Ralph Modjeski
Ralph Modjeski (born January 27, 1861 as Rudolf Modrzejewski in Bochnia near Krakow ; † June 26, 1940 in Los Angeles ) was a Polish -born American engineer who was best known for his bridges .
Life
Rudolf Modrzejewski was the illegitimate son of Helena Modrzejewska , a well-known theater actress and Gustav Sinnmayer (or Gustaw Zimajer), a friend of the family. At the age of 15 he went to the United States with his mother and her husband Karol Chłapowski.
He went to Paris to study , where he graduated from the École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées in 1885 as the best in his class. In 1883 he took American citizenship and changed his name to Ralph Modjeski. In 1885 he returned to America and married Felicie Benda of Polish descent, with whom he had three children. In 1931 he married Virginia Mary Giblyn. Until his death he maintained contacts with his old homeland.
Modjeski was involved in various projects, especially on numerous bridges, in the USA. In 1895 he opened his own engineering office in Chicago . His first project as a freelance chief engineer was the Government Bridge over the Mississippi between Rock Island in Illinois and Davenport , Iowa. In 1907 he took over the construction management of the misconstructed Québec Bridge after 75 workers had an accident on the construction site. To this day it is the longest cantilever truss bridge in the world.
Ralph Modjeski is recognized as "America's greatest bridge builder". He received many awards, including the John Fritz Medal in 1930 . In 1925 he was elected to the National Academy of Sciences .
He died on June 26, 1940 in Los Angeles, California.
In his honor, the Vistula Bridge near Fordon in today's Bydgoszcz , which was destroyed in the Second World War and then rebuilt by Poland according to a design by Jerzy Szaniawski, was named Rudolf Modrzejewski Bridge in 2008 .
Important projects
- Chief engineer
- Government Bridge (1896)
- Thebes Bridge (1905)
- Crooked River Railroad Bridge (1911)
- Oregon Trunk Rail Bridge (1912)
- Harahan Bridge (1916)
- Keokuk Municipal Bridge (1916)
- Benjamin Franklin Bridge (1926)
- Tacony – Palmyra Bridge (1929)
- Mid-Hudson Bridge (1930)
- Huey P. Long Bridge (1935)
- Involved engineer
- Frisco Bridge (1892)
- Manhattan Bridge (1909)
- Market Street Bridge (1928)
- Ambassador Bridge (1929)
- San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge (1936)
Web links
- Curriculum vitae of Ralph Modjeski (English)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Modjeski, Ralph |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Modrzejewski, Rudolf |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American bridge construction engineer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 27, 1861 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Bochnia , now Poland |
| DATE OF DEATH | June 26, 1940 |
| Place of death | Los Angeles , USA |