Canvass White
Encyclopedia
Canvass White was an American engineer
and inventor. He was chief engineer at the Delaware and Raritan Canal
and he patented a type of hydraulic cement
.
. He received his education at the Fairfield Academy
.
in 1816 working for chief engineer Judge Benjamin Wright. In the autumn of 1817, he travelled to England
to study their canal system. When he returned he patented a type of hydraulic cement
. He continued his work on New York
until 1824. Then from 1824 until the summer of 1826, he was Chief Engineer on the Union Canal (Pennsylvania)
. He was then appointed Chief Engineer of the Delaware and Raritan Canal
in 1825 and of the Lehigh Canal
in 1827. He was also a Consulting Engineer for the Schuylkill Navigation Company and for the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal
. He became President of the Cohoes Company when it was incorporated on March 28, 1826.
Of White, author Bill Bryson
writes, "the great unsung Canvass White didn't just make New York rich, more profoundly, he helped to make America."
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
and inventor. He was chief engineer at the Delaware and Raritan Canal
Delaware and Raritan Canal
The Delaware and Raritan Canal is a canal in central New Jersey, United States, built in the 1830s that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was intended as an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York City,...
and he patented a type of hydraulic cement
Portland cement
Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world because it is a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar, stucco and most non-specialty grout...
.
Birth
He was born on September 8, 1790, in Whitestown, New YorkWhitestown, New York
Whitestown is a town in Oneida County, New York, USA. The population was 18,635 at the 2000 census. The name is derived from Judge Hugh White, an early settler.The Town of Whitestown is immediately west of Utica, New York...
. He received his education at the Fairfield Academy
Fairfield Academy
Fairfield Academy was an academy that existed for nearly one hundred years in the Town of Fairfield, Herkimer County, New York.-Founding:It was organized as an academy for men in 1802, when the community was an active local manufacturing center...
.
Engineer
His first job as an engineer was on the Erie CanalErie Canal
The Erie Canal is a waterway in New York that runs about from Albany, New York, on the Hudson River to Buffalo, New York, at Lake Erie, completing a navigable water route from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. The canal contains 36 locks and encompasses a total elevation differential of...
in 1816 working for chief engineer Judge Benjamin Wright. In the autumn of 1817, he travelled to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
to study their canal system. When he returned he patented a type of hydraulic cement
Portland cement
Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world because it is a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar, stucco and most non-specialty grout...
. He continued his work on New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
until 1824. Then from 1824 until the summer of 1826, he was Chief Engineer on the Union Canal (Pennsylvania)
Union Canal (Pennsylvania)
The Union Canal was a towpath canal that existed in southeastern Pennsylvania in the United States during the 19th century. First proposed in 1690 to connect Philadelphia with the Susquehanna River, it ran approximately 75 mi from Middletown on the Susquehanna below Harrisburg to Reading on...
. He was then appointed Chief Engineer of the Delaware and Raritan Canal
Delaware and Raritan Canal
The Delaware and Raritan Canal is a canal in central New Jersey, United States, built in the 1830s that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was intended as an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York City,...
in 1825 and of the Lehigh Canal
Lehigh Canal
The Lehigh Canal was constructed by the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company to carry anthracite from the upper Lehigh Valley to the urban markets of the northeast, especially Philadelphia...
in 1827. He was also a Consulting Engineer for the Schuylkill Navigation Company and for the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal
Chesapeake and Delaware Canal
The Chesapeake and Delaware Canal is a 14-mile long, 450-foot wide and 40-foot deep ship canal that cuts across the states of Maryland and Delaware, in the United States. It connects the waters of the Delaware River with those of the Chesapeake Bay and the Port of Baltimore...
. He became President of the Cohoes Company when it was incorporated on March 28, 1826.
Of White, author Bill Bryson
Bill Bryson
William McGuire "Bill" Bryson, OBE, is a best-selling American author of humorous books on travel, as well as books on the English language and on science. Born an American, he was a resident of Britain for most of his adult life before moving back to the US in 1995...
writes, "the great unsung Canvass White didn't just make New York rich, more profoundly, he helped to make America."
Further reading
- Whitford's History of New York Canals, (1906), Vol II, page 1170
- Albert C. Jensen; Engineering Clinton's Ditch; Civil Engineering, volume 33, September 1963, pages 48–50
- William Pierrepont White; Canvass White's Services Buffalo Historical Society (1909) volume 13, page 352-366