Monday is Presidents' Day in the USA. In honor of Washington and all other presidents we will take a look at those who contributed something to engineering or science.
George Washington: Land Surveyor
Washington was America's first president from 1789-1797. He was also a surveyor and a map maker. By the age of 16 he studied geometry and completed practice surveys from a textbook. He also studied surveying in the Blue Ridge Mountains. A year later he became the surveyor of Culpeper County, Virginia. Washington completed 199 surveys in the surrounding area. He's also credited with establishing the U.S. patent system.
Thomas Jefferson: Inventor
Jefferson was president from 1801-1809. Among his inventions are the swivel chair, a macaroni machine, a personal plow (the moldboard), and the cipher wheel.
James Madison: Inventor
Madison was president from 1809-1817. He added a microscope to his walking stick to view small objects on the ground. It was too short for most men to use effectively.
Abraham Lincoln: Land Surveyor
Lincoln was president from 1861-1865. He studied land surveying from books and learned from mentors for six weeks before starting work in Sangamon County, Illinois. He surveyed several towns, roads, school sections, and farm plots. Lincoln also invented a ship with bellows on the hull. He's the only U.S. president to hold a patent, although his invention was never commercialized.
Herbert Hoover: Engineer
Hoover was president from 1929-1933. Before that he was a mining engineer, traveling the world and living in both Australia and China. In 1908 he opened his own mining consultation business. He eventually wrote a textbook on mining engineering.
According to the University of Virginia's Miller Center, "Hoover also applied the ethos of engineering to the world in general, believing that scientific expertise, when employed thoughtfully and properly, led to human progress." You can view some photos of Hoover in action.
An article on the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library Association described engineering as a profession in 1954.
Jimmy Carter: Engineer
Jimmy Carter was president from 1977-1981. Prior to his presidency he served as an engineer in the U.S. Navy working on nuclear-powered submarines. He attended graduate school at Union College in Schenectady, N.Y., (near the CR4 HQ!) where his majors were reactor technology and nuclear physics. While he was based there he worked on developing training materials for a new sub's nuclear propulsion system.
Resources:
George Washington: Surveyor and Mapmaker
Survey History
Miller Center
Naval History & Heritage
ShallowFalls: Presidents Who Were Also Inventors
Invention Mysteries: Which U.S. Presidents were the most successful inventors?
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