
Society: ASCEMain Category: CivilSub Category: BridgesEra: 1830-1839DateCreated: 1830-1860HillsboroughState: NHZip: 03244Country: USAWebsite: http://www.asce.org/Project/Five-Stone-Arch-Bridges/

"Some of New Hampshire's most aesthetically pleasing yet least appreciated structures are stone arch bridges."

YearAdded:
2002
Image Credit: Courtesy Flickr/Glass_house (CC BY-SA 2.0) Image Caption: The Gleason Falls Bridges, built in 1830, stands as a testament to the durability of dry-laid stone arches.Era_date_from: 1830
Firth of Forth Railway Bridge
Society: ASCEMain Category: CivilSub Category: BridgesEra: 1890-1899DateCreated: 1890QueensferryZip: EH30 9SFCountry: UKWebsite: http://www.asce.org/Project/Firth-of-Forth-Railway-Bridge/Creator: Benjamin, Baker

"The majestic Forth Bridge ... symbolises the tremendous achievements of Victorian engineers and the immense strides made in the technique of bridge design and construction since the dawn of the Railway Age..."
 - Derrick Bennett, Bridges: Great Buildings of the World

YearAdded:
1985
Image Credit: Courtesy Flickr/Brain M Forbes (CC BY 2.0)Image Caption: The Forth Bridge became the longest bridge in the world when it was completed in 1890.Era_date_from: 1890
First New York Subway
Society: ASCEMain Category: CivilSub Category: Roads & RailsEra: 1900-1909DateCreated: 1900-1904New YorkState: NYZip: 10007Country: USAWebsite: http://www.asce.org/Project/First-New-York-Subway/Creator: Interborough Rapid Transit Company

In the 19th century, New York City was a burgeoning industrial and commercial metropolis - the largest city in the United States and second largest in the world. As the city's population increased, people began to call for construction of an underground railway. Many unusual engineering challenges had to be overcome, not the least of which was construction in a dense urban area. After lengthy legal battles over property rights and the debt limit of the city, ground was broken on March 24, 1900.

YearAdded:
1977
Image Credit: Courtesy Wikipedia/Interborough Rapid Transit Company Image Caption: A map of New York's first underground subway.Era_date_from: 1900
Fink Through Truss Bridge
Society: ASCEMain Category: CivilSub Category: BridgesEra: 1850-1859DateCreated: 1858HamdenState: NJZip: 08801Country: USAWebsite: http://www.asce.org/Project/Fink-Through-Truss-Bridge/

"Fink's truss design was one of a number of early patented solutions to [the problem of how] to carry a massive, moving weight (a train) over long spans (to avoid the expense of building piers and obstructing waterways) on easily erected bridges (often in rough terrain) with good long-term economy..." 
 - Kent Farnow Smith, "America's Oldest Functioning Iron-Truss Bridge," 1978

YearAdded:
1979
Image Credit: Courtesy Library of CongressImage Caption: This bridge is an example of the Fink truss, the most efficient solution to building long-span bridges quickly and economically during its time.Era_date_from: 1858
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Innovations

Cortland Street Drawbridge

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Detroit-Windsor Tunnel

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Dismal Swamp Canal

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Dunlap's Creek Bridge

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Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge railway runs along the Highline.

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Eads Bridge

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Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Cheussees

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Eddystone Lighthouse

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Elephant Butte Dam

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Wheeling Suspension Bridge

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