The Role of the United States Military Academy at West Point in the Formation of America’s Engineering Profession (1802 to 1850)

Bibliographic Data

ID6148231
AuthorsSian Zelbo (0000-0002-3819-6104, Columbia University, corresponding author)
Year2023
Volume38
Issue2
Pages217-240
Publication date2023-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueHistoire & Mesure (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0982-1783 • E-ISSN: 1957-7745
PublisherOpenEdition (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.4000/histoiremesure.20113
OpenAlexW4393326304
LanguageEN
References cited9

The United States Military Academy at West Point, founded in 1802, produced the nation’s first academically trained engineers and far more graduates than any other engineering program in America in the first half of the 19th century. Although these statistics suggest that the school had a profound effect on the engineering community at that time, the country in fact had a vibrant community of engineering practitioners who operated wholly apart from university engineering programs. This study explores the relationship between West Point and the engineering profession in the United States using data on the careers of the school’s graduates. It shows that despite the prestige and influence of West Point in elite circles, its role in shaping the engineering profession as a whole during these years was likely modest

Economic history · Political science · Historical Studies in Science · History · History and Developments in Astronomy · Public Administration · Research, Science, and Academia

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