William Milnor Roberts (February 12, 1810 in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 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 ...

– July 14, 1881 in Soledad, Brazil)An Obituary Notice of William Milnor Roberts, Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, Vol. 20, No. 111 (Jan. - Jun., 1882), pp. 199-202, Published by: American Philosophical Society, Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/982713, Page Count: 4 was an American

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 ...

. Roberts was one of the most prolific and prominent civil engineer of his generation in the United States. As a young

, he was involved in the construction of the

Eads Bridge The Eads Bridge is a combined road and railway bridge over the Mississippi River connecting the cities of St. Louis, Missouri and East St. Louis, Illinois. It is located on the St. Louis riverfront between Laclede's Landing, to the north, and t ...

, held the title of the chief engineer of

Northern Pacific Railroad The Northern Pacific Railway was a transcontinental railroad that operated across the northern tier of the western United States, from Minnesota to the Pacific Northwest. It was approved by 38th United States Congress, Congress in 1864 and given ...

,“WILLIAM MILNOR ROBERTS: Retired Utilities Executive, 81, Kin of Railroad Builders, Dead.” New York Times, April 4, 1946. and was president of the

American Society of Civil Engineers American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

scarcely two decades after its founding,

Early life and career

William was born to Thomas Paschall and Mary Louise (Baker) Roberts in 1810. William was educated in private schools in

. He spent two terms taking a special course in mathematics taught by Joseph Roberts, a prominent mathematician, and a course in architectural drawing under John Haviland at the Franklin Institute. William pursued a career in civil engineering on the advice of Samuel Mifflin, the then president of the Union Canal Company of Pennsylvania and friend of his father. He took up employment at the Union Canal of Pennsylvania in the spring of 1825. At the age of 18, William was promoted to the head of the team in charge of the most difficult section of the Lehigh Canal. William continued to further his education, focusing on mathematics, after beginning his career in engineering.

Career

* Roberts served as an assistant in survey and construction,

Lehigh Canal The Lehigh Canal, or the Lehigh Navigation Canal, is a navigable canal that begins at the mouth of Nesquehoning Creek on the Lehigh River in eastern Pennsylvania. It was built in two sections over a span of twenty years, beginning in 1818. The low ...

, between

Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania Jim Thorpe is a borough and the county seat of Carbon County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. It is historically known as the burial site of Native American sports legend Jim Thorpe. Jim Thorpe is loc ...

and Philadelphia. From 1831 to 1834 he served as senior assistant engineer for the proposed Allegheny Portage Railroad, and general manager from 1834 to 1835. * Roberts served as a chief engineer in Lancaster and Harrisburg in 1837. He was in charge of construction of a two-level lattice-truss bridge across the

Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River (; Lenape: Siskëwahane) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, overlapping between the lower Northeast and the Upland South. At long, it is the longest river on the East Coast of the ...

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in Pe ...

. * From 1834 to 1840 Roberts was in charge of extensions of Pennsylvania Canals; Bellefontaine and Indiana, Allegheny Valley, Atlantic and Mississippi, and Iron Mountain. He was a Chairman of the Commission to Consider Reconstruction of Allegheny Portage; he constructed railroads in the Middle West from 1855 to 1857. In 1865 Roberts was contracted to build Don Pedro Segundo,

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. In 1866, William proposed improvements to the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

Keokuk, Iowa Keokuk is a city in and a county seat of Lee County, Iowa, United States, along with Fort Madison. It is Iowa's southernmost city. The population was 9,900 at the time of the 2020 census. The city is named after the Sauk chief Keokuk, who is ...

. * Roberts served as associate chief engineer in construction of

across Mississippi River at St. Louis in 1868. In 1869 to 1879 he served as engineer-in-chief of the

. In 1878 -1879, William led the survey party that explored the cascade mountain passes for route location. *Roberts was elected as a member to the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

in 1876. From 1879 to 1881 Roberts served as a member of the Mississippi River Jetty Commission and chief engineer, all public works in Brazil. From 1873 to 1878 Roberts served as vice-president of the

. * In 1878 he served as president of the

.“University of Washington, Seattle (UW), College of Mines Hall, Seattle, WA.” PCAD, 2012. http://pcad.lib.washington.edu/building/8774/.

Works

*Cumberland Valley Railroad Company, & Roberts, W. M. (1835). ''Report of William Milnor Roberts, chief engineer of the Cumberland Valley Rail Road Company, made to the Board, on the 23d Oct., 1835''. Philadelphia: J.C. Clark, printer. *Harrisburg, Portsmouth, Mount Joy, and Lancaster Railroad Company., & Roberts, W. M. (1836). ''Report of the chief engineer to the president and directors of the Harrisburg and Lancaster Rail Road Company''. Middletown, Pa: Harrisburg and Lancaster Railroad Company. *Cumberland Valley Railroad Company. (1837). ''Second report of William Milnor Roberts chief engineer of the Cumberland valley rail road company, made to the Board, 29th December 1836''. Chambersburg, Pa: Hickok & Blood. OCLC Number: 84618930 (Roberts also made a third report to the Board in 1837, see OCLC Number: 950908210 *Roberts, W. M., & Clark, J. C. (1838). ''Third annual report of W. Milnor Roberts, chief engineer of the Harrisburg and Lancaster Railroad Company: Made to the board, January 8th, 1838.'' Philadelphia: Printed by John C. Clark. *Roberts, W. M. (1846). Report to the Board of directors: ''On the Sandy & Beaver Canal. New Lisbon, Ohio'': J. Wilkinson, printer. *Roberts, W. M., Columbia-Philadelphia Railroad., & Pennsylvania. (1848). ''Report of W. Milnor Roberts, Esq., (civil engineer,) on the survey of a route to avoid the Schuylkill inclined plane, on the Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad'': Authorized by the act of the eleventh April, eighteen hundred and forty-eight, entitled "An act to provide for the ordinary expenses of government," &c. Philadelphia?: publisher not identified. *Roberts, W. M. (1850). ''Report on the preliminary surveys for the Bellefontaine & Indiana rail road company''. Pittsburgh,Pa.: Printed by Johnson & Stockton. See als

for map of railroad *Allegheny Valley Railroad Company., & Haven, W. S. (1853). ''Report on the surveys of the Allegheny Valley rail road: Read before the president and board, July 26, 1853''. Pittsburg: Printed by W.S. Haven. OCLC Number: 10807508 *Roberts, W. M., Erie and North East Railroad Company., & Constitution Book and Job Office (Firm). (1856). ''Report relative to the surveys of routes for the Pittsburg and Erie rail road'': Read at a meeting of the stockholders of the Erie and North East Rail Road Company at Erie, July 8, 1856. Erie, Penn: Printed at the Constitution Book and Job Office. *Roberts, W. M. (1856). ''Improvement of the Ohio River.'' Pittsburgh: Published by order of the Board of Trade. *Roberts, W. M., & Jay Cooke & Co. (1866). ''Report on the present state and prospects of the North Missouri Railroad: Upon examinations made for Messrs. Jay Cooke & Co.'' by W. Milnor Roberts, consulting engineer, June, 1866. Philadelphia: McLaughlin Bros. *Roberts, W. M. (1868). ''Report of W. Milnor Roberts, consulting engineer, to the president and managers of the Erie Canal Company of Pennsylvania.'' Erie, Pa: Republican Print. *Roberts, W. M., & Jay Cooke & Co. (1869).''Special Report of a reconnoissance icof the route for the Northern Pacific Railroad between Lake Superior and Puget Sound via the Columbia River'', Philadelphia?: J. Cooke & Co.?. *Roberts, W. M., Flad, H., & Whitman, T. J. (1869). ''Preliminary report with reference to extension of the new Pittsburgh Water Works.'' *Northern Pacific Railroad Company., Roberts, W. M., & Joseph Meredith Toner Collection (Library of Congress). (1874). ''Report of the chief engineer on the unfinished portion of the Northern Pacific Railroad: Made to the president of the company'', April 27, 1874. New York: Evening Post Steam Presses. *Roberts, W. M., (1874), ''Engineering'', Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers, 1874, Vol. II, Issue 1, Pg. 69-80 *Philadelphia (Pa.)., & Roberts, W. M. (1875). ''Report on the water supply for the city of Philadelphia'': Made by the commission of engineers appointed by the mayor under the ordinance of councils, approved June 5, 1875. Philadelphia: E.C. Markley & Son, printers. *Roberts, W. M., (1878) ''Reminiscences and experiences of Early Engineering Operations on Railroads, With Special Reference to Steep Inclines'', Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers, 1878, Vol. VII, Issue 1, Pg. 197-215 *''Relatorio de W. Milnor Roberts, engenheiro chefe da Commissão hydraulica sobre o exame do Rio S. Francisco: Desde o mar até a cachoeira de Pirapóra : extensão de 2.122 kilometros : feito em 1879-1880''.Roberts, W. M., Roberts, W. M., Derby, O. A., & Sampaio, T. (1880), Rio de Janeiro: Typographia nacional.

Family

William married Annie Gibson in June, 1837. They had six children together, including his son Milnor Roberts. Anne died in 1857. William later married Adeline de Beelen-Bertholff in November, 1868, and the couple had four children.

Death

William died of typhoid fever in Soledad, Brazil on July 14, 1881.

Legacy

Milnor, North Dakota Milnor is a city in Sargent County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 624 at the 2020 census. History Milnor was founded in 1883 and officially named the same year. The city was named after William Edward Milnor, the first telegra ...

, was named after several individuals associated with the Northern Pacific (NP) railroad, William Edward Milnor, the first telegrapher at the NP's Milnor Station, and William Milnor Roberts, the chief engineer of the railroad.Milnor History Book,2008 Accessed a

See also Congressional Record material a

/ref> * In 1923, the engineering building on the Montana State College campus was named in his honor. * William Milnor Roberts' papers are now held by the

Montana State University Archives and Special Collections The Montana State University Archives and Special Collections, also known as the Merrill G. Burlingame Archives and Special Collections, is located in Bozeman, Montana. The archives is on the second floor of the Renne Library on the Montana State U ...

.Scott, Kim Allen. “Historical Note.” William Milnor Roberts Papers, 1828-1959. Montana State University, Special Collections and Archival Informatics, 2010.

References

7. Zagros Mountains, Iran - Geographical Names, Map, Geographic Coordinates, geographic.org/geographic_names/name.php?uni=-946848&fid=821&c=brazil.

Bibliography

*Smalley, E. V. (1883). History of the Northern Pacific Railroad. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons

accessed a

*''The National Cyclopedia of American Biography.'' (1940) New York: James T. White, p. 447. *Nolan, E. W., & Roberts, W. M. (1971). ''Exploring the Northern Pacific Railroad route: W. Milnor Roberts' letters from the expedition of 1869''. M.A. University of Oregon, OCLC Number:10282350 *Lubetkin, M. John. (2014) ''Jay Cooke's Gamble: The Northern Pacific Railroad, the Sioux, and the Panic of 1873''. University of Oklahoma Press.

External links

* * http://www.lib.montana.edu/archives/finding-aids/0783.html