HISTORY

A Sampling from the Archives of the Rochester Engineering Society.

1897 - 1976

by Lee M. Loomis

Continuing with the historical sampling of the earlier writings on behalf of the Rochester Engineering Society, the years following "The Great War", into and through the “Great Depression”, continued to be a time of reaching out for the maturing Society, both locally and nationally. The meeting minutes describe a series of technical discussions and presentations intended to broaden the technical horizons of the membership (especially the CE's, ME's and EE's). The RES affiliated itself with a number of National technical societies, adopted local Affiliated Societies, frequently held joint meetings with them and continued taking action on a growing list of public matters. Certain issues of standardization, some crucial to public safety, became the responsibility of the RES and its affiliates. In the pervasive economic downturn of the “Great Depression”, the magazine offered classified advertising for unemployed engineers, technicians and draftsmen and took other steps to try to deal with the crisis. Still, it continued its effort to shape the function, focus and infrastructure of the City of Rochester, and beyond. World War, again affected the Society, taking away many of its leaders while providing opportunities for others to step forward to fill these vacancies. In an effort to provide even greater perspective on the happenings and concerns of the day, a synopsis, featuring selected items from "The Rochester Engineer" has become an integral part of this series. The Second World War, the Korean Conflict, and the Vietnam War are now history. These experiences have changed the face of and will, no doubt, influence the future of the community. The Rochester municipal leadership and the industrial community have become immersed in the cold-war, growth economy.

October 20, 1976 (Board Meeting, Chamber of Commerce) The Board approved two Regular Membership and two Junior Membership applications. It was announced that, at RES

Member Fred Buja’s request, RES President Jack Corson would be speaking at the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) November Board meeting to discuss the “Goals and Accomplishments of the RES”. RES Director James Sterlace reported that the Greece Central School District had requested a few engineers be invited to visit and advise 11th and 12th grade students who are interested in careers in engineering. Advisors are still being sought for an RES Explorers Post. RES Past President Dr. Richard Kenyon reported that the National Science Foundation (NSF) has officially granted $15,000 in funding for the first eight months the Society’s “Technology Transfer” program. Office space would need to be found for the NSF Program Manager. RES First VP Richard Blazey reported that the RES Energy Contest Awards had been presented at the October RES luncheon meeting. It was recommended that RES Member Gordon Keenan received a letter of thanks from the Society for his coordination of the contest. RES Director Richard Rice reported that his section of the Clean Cities Program would have recommendations for updating the City of Rochester’s litter ordinance, by early spring 1977.

“The Rochester Engineer” (October 1976)

Recently appointed (1976) Director Monroe County’s Pure Waters Division, Gerald McDonald provided a summary and perspective on the County’s Pure Waters Program. Evolving from 1961 NY State legislation, the County was in the midst of a massive ($700M) public works project. Funded by the Federal Gov’t (75%), NY State (12.5%) and the County (12.5%), this project would eventually eliminate sewage discharges from 34 local, overloaded or antiquated treatment plants into area streams, ponds and rivers. Monroe County communities, and especially the City of Rochester, had (continued to have) characteristic, 19th/20th Century combined sewage/ rainwater drainage systems, which would routinely overflow into local water bodies (including the Genesee River) following rain events. Eventually, this project would include construction of the Northwest Quadrant District (NWQD) facilities (1972), construction/expansion of the Frank E. VanLare (FEV) Wastewater Treatment facilities (1976) and construction of the Gates-Chili-Ogden (GCO) Sewage Treatment Plant (1977). The project would also result in the construction/boring of nearly 40 miles of interceptor sewers, including several 15’ diameter tunnels which would serve as sewage/stormwater storage facilities for the sewage/rainwater, during extended rain events. Mr. McDonald acknowledged in his article that there had recently been significant odor problems at the FEV facilities, but that these were in the process of being dealt with, successfully. In his insightful article, “Why Should an Engineer Get Involved in Politics?”, RES Member William C. Larsen, PE, reminded us that engineering is an ancient profession, with it roots in the design/ construction of fortifications for protection during wars. It was later that engineering skills were necessary for the design/construction of canals, irrigation systems, bridges, buildings, aqueducts, and rudimentary sanitation systems, for the good of civil governments. “If engineers have been so involved in the building of civilization, why aren’t more of them political leaders?”, he asked. His answers: “Engineers are not usually sufficiently extroverted, happier when they are solving problems, they are not given to snap judgements, preferring to gather facts, consider alternatives, arrive at thought-out conclusions, and they are more intellectually honest, a characteristic developed during their formal education years.” In summary, he said that engineers are often not suited for the compromising, unscientific, vague world of politics. Mr. Larsen then suggested that there is a need, in legislative bodies, for people with analytically-trained minds, organized thought processes, people capable of making rational, not necessarily popular, judgements. At this point in US history, there were 220 lawyers, but only two engineers, in the House of Representatives. He went on to say, “Lawyers are not trained to be experts in scientific fields; they are trained to be adjudicators of differences and drafters of laws. They depend on experts to tell them what is right. Historically, problem solving has been the role of the engineer…intellectually, this is the role of the engineer. The political scene could use more of us.” In his article, “Explorer Scouts and the RES”, RES Member Robert Freitag, provides a summary of the past year’s engineering careers exploration activities of Explorer Post 523, including, Eastman Kodak Company Paper Mill tour (mechanical, chemical, electrical, instrumentation), Channel 21 (electrical, communications), Erdman & Anthony Consulting Engineers (civil, computer, structural), Delta Laboratories (environmental, pollution control), Monroe County Traffic Engineering Department (traffic, highway), and Rochester Products (mechanical, industrial, electrical). Sponsoring an Explorer Post provides an opportunity for RES Members to impart to young people the importance of technical societies, a means for sharing vocational interests, interpret the responsibilities of citizenship, and support youth in their search for meaningful, rewarding career options.

Subsequent articles in this series will describe the RES' continuing outreach to other technical societies as it considered its role in this and the larger community, along with more of the activities of the RES as it moved to be of greater service to its membership, especially those suffering from current economic crises, and adopted a greater role in shaping the future of the City and its environs. Noted also, will be the contributions made by RES members in the struggle to meet the challenges coming out of World War II and the Korean Conflict, as well as a hoped-for period of post-war growth and prosperity. These articles will also feature an impressive array of RES activities in support of post-war re-emergence of Rochester area industry, and the continuing prosperity of the second-half of the 20th Century. We welcome your questions and comments on this series.