Ashbel Welch (1809–1882) was a prominent American civil engineer and a 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"
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** American ancestry, pe ...
(ASCE) in 1882.ASCE Past and Present Officers, page 116, downloaded a on June 5, 2016.
Early life
On December 4, 1809, Welch was born in
Nelson, New York. Welch's father was Ashbel Welch, Sr. (1764-1826). Welch's mother was Margaret "Peggy" Dorrance Welch (1776-1830).
Welch had two elder brothers Sylvester Welch (1798-1852) and William Welch (1800-1839).
Education
In 1843, he earned an honorary degree of Master of Arts from the College of New Jersey at Princeton, which was renamed to Princeton University in 1896.
Career
In 1826, Welch started his engineering career as a rodman on the Lehigh and Delaware Canal for his brother Sylvester Welch.
In 1830, Welch joined engineers of Canvass White in Trenton, New Jersey on the construction of the
Delaware and Raritan Canal
The Delaware and Raritan Canal (D&R Canal) is a canal in central New Jersey, built in the 1830s, that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadelp ...
. In 1832, Welch was in charge of digging the feeder northwestward from Trenton, New Jersey. Welch selected Lambertville for his headquarters. In 1834, the Delaware and Raritan Canal completed and it opened for business.
In 1836, at age 26, Welch was appointed the chief engineer of the Joint Companies (Delaware and Raritan Canal Company & Camden and Amboy Railroad & Transportation Company).
In 1836, Welch was appointed Chief Engineer of the Philadelphia and Trenton Railroad.
In 1844, Welch traveled to England and supervised the construction of an order of guns for the United States Navy.
In 1863, Welch led the efforts on installation of a block signaling system on the
Camden and Amboy Railroad
The United New Jersey Railroad and Canal Company (UNJ&CC) was a railroad company which began as the important Camden & Amboy Railroad (C&A), whose 1830 lineage began as one of the eight or ten earliest permanent North AmericanList of Earliest Am ...
between Philadelphia and New Brunswick. First in America, The signaling system was a first installation of in America, which later used on all American railroads.
In 1869, Welch became President of the Bel-Del Railroad and the Flemington Railroad.
In 1872, Welch resigned as President of United Companies. Welch became the superintendent of Bel-Del Railroad under Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) management. Welch maintained his duties as a chief engineer.
Personal life
On October 25, 1834, Welch married Mary Hannah Seabrook (1813-1874) in
Lambertville, New Jersey
Lambertville is a city in Hunterdon County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 3,906,Lambertville, New Jersey
Lambertville is a city in Hunterdon County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 3,906, Welch is buried at Mount Hope Cemetery, Lambertville, Hunterdon County, New Jersey, USA.
William H. Rau
William Herman Rau (January 19, 1855 – November 19, 1920) was an American photographer, active primarily in the latter half of the 19th and early 20th centuries. He is best remembered for his stereo cards of sites around the world, and for ...
- photographer who documented scenic views of Pennsylvania RR.
References
Further reading
*Snell, J. P. (1881). History of Hunterdon and Somerset counties, New Jersey: with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers. Philadelphia: Everts & Peck.