William Howe (May 12, 1803 – September 9, 1852) was an American architect and bridge builder famous for patenting the

Howe truss A Howe truss is a truss bridge consisting of chords, verticals, and diagonals whose vertical members are in tension and whose diagonal members are in compression. The Howe truss was invented by William Howe in 1840, and was widely used as a bridg ...

design for bridges in 1840.

Life and career

William Howe was born on May 12, 1803, in

Spencer, Massachusetts Spencer is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,992 at the 2020 census. For geographic and demographic information on the census-designated place Spencer, please see the article Spencer (CDP), Massach ...

, to Elijah and Fanny ( Bemis) Howe. His father owned a sawmill, He was a hard-working child, and learned carpentry and construction at an early age. After successfully completing an apprenticeship in carpentry, he enrolled and graduated from Leicester Academy in

Leicester, Massachusetts Leicester ( ) is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts. The population was 11,087 at the 2020 United States Census. History What is now Leicester was originally settled by the Nipmuc people and was known by them as ''Towtaid''. On January 27 ...

. Howe married Azubah Stone, daughter of a

Charlton, Massachusetts Charlton is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 13,315 at the 2020 census. History Charlton was first settled in 1735. It was established as a District separated from Oxford on January 10, 1755, and b ...

, farmer (and sister of

Amasa Stone Amasa Stone, Jr. (April 27, 1818 – May 11, 1883) was an American industrialist who is best remembered for having created a regional railroad empire centered in the U.S. state of Ohio from 1860 to 1883. He gained fame in New England in the 184 ...

) in 1828. The Howe family was an inventive one. Howe's nephew,

Elias Howe Elias Howe Jr. (; July 9, 1819October 3, 1867) was an American inventor best known for his creation of the modern lockstitch sewing machine. Early life Elias Howe Jr. was born on July 9, 1819, to Dr. Elias Howe Sr. and Polly (Bemis) Howe in ...

, patented the first viable sewing machine. Howe's older brother, Tyler Howe, invented the box spring bed. William Howe established a career as a construction contractor, building homes and churches. He was particularly well-known for his churches. But bridges were his primary interest, and he founded the Howe Bridge Works in 1840. In 1840, Howe was engaged to build a railroad bridge over the Connecticut River in Springfield, Massachusetts. This famous bridge was of a new, influential design—the

bridge, which Howe patented in 1840. One of Howe's workmen, Amasa Stone, purchased for $40,000 ($ in dollars) in 1842 the rights to Howe's patented bridge design. (Amasa Stone received financial backing from Azariah Boody, a Springfield businessman.) The rights to the patent extended to bridges and structures erected only in New England. That same year, the two men formed a bridge-building firm, Boody, Stone & Co., which erected a large number of Howe truss bridges throughout

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the Can ...

. Howe made additional improvements, and patented a second Howe truss design in 1846. William Howe suffered a severe carriage accident and died on September 19, 1852. He was buried in Springfield.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Howe, William 1803 births 1852 deaths People from Spencer, Massachusetts Engineers from Massachusetts William Howe 19th-century American architects