Pete Sigmund - Mon June 04, 2007
Triumph, Tragedy Mark Boston’s Big Dig Project
(Editor’s Note: This article is the last in a 10-part series on iconic United States construction projects.)One highway project stands out in the history of U.S. construction for its complexity, problems and ultimate achievement: Boston’s “Big Dig.”Now 99 percent complete, this excavation, tunneling, and road and bridge project has burrowed underneath the length of Boston....
Pete Sigmund - Mon March 12, 2007
Hand-Built Railroad Defines, Unites Nation
(Editor’s Note: This article is the ninth in an occasional series on iconic United States construction projects.)The Transcontinental Railroad, built almost entirely by hand in the 1860s, and conquering terrible obstacles, including Native American attacks, has often been called the greatest construction achievement in the United States during the 19th century....
Pete Sigmund - Mon February 05, 2007
The Mighty Mac: A Sublime Engineering Feat
The “Mighty Mac,” the strong, graceful, bridge, which spans the Straits of Mackinac in Michigan, is one of the nation’s greatest bridge-building achievements of the 20th century, uniquely conquering wind, waves and ice over its 5-mi....
Pete Sigmund - Mon November 13, 2006
Hoover Dam: A Symbol of Simple Strength
(Editor’s Note: This article is the seventh in an occasional series on iconic United States construction projects.)In 1931, while the United States was flat on its back in the Great Depression, the country rose from the mat, flexed its muscles and began building the mighty Hoover Dam, not only taming the angry, flood-prone, Colorado River but also demonstrating the distressed nation’s determination to survive economic fear....
Pete Sigmund - Mon October 16, 2006
Crossing the Chesapeake: A Modern Marvel
(Editor’s Note: This article is the sixth in an occasional series on iconic United States construction projects.)In 1961, I often took the “Kiptopeke — Little Creek Ferry” across the mouth of Chesapeake Bay on weekends because my job was covering the Mercury astronauts at Langley Air Force Base, Va., and my future wife lived in Riverton, N.J....
Pete Sigmund - Mon September 18, 2006
The Mother of All Dirty Jobs: Sandhogs Burrow Deep Beneath New York City
(Editor's Note: This article is part of an occasional series that takes a look back at iconic United States construction projects. It originally appeared in the pages of CEG in September of 2006.)One of the world's largest and most critical construction projects is moving along foot by foot in New York City, unseen and as deep as 800 ft....
Pete Sigmund - Mon August 21, 2006
Alaska Pipeline Cuts Through Last Frontier
(Editor’s Note: This article is the fourth in an occasional series on iconic United States construction projects.)The Trans-Alaska Pipeline System is not only one of the most remarkable and difficult construction feats in U.S....
Pete Sigmund - Tue July 25, 2006
’Driving Fever’ Spreads Across Lincoln Highway
(Editor's Note: This article is the third in an occasional series on iconic United States construction projects.)"Hi there, neighbor, going my way? East or West on the Lincoln Highway?" — Song introducing The Lincoln Highway radio broadcasts in 1940....
Pete Sigmund - Tue June 27, 2006
NYC’s Central Park: An American Masterpiece
Editor's Note: This article is the second in an occasional series on iconic United States construction projects.)Update: We revisit Central Park here. Building New York City's Central Park in the 19th century from the ground up was a mammoth manual grading and beautifying construction project that produced what many consider to be the century's greatest work of American art....
Pete Sigmund - Fri June 02, 2006
The Golden Gate: ’The Bridge That Couldn’t Be Built’
The Golden Gate Bridge, hanging gracefully on its cables over the wide, dark blue strait between the city of San Francisco and the green and brown hills of Marin County, exemplifies construction excellence....
