Henry M. Brinckerhoff (1868–1949) was a pioneering highway engineer who in 1906 partnered with

William Barclay Parsons William Barclay Parsons (April 15, 1859 – May 9, 1932) was an American civil engineer. He founded Parsons Brinckerhoff, one of the largest American civil engineering firms. Personal life Parsons was the son of William Barclay Parsons (1828– ...

to found what would eventually be known as

Parsons Brinckerhoff WSP USA, formerly WSP, Parsons Brinckerhoff and Parsons Brinckerhoff, is a multinational engineering and design firm with approximately 14,000 employees. WSP stands for Williams Sale Partnership. The firm operates in the fields of strategic con ...

, one of the largest transportation, planning and engineering companies in the United States. Brinckerhoff specialized in electric railways and he is best known for his co-invention of the

third rail A third rail, also known as a live rail, electric rail or conductor rail, is a method of providing electric power to a railway locomotive or train, through a semi-continuous rigid conductor placed alongside or between the rails of a railway t ...

, which revolutionized rapid transit. He subsequently played a key role in the planning and development of transit systems of Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland and Cincinnati. Brinckerhoff also designed the network of roads at the

1939 New York World's Fair The 1939–40 New York World's Fair was a world's fair held at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York, United States. It was the second-most expensive American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchas ...

References

{{authority control American engineers 1868 births 1949 deaths