Strickland Landis Kneass (July 29, 1821, in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

- January 14, 1884, in Philadelphia) was a

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

civil engineer A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing ...

, municipal surveyor, and railroad president. Kneass's father,

William Kneass William Kneass ( "niece"; September 25, 1780 – August 27, 1840) was the second Chief Engraver of the United States Mint from 1824 until his death in 1840. Kneass is credited with designing the "Classic Head" motif, which appeared on numerous ...

, was for many years engraver of the U.S. Mint. His older brother was civil engineer and architect Samuel Honeyman Kneass. The younger Kneass attended Rensselaer Institute, where he graduated in 1839 at the age of 18 with highest honors. After graduation, Kneass "held various surveying and engineering jobs, including the post of Principal Assistant Engineer for the Pennsylvania Railroad. He helped conduct the preliminary surveys, and supervised construction of a section of the line, including several bridges and the Tussy Mountain Tunnel," wrote Adam Levine, a historical consultant for the Philadelphia Water Department. From 1855 until 1872, Kneass was chief engineer and surveyor of the consolidated city of Philadelphia. Among other things, he "re-designed Philadelphia's drainage system, designed new bridges to cross the Schuylkill River, and set up the extension of the City's streetcar system," according to the Athenaeum of Philadelphia. His most notable work is Philadelphia's 1866

cast-iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...

Chestnut Street Bridge. In 1872, he became assistant to the president of the

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...

. In 1880, Kneass became president of the Pennsylvania and Delaware and other railroads.

Notes

External links

Norman White, his ancestors and his descendants
more bio detail on Strickland
Creativity in Cast Iron: Strickland Kneass’s Chestnut Street Bridge
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kneass, Strickland 1821 births 1884 deaths Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute alumni Engineers from Philadelphia American civil engineers Pennsylvania Railroad people