Rolla Clinton Carpenter C.E. M.M.E. LL.D. (June 26, 1852 – 1919) was an American engineer, academic, and writer.

Carpenter was born in Orion (now Lake Orion

Lake Orion, Michigan

Lake Orion is a village in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,973 at the 2010 census. "Lake Orion" is often used to describe both the village and the much larger Orion Township, of which the village is a part....

), Michigan

Michigan

Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

. He earned a B.S. in 1873 from Michigan State Agricultural College (today, Michigan State University

Michigan State University

Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...

) and later received additional bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Michigan

University of Michigan

The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...

 in 1875. From 1875 to 1890 he was professor of mathematics and civil engineering in the State Agricultural College; while there, he designed and supervised much of the construction at the young school. In 1887, he and Professor William J. Beal

William J. Beal

William James Beal was an American botanist.-Biography:Beal was born in Adrian, Michigan, to William and Rachel Beal, and he married Hannah Proud in 1863. He attended the University of Michigan, which gave him an A.B. degree in 1859 and an A.M. degree in 1862; he also received an S.B. degree...

 laid out "Collegeville", the first neighborhood in what later became the city of East Lansing, Michigan

East Lansing, Michigan

East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located directly east of Lansing, Michigan, the state's capital. Most of the city is within Ingham County, though a small portion lies in Clinton County. The population was 48,579 at the time of the 2010 census, an increase from...

.

He was appointed to a position at Cornell University

Cornell University

Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...

 in 1890. He served as a judge of machinery and transportation at the World's Columbian Exposition

World's Columbian Exposition

The World's Columbian Exposition was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. Chicago bested New York City; Washington, D.C.; and St...

 in 1893. He was president of the American Society of Heating and Ventilating Engineers in 1898. He was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Laws by the Michigan State Agricultural College in 1907.

In addition to numerous scientific papers, he published:

• Heating and Ventilating Buildings: a Manual for Heating Engineers and Architects (1891)
• Instructions for Mechanical Laboratory Practice: Text-Book of Experimental Engineering (1892)
• Internal Combustion Engines: Their Theory, Construction and Operation (1908) (co-author)