- Conde McCullough
-
Conde McCullough 
McCulloughBorn May 30, 1887
Redfield, South Dakota, U.S.Died May 5, 1946 (aged 58)
OregonNationality American Work Buildings Isaac Lee Patterson Bridge
Yaquina Bay Bridge
Alsea Bay BridgeConde Balcom McCullough (1887–1946) was a U.S. bridge engineer who is primarily known for designing many of Oregon's coastal bridges on U.S. Route 101.[1] The native of South Dakota worked for the Oregon Department of Transportation from 1919 to 1935 and 1937 until 1946. McCullough also was a professor at Oregon State University.
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Early life
Conde McCullough was born in Redfield, South Dakota, on May 30, 1887.[2] In 1891, he and his family moved to Iowa where his father died in 1904.[2] McCullough then worked at various jobs to support the family.[2] In 1910, he graduated from Iowa State University with a civil engineering degree.[3]
Career
Yaquina Bay Bridge (1936)
McCullough began working for the Marsh Bridge Company in Des Moines, Iowa, where he remained for one year.[2] He then went to work for the Iowa State Highway Commission.[2] Conde moved to Oregon in 1916 and became an assistant professor of civil engineering at Oregon Agricultural College, and the sole structural engineering professor at the school.[2] In 1919 he became the head of the Bridge Division of the Oregon Department of Transportation, making him personally responsible for the design of Oregon's bridges at a time when the state was completing Highway 101.
His designs are well known for their architectural beauty.[4] McCullough advocated that bridges be built economically, efficiently, and with beauty.[5] He helped design over 600 bridges, many with architectural details such as Gothic spires, art deco obelisks, and Romanesque arches incorporated into the bridges.[6] In 1928, he graduated from Willamette University College of Law and passed the bar the same year.[7] In 1935 he moved to San José, Costa Rica to help design bridges on the Pan-American Highway. He returned to Oregon in 1937 to become the assistant state highway engineer.
Later life and legacy
In 1934 McCullough was granted an honorary doctorate from Oregon State University.[7] He published The Engineer at Law with his son John McCullough who also was an attorney.[7] McCullough died of a stroke at his home on May 5, 1946. After his death the state renamed the Coos Bay Bridge the Conde McCullough Memorial Bridge.
Bridges designed by McCullough
Bridge name Location Year completed Total length Carries Old Youngs Bay Bridge Astoria, Oregon 1921 1,766.2 feet (538.3 m) U.S. Route 101 Oregon City Bridge Oregon City, Oregon 1922 745 feet (227 m) Oregon Route 43 Dry Canyon Creek Bridge near Rowena, Oregon 1922 101.1 ft U.S. Route 30 Winchester Bridge Winchester, Oregon 1923 884 feet Oregon Route 99 Lewis and Clark River Bridge Astoria, Oregon 1924 828 feet U.S. Route 101 North Umpqua River Bridge Winchester, Oregon 1924 784 feet Oregon Route 99 Ellsworth Street Bridge Albany, Oregon 1925 1,090 feet U.S. Route 20 Rocky Creek Bridge Lincoln County, Oregon 1927 360 feet U.S. Route 101 Depoe Bay Bridge Depoe Bay, Oregon 1927 312 feet U.S. Route 101 Crooked River High Bridge Jefferson County, Oregon 1926 464 feet U.S. Route 97 Big Creek Bridge Lane County, Oregon 1931 180 feet U.S. Route 101 Ten Mile Creek Bridge near Yachats, Oregon 1931 180 feet U.S. Route 101 Wilson River Bridge Tillamook County, Oregon 1931 180 feet U.S. Route 101 Rogue River Bridge Grants Pass, Oregon 1931 550 feet Redwood Highway Cape Creek Bridge near Heceta Head 1932 619 feet (188.6 m) U.S. Route 101 Isaac Lee Patterson Bridge Gold Beach, Oregon 1932 1,898 feet (578.5 m) U.S. Route 101 John McLoughlin Bridge Oregon City, Oregon 1933 720 feet Oregon Route 99E Umpqua River Bridge Reedsport, Oregon 1936 2,206 feet U.S. Route 101 Siuslaw River Bridge Florence, Oregon 1936 1,568 feet U.S. Route 101 Alsea Bay Bridge Waldport, Oregon 1936 U.S. Route 101 Yaquina Bay Bridge Newport, Oregon 1936 3,223 feet (982 m) U.S. Route 101 Coos Bay Bridge North Bend, Oregon 1936 5,305 feet (1.6 km) U.S. Route 101 See also
References
- ^ Oregon Department of Transportation (PDF). Spanning Oregon's Coast. http://egov.oregon.gov/ODOT/HWY/GEOENVIRONMENTAL/docs/Historic_Bridge/coastbr.pdf. Retrieved 2006-11-06.
- ^ a b c d e f His Life: From Iowa State to Oregon State. Oregon State University: Civil & Construction Engineering, accessed October 8, 2007.
- ^ Hadlow, Robert W. (2001). Elegant Arches, Soaring Spans: C.B. McCullough, Oregon's Master Bridge Builder. Oregon State University Press. p. 17. ISBN 0-87071-534-8.
- ^ Smith, Dwight A. (1989). Historic Highway Bridges of Oregon. Oregon Historical Society Press. pp. 242–243. ISBN 0-87595-205-4.
- ^ Conde B. McCullough: Oregon's Master Bridge Builder. Oregon Department of Transportation, accessed October 8, 2007.
- ^ Sens, Josh. Oregon Coast Bridges. Via, March 2003.
- ^ a b c Not Just Bridges. Oregon State University: Civil & Construction Engineering, accessed October 8, 2007.
External links
- Conde McCullough in the Oregon Encyclopedia
- American Society of Civil Engineering profile
- Oregon State University profile
- Oregon Blue Book: Notable Oregonians: Conde McCullough
- Conde Balcom McCullough information at Structurae
Categories:- 1887 births
- 1946 deaths
- People from Spink County, South Dakota
- American engineers
- Bridge engineers
- Architects from Oregon
- Oregon State University faculty
- Oregon lawyers
- Willamette University College of Law alumni
- Iowa State University alumni
- History of transportation in Oregon
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