Charles Ellet Jr.
Charles Ellet Jr. (1 January 1810 – 21 June 1862) was an American civil engineer from Pennsylvania who designed and constructed major canals, suspension bridges and railroads. He designed and supervised construction of the Wheeling Suspension Bridge, the longest suspension bridge in the world, from 1849 to 1851. He conducted the first Federal survey of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers as part of the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Charles Ellet Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 1, 1810 Bucks County, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | June 21, 1862 (aged 52) Cairo, Illinois, U.S. |
| Buried | Laurel Hill Cemetery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Service/ | Union Army |
| Years of service | 1862 |
| Rank | Colonel |
| Commands held | United States Ram Fleet |
| Battles/wars | American Civil War |
| Relations | Mary Virginia Ellet Cabell (daughter) Charles R. Ellet (son) Alfred W. Ellet (brother) John A. Ellet (nephew) |
Ellet published multiple books and essays on wide-ranging topics including macroeconomic theory, suspension bridge construction, railroad construction, river flood control and steam powered battery rams.
During the American Civil War, Ellet received a commission as colonel and created and commanded the United States Ram Fleet, a Union Army unit of ram ships converted from commercial steamers. His ram ships played a critical role in the Union naval victory at the First Battle of Memphis. He was wounded during the battle (the only casualty on the Union side) and died soon after.