William Frederick Durand (March 5, 1859 – August 9, 1958) was a United States naval officer and pioneer
mechanical engineer
Mechanical may refer to:
Machine
* Machine (mechanical), a system of mechanisms that shape the actuator input to achieve a specific application of output forces and movement
* Mechanical calculator, a device used to perform the basic operations of ...
. He contributed significantly to the development of aircraft propellers. He was the first civilian chair of the
National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) was a United States federal agency founded on March 3, 1915, to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958, the agency was dissolved and its assets ...
, the forerunner of
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research.
NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...
.
[
]
A native of Connecticut, he was a member of the first graduating class of Birmingham High School in
Derby, Connecticut
Derby is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, approximately 8 miles west-northwest of New Haven. It is located in southwest Connecticut at the confluence of the Housatonic and Naugatuck Rivers. It borders the cities of Ansoni ...
(now
Derby High School) in 1877. He graduated second in his class at the
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...
at Annapolis and received his Ph.D. from
Lafayette College
Lafayette College is a private liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 1832. The founders voted to name the college after General Laf ...
. He went on to teach at the
Michigan State College
Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...
,
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...
and
Stanford University
Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
, teaching that school's first course in Aeronautics, the second offered by any school in the country (the first was offered by the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
). He helped rebuild Stanford after the 1906 earthquake, and the department of Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering building bears his name. A memorial there reads: "His first professional assignment in 1880 was on the
USS Tennessee, a full rigged wooden ship with auxiliary steam power. His last, 1942-46 was as chairman of the National Aeronautical Commission for the development of jet propulsion for aircraft." He died in 1958 at the age of 99.
Biography
Early life
William Frederick Durand was born on March 5, 1859 in
Beacon Falls, Connecticut
Beacon Falls is a town in western New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. It lies in the southwestern part of the state, and is bisected by the Naugatuck River. The population was 6,000 at the 2020 census, down from 6,049 at the 2010 ...
. He was the fourth and youngest child and second son to William Leavenworth Durand and Ruth née Coe. When Durand was one year old his family moved to
Derby, Connecticut
Derby is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, approximately 8 miles west-northwest of New Haven. It is located in southwest Connecticut at the confluence of the Housatonic and Naugatuck Rivers. It borders the cities of Ansoni ...
. During high school Durand showed an aptitude towards mathematics, and took extra curricular studies from the principal in analytic geometry and worked as a surveyor's assistant. Durand's brother strongly recommended that he take engineering at the
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...
. The Academy's entrance exams at the time tested for familiarization with machine tools, so Durand dropped attendance in the spring semester of high school in 1876 to work in the tool room of a factory in
Ansonia, Connecticut
Ansonia is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. Located on the Naugatuck River, it is immediately north of Derby, and about northwest of New Haven. The population was 18,918 at the time of the 2020 census. The ZIP code for ...
.
Durand was one of five to graduate from the first high school graduating class.
To further prepare for the Navy Academy entrance exams, Durand attended a summer course at the
Maryland Agricultural College
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to it ...
taught by a retired
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
naval veteran. Travelling to Maryland for the classes, Durand stopped at the
Centennial Exposition
The Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official World's Fair to be held in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the ...
where the
Corliss steam engine
A Corliss steam engine (or Corliss engine) is a steam engine, fitted with rotary valves and with variable valve timing patented in 1849, invented by and named after the American engineer George Henry Corliss of Providence, Rhode Island.
Engines f ...
made a lifelong impression.
[
]
Naval career
In 1876 Durand was one of 80 applicants testing for 25 openings at the academy. His first examination was in elementary mechanics, presided over by A. A. Michelson. Durand placed tenth in the exams and was admitted into the academy. During summers Durand cruised on board .
At the time graduates of the U. S. Naval Academy did not receive commission upon graduation but were required to serve two years of sea duty before being eligible. Durand graduated in 1880 from the academy with the rank of cadet engineer and was assigned to , flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...
of the North Atlantic Squadron
The North Atlantic Squadron was a section of the United States Navy operating in the North Atlantic. It was renamed as the North Atlantic Fleet in 1902. In 1905 the European and South Atlantic squadrons were abolished and absorbed into the Nort ...
. Also assigned to ''Tennessee'' was Durand's classmate Midshipman
A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...
W. S. Sims. After two years at sea Durand was given a week-long oral exam by the Naval Examining Board. Durand passed the exam and was commissioned as Assistant Engineer.
Durand continued to serve on ''Tennessee'' until June 1883, when he was transferred to the Bureau of Steam Engineering The Bureau of Steam Engineering was a bureau of the United States Navy, created by the act of 5 July 1862, receiving some of the duties of the former Bureau of Construction, Equipment and Repair. It became, by the Naval Appropriation Act of 4 June ...
. There Durand was assigned to work on the design of the engines for . While there an Act of Congress
An Act of Congress is a statute enacted by the United States Congress. Acts may apply only to individual entities (called Public and private bills, private laws), or to the general public (Public and private bills, public laws). For a Bill (law) ...
titled " To Promote a Knowledge of Steam Engineering and Iron Shipbuilding Act" provided officers of the Engineer Corps of the Navy as instructors to scientific and technical institutions in the United States. Durand requested a tour of duty at Lafayette College
Lafayette College is a private liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 1832. The founders voted to name the college after General Laf ...
in Easton, Pennsylvania
Easton is a city in, and the county seat of, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city's population was 28,127 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Easton is located at the confluence of the Lehigh River, a river tha ...
. While there Durand married Charlotte Kneen on October 23, 1883, and had a son on June 14, 1885. Durand earned a Ph.D. in engineering from Lafayette while there.[
In autumn 1885 Durand was transferred to the Morgan Iron Works as an inspector on the engines for and . In November 1885 Durand received a telegram ordering him to the ]Brooklyn Navy Yard
The Brooklyn Navy Yard (originally known as the New York Navy Yard) is a shipyard and industrial complex located in northwest Brooklyn in New York City, New York. The Navy Yard is located on the East River in Wallabout Bay, a semicircular bend ...
to participate in sea trials of . The recently completed ''Dolphin'' had received an adverse report from the Board of Inspection and Survey
The Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) is a United States Navy organization whose purpose is to inspect and assess the material condition of U.S. Navy vessels.
The Board is currently headquartered at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virgin ...
. Among the findings was a claim of structural weakness. Captain R. W. Meade suggested to Secretary of Navy
The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense.
By law, the sec ...
William C. Whitney
William Collins Whitney (July 5, 1841February 2, 1904) was an American political leader and financier and a prominent descendant of the John Whitney family. He served as Secretary of the Navy in the first administration of President Grover Clev ...
that he take ''Dolphin'' to sea in search of a storm. ''Dolphin'' was outfitted at Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, ...
, and in late November the ship sailed for Cape Hatteras
Cape Hatteras is a cape located at a pronounced bend in Hatteras Island, one of the barrier islands of North Carolina.
Long stretches of beach, sand dunes, marshes, and maritime forests create a unique environment where wind and waves shape ...
, where a storm of strong wind and heavy seas was known to be. The test plan consisted of: two hours of steaming under full power directly into the storm, two hours steaming with the wind 45 degrees off the bow, two hours with the wind amidships, two hours off the quarter, and two hours with the storm astern. ''Dolphin'' passed the storm test and sailed to the Norfolk Navy Yard
The Norfolk Naval Shipyard, often called the Norfolk Navy Yard and abbreviated as NNSY, is a U.S. Navy facility in Portsmouth, Virginia, for building, remodeling and repairing the Navy's ships. It is the oldest and largest industrial facility tha ...
.[
Durand requested and received duty as a naval engineering instructor at ]Worcester Polytechnic Institute
''
, mottoeng = "Theory and Practice"
, established =
, former_name = Worcester County Free Institute of Industrial Science (1865-1886)
, type = Private research university
, endowme ...
in Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...
, arriving in March 1887.[
]
Honors
* Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society
The Royal Aeronautical Society, also known as the RAeS, is a British multi-disciplinary professional institution dedicated to the global aerospace community. Founded in 1866, it is the oldest aeronautical society in the world. Members, Fellows ...
(1918)
* Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...
(1921)
* LL.D. (Honorary) University of California
The University of California (UC) is a public land-grant research university system in the U.S. state of California. The system is composed of the campuses at Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, ...
(1924)[
* LL.D. (Honorary) ]University of Utah
The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...
(1927)[
* Honorary Member of the ]American Society of Mechanical Engineers
The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is an American professional association that, in its own words, "promotes the art, science, and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe" via "continuing ...
(1934)[
]
* Daniel Guggenheim Medal The Daniel Guggenheim Medal is an American engineering award, established by Daniel and Harry Guggenheim. The medal is considered to be one of the greatest honors that can be presented for a lifetime of work in aeronautics. Recipients have include ...
(1935)
* Franklin Medal
The Franklin Medal was a science award presented from 1915 until 1997 by the Franklin Institute located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. It was founded in 1914 by Samuel Insull
Samuel Insull (November 11, 1859 – July 16, 1938) was a Bri ...
(1938)
* D.Eng. (Honorary) Worcester Polytechnic Institute
''
, mottoeng = "Theory and Practice"
, established =
, former_name = Worcester County Free Institute of Industrial Science (1865-1886)
, type = Private research university
, endowme ...
(1938)[
* John J. Carty Award of the ]National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...
(1945)
* American Society of Mechanical Engineering Medal (1945)
* Presidential Medal for Merit
The Medal for Merit was, during the period it was awarded, the highest civilian decoration of the United States. It was awarded by the President of the United States to civilians who "distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious conduct i ...
(1946)[
* ]Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy
The Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy was established by the National Aeronautic Association (NAA) in 1948 after a trust fund was created in 1936 by Godfrey Lowell Cabot of Boston, a former president of the NAA. It is awarded to a living American ...
(1948)[
* Durand Building at Stanford University
* Durand Road near ]Moffett Federal Airfield
Moffett Federal Airfield , also known as Moffett Field, is a joint civil-military airport located in an unincorporated part of Santa Clara County, California, United States, between northern Mountain View and northern Sunnyvale. On November 10, ...
Work
Michigan State and Cornell
While in Worcester Durand was approached by a member of the board of trustees of Michigan State College
Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...
. Michigan State was looking for someone to create and head a mechanical engineering program. Durand accepted the position and resigned his commission with the US Navy effective 15 September 1887.
Durand worked at Michigan State in Lansing, Michigan
Lansing () is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is mostly in Ingham County, although portions of the city extend west into Eaton County and north into Clinton County. The 2020 census placed the city's population at 112,644, making ...
, for four years, creating the Department of Mechanical Engineering.[
In late Spring 1891 Durand accepted the chair of mechanical engineering at ]Purdue University
Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...
in Lafayette, Indiana
Lafayette ( , ) is a city in and the county seat of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, located northwest of Indianapolis and southeast of Chicago. West Lafayette, on the other side of the Wabash River, is home to Purdue University, whi ...
. Later in the summer Durand learned that Robert H. Thurston, Director of Sibley College
The College of Engineering is a division of Cornell University that was founded in 1870 as the Sibley College of Mechanical Engineering and Mechanic Arts. It is one of four private undergraduate colleges at Cornell that are not statutory colleges ...
at Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...
, was looking for someone to lead a planned post-graduate school of the College in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering. Thurston agreed to hire Durand, and the administrators at Purdue agreed to let him go if he could find a suitable replacement for Purdue. Professor John Joseph Flather of the University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...
accepted the position at Purdue, and Durand went to Cornell. Shortly after arriving Durand became the secretary of the Sibley faculty.[
In 1892 Durand was elected a member of ]Sigma Xi
Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Honor Society () is a highly prestigious, non-profit honor society for scientists and engineers. Sigma Xi was founded at Cornell University by a junior faculty member and a small group of graduate students in 1886 ...
, an engineering honors fraternity that started at Cornell in 1886. Durand would later become National President of the Society in 1936.[
]
Logarithm paper, radial planimeter, and marine propeller research
Three accomplishments Durand thought noteworthy during his years at Cornell were the development of logarithmic paper, developing theoretically and mechanically an averaging radial planimeter, and research on marine propellers.
In 1893 Durand developed and introduced Logarithmic graph paper
A logarithmic scale (or log scale) is a way of displaying numerical data over a very wide range of values in a compact way—typically the largest numbers in the data are hundreds or even thousands of times larger than the smallest numbers. Such a ...
, where the logarithmic scale is marked off in distances proportional to the logarithms of the values being represented. Keuffel and Esser Company listed logarithmic paper in their general catalog as "Durand's Logarithmic Paper" as late as 1936.
In 1893 Durand published a paper mathematically describing a radial planimeter
A planimeter, also known as a platometer, is a measuring instrument used to determine the area of an arbitrary two-dimensional shape.
Construction
There are several kinds of planimeters, but all operate in a similar way. The precise way in whic ...
for averaging values plotted in polar coordinates
In mathematics, the polar coordinate system is a two-dimensional coordinate system in which each point on a plane is determined by a distance from a reference point and an angle from a reference direction. The reference point (analogous to the or ...
. Originally a radial planimeter was of academic interest only, but ten years later clock driven recording instruments started being used. Durand created working device based on his theory. He patented the device and received royalties from a scientific instrument company making the devices until the patent expired.[
Durand conducted research on the theory of operation of marine screw propellers while at Cornell. Using funding from the Carnegie Institute, a concrete canal was built in the Hydraulic Laboratory for the study of ]propellers
A propeller (colloquially often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon ...
. Approximately forty-nine twelve inch diameter model propellers with varying pitch and proportion were tested over the course of several years.[
On October 25, 1903 Robert Thurston died and Durand became acting Director of Sibley College while Cornell searched for a permanent replacement. When A. W. Smith of Stanford University became Director ]David Starr Jordan
David Starr Jordan (January 19, 1851 – September 19, 1931) was the founding president of Stanford University, serving from 1891 to 1913. He was an ichthyologist during his research career. Prior to serving as president of Stanford Univer ...
, president of Stanford, offered Durand a position at Stanford to replace the vacancy created by the leaving of Smith. Durand accepted the offer and moved to Stanford in August 1904.[
]
Stanford (1904–1917)
Durand was the director of the mechanical engineering department and acting director of the electrical engineering department. Durand recruited H. J. Ryan from Cornell to be director of electrical engineering, a position Ryan held from 1905 until his death in 1934.[
At 5:20 AM on April 20, 1906 Durand was awakened by the ]1906 San Francisco earthquake
At 05:12 Pacific Standard Time on Wednesday, April 18, 1906, the coast of Northern California was struck by a major earthquake with an estimated moment magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (''Extreme''). High-intensity sha ...
. A marble statue of Louis Agassiz
Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz ( ; ) FRS (For) FRSE (May 28, 1807 – December 14, 1873) was a Swiss-born American biologist and geologist who is recognized as a scholar of Earth's natural history.
Spending his early life in Switzerland, he rec ...
fell headfirst, piercing the concrete sidewalk. University president Jordan commented "Agassiz was always a hard-headed scientist." Durand was appointed to a Board of Engineers tasked with clearing the ruins and making temporary repairs allowing the university to reopen in the fall. Stanford reopened in September for fall semester, and reconstruction was not completed until 1908.[
In 1912 Durand chaired the Committee of Management in preparation for the Engineering Congress held in conjunction with the 1915 ]Panama–Pacific International Exposition
The Panama–Pacific International Exposition was a world's fair held in San Francisco, California, United States, from February 20 to December 4, 1915. Its stated purpose was to celebrate the completion of the Panama Canal, but it was widely se ...
. George Washington Goethals
George Washington Goethals ( June 29, 1858 – January 21, 1928) was a United States Army General and civil engineer, best known for his administration and supervision of the construction and the opening of the Panama Canal. He was the State E ...
was Honorary President of the Congress. Afterwards Durand compiled and edited the papers read before the congress into 18 volumes, mailing them to subscribers.[
]
The NACA
In 1914 Durand attended a conference convened by Charles Doolittle Walcott
Charles Doolittle Walcott (March 31, 1850February 9, 1927) was an American paleontologist, administrator of the Smithsonian Institution from 1907 to 1927, and director of the United States Geological Survey.Wonderful Life (book) by Stephen Jay G ...
, secretary of the Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...
in Washington DC for the purpose of stimulating interest in aeronautic science, and its relation to the U. S. government. The conference led to an act of congress organizing an Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (later the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) was a United States federal agency founded on March 3, 1915, to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958, the agency was dissolved and its assets ...
) "to supervise and direct the scientific study of the problems of flight with a view to their practical solution."[
This committee was composed of twelve members, two each from the Army and Navy, one each representing the Smithsonian Institution, the ]Weather Bureau
The National Weather Service (NWS) is an agency of the United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weather-related products to organizations and the public for the p ...
, and the National Bureau of Standards
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce whose mission is to promote American innovation and industrial competitiveness. NIST's activities are organized into physical sci ...
. Five additional members were chosen "who shall be acquainted with the needs of aeronautical science, either civil or military, or skilled in aeronautical engineering or its allied sciences." Brigadier General George P. Scriven
George Percival Scriven (February 21, 1854March 7, 1940) was the seventh Chief Signal Officer of the United States Army (1913–1917). In this position he commanded the Aeronautical Division, U.S. Signal Corps, Aeronautical Division (1913–1914) ...
, Chief Signal Officer of the Army, was chairman of the committee, Walcott was elected chairman of the Executive Committee. President Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...
appointed Durand as one of the civilian members of the Committee.[
Durand became Chairman of the NACA in the fall of 1916 at the second meeting of the full committee.][
Durand proposed to the NACA the need for research on ]aircraft propellers
An aircraft propeller, also called an airscrew,Beaumont, R.A.; ''Aeronautical Engineering'', Odhams, 1942, Chapter 13, "Airscrews". converts rotary motion from an engine or other power source into a swirling slipstream which pushes the propeller ...
, modeled on the work he had done on marine propellers at Cornell. The Committee agreed and Stanford University was contracted to perform the testing. Working with Professor E. P. Lesley, Durand conducted the air propeller research for the following twelve or fifteen years. Test results were published to the Committee and annually in reports.[
]
World War I
The United States declared war on Germany in April, 1917. Durand obtained a leave of absence from Stanford to devote working full-time at the NACA. The United States concentrated on developing training, reconnaissance, and bomber airplanes while relying on the British and French for fighters. The NACA directed the development of the Liberty aeronautical engine.[
An impediment early in the war to rapidly improving aircraft were concerns about aircraft patents. To address this a conference of the leaders of the aircraft industry was convened. After several sessions a cross-license agreement was arranged calling for the common use of all important aircraft patents for the duration of the war.][
Durand worked to create aviation ground schools at between six and ten universities for the creation of aviation ground schools. The ground school curricula included aircraft control, flight theory, science, and meteorology.][
Durand first flew in an airplane in 1917. That year the Italian government was showcasing a large triplane built in the city of ]Genoa
Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...
to U. S. Government officials hoping for sales. A party of four or five officials took a trip from Langley Field Langley may refer to:
People
* Langley (surname), a common English surname, including a list of notable people with the name
* Dawn Langley Simmons (1922–2000), English author and biographer
* Elizabeth Langley (born 1933), Canadian perform ...
to Washington D.C., a distance of 120 miles, lasting over an hour.[
In 1917 Durand, metallurgist Dr. Henry M. Howe, and Dr. ]John J. Carty
John Joseph Carty (April 14, 1861 – December 27, 1932) was an American electrical engineer and a major contributor to the development of telephone wires and related technology. He was a recipient of the Edison Medal. As Chief Engineer of AT ...
, Chief Engineer of the American Telephone and Telegraph Company
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the world's largest telecommunications company by revenue and the third largest provider of mobile tel ...
were elected to the National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...
to form the nucleus of an engineering section of the academy.[
In autumn of 1917 Durand initiated the development of the airplane turbosuperchargers. The NACA had received incomplete reports that a French engineer named ]Auguste Rateau
Auguste Rateau (13 October 1863 – 13 January 1930) was an engineer and industrialist born in Royan, France, specializing in turbines.
Biography
After studies, first at the École Polytechnique and then at the École des Mines de Paris, he began ...
was attempting to develop engines for high altitudes using a turbo-driven air compressor. Remembering a graduate student named Sanford A. Moss who worked on gas driven turbo engines twenty years earlier at Cornell before starting a career at the gas turbine
A gas turbine, also called a combustion turbine, is a type of continuous flow internal combustion engine. The main parts common to all gas turbine engines form the power-producing part (known as the gas generator or core) and are, in the directi ...
division of General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable energ ...
, Durand wrote to the president of GE, Mr. E. W. Rice requesting Dr. Moss' services. After this turbochargers became Moss' life work.[
On May 11, 1918 President Woodrow Wilson signed an Executive Order creating the ]National Research Council National Research Council may refer to:
* National Research Council (Canada), sponsoring research and development
* National Research Council (Italy), scientific and technological research, Rome
* National Research Council (United States), part of ...
, the working arm of the National Academy of Sciences. Durand was appointed head of the Engineering Division. Both the NACA and the NRC had offices in the Munsey Trust Building
The Munsey Trust Building was a historic high-rise office building located in Washington, D.C., United States, on E Street, N.W., between 13th and 14th Streets (adjacent to the National Theatre in the nation's capital city).
History
The building ...
in Washington separated by two floors. Durand climbed stairs or rode the elevator several times a day between the two.[
In December 1917 Durand, accompanied by his chief assistant Karl T. Compton and two others, traveled to Paris maintain continuous and close contact with developments in the applications of science in warfare. Upon arriving Durand was given the title Scientific Attaché to the U. S. Embassy, though he worked independently of Ambassador William Graves Sharp. He did take advantage of the embassy's ]diplomatic bag
A diplomatic bag, also known as a diplomatic pouch, is a container with certain legal protections used for carrying official correspondence or other items between a diplomatic mission and its home government or other diplomatic, consular, or other ...
to send reports back to Washington.[
In March 1918 Durand experienced the shelling of Paris by the German ]Paris gun
The Paris Gun (german: Paris-Geschütz / Pariser Kanone) was the name given to a type of German long-range siege gun, several of which were used to bombard Paris during World War I. They were in service from March to August 1918. When the guns w ...
. After an early morning air raid alarm was sounded Durand walked to the Place de la Concorde
The Place de la Concorde () is one of the major public squares in Paris, France. Measuring in area, it is the largest square in the French capital. It is located in the city's eighth arrondissement, at the eastern end of the Champs-Élysées.
...
to witness the raid. Upon arriving at the obelisk
An obelisk (; from grc, ὀβελίσκος ; diminutive of ''obelos'', " spit, nail, pointed pillar") is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape or pyramidion at the top. Originally constructed by Anc ...
he heard an explosion but was unable to see any airplanes. While searching the sky another explosion occurred. The bombardment continued throughout the day, with a shell landing every 15 to 20 minutes. One landed quite close to Durand, hitting the Tuileries Garden
The Tuileries Garden (french: Jardin des Tuileries, ) is a public garden located between the Louvre and the Place de la Concorde in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. Created by Catherine de' Medici as the garden of the Tuileries Palace in ...
.[
In June 1918 Durand traveled from Paris to London to give the annual Wilbur & Orville Wright Named Lecture of the ]Royal Aeronautical Society
The Royal Aeronautical Society, also known as the RAeS, is a British multi-disciplinary professional institution dedicated to the global aerospace community. Founded in 1866, it is the oldest aeronautical society in the world. Members, Fellows ...
. Before an audience of 2000 people Durand give a lecture addressing the problems of aircraft design, construction and operation as factors in a war effort. On the occasion of his talk Durand was elected a Fellow of the society.[
With the ]Armistice
An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the La ...
World War I ended on November 11, 1918. Durand returned to Stanford on February 22, 1919 and resumed teaching.[
]
Retirement from Stanford, ASME, Bureau of Standards, U.S. Naval Academy
In 1924 Durand reached Stanford's mandatory retirement age of 65 and became Professor Emeritus
''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...
. Durand continued testing model aircraft propellers, research that had begun under the NACA in 1915.[
In fall 1924 Durand was elected to a one-year term as President of the ]American Society of Mechanical Engineers
The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is an American professional association that, in its own words, "promotes the art, science, and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe" via "continuing ...
for 1925-26. Durand had been a continuous member of the society since joining while serving on board the USS Tennessee in 1883. To be near the society headquarters, Durand lived in Brooklyn, New York
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
during his term in office.[
On September 10, 1924 ]Secretary of Commerce
The United States secretary of commerce (SecCom) is the head of the United States Department of Commerce. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all matters relating to commerce. The secretary rep ...
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Gr ...
asked Durand to become a member of the Board of Visitors
In the United States, a board often governs institutions of higher education, including private universities, state universities, and community colleges. In each US state, such boards may govern either the state university system, individual col ...
of the Bureau of Standards
A standards organization, standards body, standards developing organization (SDO), or standards setting organization (SSO) is an organization whose primary function is developing, coordinating, promulgating, revising, amending, reissuing, interpr ...
. The board visited the Bureau several times over the course of a year to confer and advise the Director and be a conduit between the Bureau and outside entities. Durand was a member of the board for several years.[
In spring of 1925 Durand was appointed by President ]Calvin Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States from 1923 to 1929. Born in Vermont, Coolidge was a History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican lawyer ...
to the Board of Visitors of the United States Naval Academy. The board visits the academy to attend classes, attend classes, observe drills and exercises and observe the overall performance of the institution.[
]
Morrow Board
On September 3, 1925, the US Navy dirigible
An airship or dirigible balloon is a type of aerostat or lighter-than-air aircraft that can navigate through the air under its own power. Aerostats gain their lift from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air.
In early ...
USS Shenandoah
Four United States Navy ships, including one rigid airship, and one ship of the Confederate States of America, have been named ''Shenandoah'', after the Shenandoah River of western Virginia and West Virginia.
* , a screw sloop commissioned in 186 ...
crashed in southeastern Ohio. US Army general Billy Mitchell
William Lendrum Mitchell (December 29, 1879 – February 19, 1936) was a United States Army officer who is regarded as the father of the United States Air Force.
Mitchell served in France during World War I and, by the conflict's end, command ...
accused the War
War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...
and Navy Departments of causing the accident through "criminal negligence." The army brought court-martial
A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...
charges against Mitchell. Due to public pressure President Coolidge created a Board of Aeronautic Inquiry chaired by Dwight Morrow
Dwight Whitney Morrow (January 11, 1873October 5, 1931) was an American businessman, diplomat, and politician, best known as the U.S. ambassador who improved U.S.-Mexican relations, mediating the religious conflict in Mexico known as the Cristero ...
.[
]
On September 11, 1925 Durand learned over the radio that Coolidge had appointed him to the board. The board was tasked to study aeronautics in relation to national defense and advise the president on policy to develop aircraft in time of war. The board was composed of Morrow as chairman, U. S. Judge Arthur C. Denison as vice chairman, Durand as secretary, Hiram Bingham, James S. Parker
James Southworth Parker (June 3, 1867 – December 19, 1933) was a United States Representative from New York.
Life
Born in Great Barrington, Berkshire County, Massachusetts, he attended the public schools and was graduated from Cornell Univ ...
, Carl Vinson
Carl Vinson (November 18, 1883 – June 1, 1981) was an American politician who served in the U.S. House of Representatives for over 50 years and was influential in the 20th century expansion of the U.S. Navy. He was a member of the Democratic ...
, Maj. Gen. James G. Harbord
Lieutenant General James Guthrie Harbord (March 21, 1866 – August 20, 1947) was a senior officer of the United States Army and president and chairman of the board of RCA.
Early life
Harbord was born in Bloomington, Illinois, the son of Geo ...
(ret.), Rear Admiral Frank F. Fletcher (ret.), and Howard E. Coffin.[
]
The first meeting of the board was held at the White House where Durand was chosen to be secretary of the board. After weeks of meetings receiving expert testimony and conferring the board submitted a report to the President recommending a near term development plan for military and naval aircraft. The report further recommended the creation of the offices of Assistant Secretary for Military and for Naval aircraft within the War and Navy Departments.[
]
Guggenheim Fund
In 1926 or 1927 Durand was invited by Daniel Guggenheim
Daniel Guggenheim (July 9, 1856 – September 28, 1930) was an American mining magnate and philanthropist, and a son of Meyer and Barbara Guggenheim. By 1910 he directed the world's most important group of mining interests. He was forced out ...
to join the Board of Trustees of the Daniel Guggenheim Fund for the Promotion of Aeronautics
The Daniel Guggenheim Fund for the Promotion of Aeronautics was established by Daniel Guggenheim and his son, Harry Guggenheim on June 16, 1926. Between 1926 and 1930 the fund disbursed $3 million, making grants that established schools or researc ...
. The board asked Durand to make recommendations on the proposal of creating an encyclopedia of aeronautics. Durand determined quickly that the overall field of aeronautics was still developing very rapidly and an encyclopedic overview would rapidly become obsolete. He recommended instead that fluid mechanics theory and its application to aeronautics was mature and stable enough for an encyclopedia. The board agreed, tasking Durand to direct and supervise the effort. Durand worked on the encyclopedia full-time for the next six years. He sailed to Europe and met Theodore von Kármán
Theodore von Kármán ( hu, ( szőllőskislaki) Kármán Tódor ; born Tivadar Mihály Kármán; 11 May 18816 May 1963) was a Hungarian-American mathematician, aerospace engineer, and physicist who was active primarily in the fields of aeronaut ...
of Aachen University
RWTH Aachen University (), also known as North Rhine-Westphalia Technical University of Aachen, Rhine-Westphalia Technical University of Aachen, Technical University of Aachen, University of Aachen, or ''Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hoch ...
to find the best qualified authors. Twenty five authors wrote twenty divisions in six volumes for a total of 2200 pages. No American publisher was willing to print the encyclopedia due to concern of the number of potential sales. Springer & Co. of Berlin agreed to publish the volumes in English.
The final volume was published in 1936.[
During World War II there was renewed demand for the encyclopedia and a second printing was made by photo-offset printing at the ]California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
.[
]
Propeller research
In 1926 Durand and E. P. Leslie reported on comparisons of propeller
A propeller (colloquially often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon ...
efficiency
Efficiency is the often measurable ability to avoid wasting materials, energy, efforts, money, and time in doing something or in producing a desired result. In a more general sense, it is the ability to do things well, successfully, and without ...
in a wind tunnel
Wind tunnels are large tubes with air blowing through them which are used to replicate the interaction between air and an object flying through the air or moving along the ground. Researchers use wind tunnels to learn more about how an aircraft ...
versus free flight.[W .F. Durand & E. P. Leslie (1926]
Comparison of tests on air propellers in flight with wind tunnel model tests on similar forms
National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) was a United States federal agency founded on March 3, 1915, to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958, the agency was dissolved and its assets ...
# 220 Leslie tested seven propellers with a VE-7. Durand's wind tunnel model showed similar efficiency to Leslie's measurements, but lagged by 6% to 10% in thrust developed and power absorbed.
Colorado River, Special Committee on Airships,
In 1927 Durand became a member of a board of advisers to the Secretary of Work of the United States Department of the Interior
The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the mana ...
. The board was tasked to survey the Colorado River
The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid drainage basin, watershed that encompasses parts of ...
to find solutions to annual flooding, silting, the development of hydroelectric power
Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...
, and water usage for irrigation and by cities such as Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
.[
On 12 February 1935 The US Navy rigid ]airship
An airship or dirigible balloon is a type of aerostat or lighter-than-air aircraft that can navigate through the air under its own power. Aerostats gain their lift from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air.
In early ...
USS Macon crashed in a storm off Point Sur
Point Sur State Historic Park is a California State Park on the Big Sur coastline of Monterey County, California, United States, south of Rio Road in Carmel. The 1889 Point Sur Lighthouse is on the National Register of Historic Places.
History ...
, California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
. Investigations were conducted by a Naval Board of Inquiry
Naval Board of Inquiry and Naval Court of Inquiry are two types of investigative court proceedings, conducted by the United States Navy in response to an event that adversely affects the performance, or reputation, of the fleet or one of its shi ...
and a scientific review board. Science Advisory Board Chairman Karl T. Compton appointed a Special Committee on Airships at the request of Secretary of the Navy Claude Swanson
Claude Augustus Swanson (March 31, 1862July 7, 1939) was an American lawyer and Democratic politician from Virginia. He served as U.S. Representative (1893-1906), Governor of Virginia (1906-1910), and U.S. Senator from Virginia (1910-1933), befor ...
. Members of the committee were Robert A. Millikan
Robert Andrews Millikan (March 22, 1868 – December 19, 1953) was an American experimental physicist honored with the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1923 for the measurement of the Elementary charge, elementary electric charge and for his work on ...
and Theodore von Kármán
Theodore von Kármán ( hu, ( szőllőskislaki) Kármán Tódor ; born Tivadar Mihály Kármán; 11 May 18816 May 1963) was a Hungarian-American mathematician, aerospace engineer, and physicist who was active primarily in the fields of aeronaut ...
of Caltech, William Hovgaard William Hovgaard (born 1857, Aarhus, Denmark d. 1950, Summit, New Jersey) was a Danish, later Danish American professor of naval design and construction at Massachusetts Institute of Technology until his retirement in 1933.
Hovgaard was one of the ...
of M.I.T., Durand and Stephen Timoshenko
Stepan Prokofyevich Timoshenko (russian: Степан Прокофьевич Тимошенко, p=sʲtʲɪˈpan prɐˈkofʲjɪvʲɪtɕ tʲɪmɐˈʂɛnkə; uk, Степан Прокопович Тимошенко, Stepan Prokopovych Tymoshenko; ...
of Stanford, Frank B. Jewett
Frank Baldwin Jewett (; September 5, 1879 – November 18, 1949) worked as an engineer for American Telegraph and Telephone where his work demonstrated transatlantic radio telephony using a vacuum-tube transmitter. He was also a physicist and ...
of Bell Telephone Laboratories, and Charles F. Kettering
Charles Franklin Kettering (August 29, 1876 – November 25, 1958) sometimes known as Charles Fredrick Kettering was an American inventor, engineer, businessman, and the holder of 186 patents.
For the list of patents issued to Kettering, see, Le ...
of General Motors. Durand was the chairman.[
]
Ship stabilization
Upon request of the United States Department of the Navy
The United States Department of the Navy (DoN) is one of the three military departments within the Department of Defense of the United States of America. It was established by an Act of Congress on 30 April 1798, at the urging of Secretary o ...
, the National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...
established a committee chaired by Durand to investigate anti-rolling devices on ships. The ability to stabilize a ship such as an aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...
would be extremely useful during the landing of airplanes. The committee established an experimental laboratory at the Brooklyn Navy Yard
The Brooklyn Navy Yard (originally known as the New York Navy Yard) is a shipyard and industrial complex located in northwest Brooklyn in New York City, New York. The Navy Yard is located on the East River in Wallabout Bay, a semicircular bend ...
.[ Dr. Nicolas Minorsky worked on roll stabilization of ships for the navy from 1934 to 1940, designing in 1938 an activated-tank stabilization system into a 5-ton model ship.] A full-scale version of the system was tested in but exhibited control stability problems. Very promising results were beginning to appear when the outbreak of the Second World War interrupted further development as the Hamilton was called to active duty and the 5 ton model was put into storage.[
]
World War II
In March 1941 Chairman of the NACA Vannevar Bush
Vannevar Bush ( ; March 11, 1890 – June 28, 1974) was an American engineer, inventor and science administrator, who during World War II headed the U.S. Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD), through which almost all wartime ...
asked the then 82-year-old Durand to head a committee to study and develop jet propulsion
Jet propulsion is the propulsion of an object in one direction, produced by ejecting a jet of fluid in the opposite direction. By Newton's third law, the moving body is propelled in the opposite direction to the jet. Reaction engines operating o ...
for aircraft. The committee was composed of members from General Electric, Westinghouse, and Allis-Chalmers
Allis-Chalmers was a U.S. manufacturer of machinery for various industries. Its business lines included agricultural equipment, construction equipment, power generation and power transmission equipment, and machinery for use in industrial setti ...
. The committee agreed early that the three companies would work separately developing jet engines to promote diversity in design.[
Chief of the Air Corp ]Henry H. Arnold
Henry Harley Arnold (June 25, 1886 – January 15, 1950) was an American general officer holding the ranks of General of the Army and later, General of the Air Force. Arnold was an aviation pioneer, Chief of the Air Corps (1938–1941), ...
obtained a Whittle jet engine from England which was turned over to the gas turbine division of GE in Lynn, Massachusetts
Lynn is the eighth-largest municipality in Massachusetts and the largest city in Essex County. Situated on the Atlantic Ocean, north of the Boston city line at Suffolk Downs, Lynn is part of Greater Boston's urban inner core. Settled by E ...
for test and copy. General Electric developed this into the J31. Durand witnessed a static test of the engine in Lynn, Massachusetts on July 13, 1942 alongside Sanford A. Moss, the engineer Durand had requested from General Electric for the development of turbosuperchargers during World War I. Moss had retired from GE but worked as a consultant on the jet engine. Durand and Moss spoke to each other of the early development of the turbosupercharger as the manager of the facility recorded their conversation. On October 2, 1941 Durand witnessed the first official flight of the J31 equipped Bell P-59 Airacomet
The Bell P-59 Airacomet was a single-seat, twin jet-engine fighter aircraft that was designed and built by Bell Aircraft during World War II, the first produced in the United States. As the British were further along in jet engine developme ...
at Muroc Army Air Field (today, Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force installation in California. Most of the base sits in Kern County, but its eastern end is in San Bernardino County and a southern arm is in Los Angeles County. The hub of the base is E ...
). Westinghouse developed the J30 engine from this effort. Durand led the jet engine effort from April 2, 1941 to July 7, 1945, at which time Durand was 86 years old[
Also beginning in early spring 1941 Durand chaired the Engineering Division of the National Research Council. Durand split his work days, mornings at the NACA, afternoons at the NRC. Durand was greatly helped by the NRC Division Executive Secretary William H. Kenerson of ]Brown University
Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...
.[
]
References
Research resources
Dams, Papers Concerning Design and Construction, 1903-1956
(3 linear ft.) are housed in th
a
Stanford University Libraries
William F. Durand Papers, 1893-1979
(1.25 linear ft.) are housed in th
a
Stanford University Libraries
External links
National Academy of Sciences Biographical Memoir
William Frederick Durand U.S.S. Mayflower Journal of Practice Cruise, 1879 MS 348
held by Special Collections & Archives, Nimitz Library at the United States Naval Academy
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Durand, William F.
1859 births
1958 deaths
American mechanical engineers
American marine engineers
United States Naval Academy alumni
Lafayette College alumni
Michigan State University faculty
Cornell University faculty
Stanford University School of Engineering faculty
Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
People from Beacon Falls, Connecticut
ASME Medal recipients
John Fritz Medal recipients
Medal for Merit recipients