John Findley Wallace
(September 10, 1852 ? July 3, 1921) was an American
engineer
and
administrator
, best known for serving as
Chief Engineer
for construction of the
Panama Canal
between 1904 and 1905. He had previously gained experience in
railroad construction
in the
American Midwest
.
[1]
John Findley Wallace
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![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d1/John_Findley_Wallace.png/220px-John_Findley_Wallace.png) |
Born
| (
1852-09-10
)
September 10, 1852
Fall River, Massachusetts
|
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Died
| July 3, 1921
(1921-07-03)
(aged?68)
|
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Resting place
| Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx, New York
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Alma?mater
| |
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Occupation
| Engineer
|
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Known?for
| Chief Engineer of the
Panama Canal
|
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|
![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/Signature_of_John_Findley_Wallace.png/150px-Signature_of_John_Findley_Wallace.png) |
John Findley Wallace was born September 10, 1852, in
Fall River, Massachusetts
, the oldest son of the Rev. Dr. David A. and Martha J. (Findley) Wallace. His father, Rev. Dr. David A. Wallace, D.D., LL.D., was the first president of the
Monmouth College
in
Monmouth, Illinois
.
John Findley Wallace attended Monmouth College in Illinois and graduated with the class of 1872. He received his degree in civil engineering from the
University of Wooster
in 1882, and his Sc.D. from the
Armour Institute
in 1904.
[2]
Wallace served as president of the
American Society of Civil Engineers
in 1900. He began his career at the
U.S. Engineering Corps
, working on navigation improvements in the
Mississippi River
near
Hampton, Illinois
. Wallace also worked at the
Burlington, Monmouth & Illinois River Railroad
, the
Union Pacific Railroad
, and the
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
where he worked on the original
Sibley Railroad Bridge
over the
Missouri River
. After starting at the
Illinois Central Railroad
as an engineer, he was promoted to general manager.
[3]
Panama Canal construction
edit
On May 6, 1904, President
Theodore Roosevelt
appointed Wallace as chief engineer of the ongoing Panama Canal project.
As with the French effort to build the canal before him,
malaria
,
yellow fever
, and other tropical diseases plagued the country and further reduced the already depleted workforce. Despite his requests to the contrary, the project was forced to use dilapidated and undersized infrastructure and equipment which had been purchased from the French by the U.S. government. This included primitive steam shovels and an undersized and rusting railway system. The project struggled to make significant progress prior to and during Wallace's appointment.
In an attempt to avoid the inefficiency and corruption that had slowed earlier French efforts, a U.S. government commission, the
Isthmian Canal Commission
(ICC), was established to oversee construction. However, it proved to be overly bureaucratic and was an impediment to progress. Not initially a member of the seven-man ICC, and in an attempt to streamline its efforts, Wallace was appointed to it when it was reformed and its membership reduced to three following his own recommendation. However, the real solution to the problem would not be found until the appointment of his successor,
John Frank Stevens
,
[4]
who often bypassed the commission and sent requests and demands directly to the
Roosevelt Administration
in Washington; although he too would suddenly resign after two years on the project.
As recommended by a U.S. engineering panel in 1905, Wallace remained an advocate of the concept of a
sea-level
canal in
Panama
. To reduce the costs of construction and enable faster completion, this approach was later changed to a reservoir lake and lock system.
[5]
The new plan would increase operating costs, however, and limit the maximum size of ships able to use the canal.
Wallace was paid $25,000 a year, the second-largest salary in the American government, behind only the president.
[6]
Despite this, to the Roosevelt administration's great chagrin,
[7]
a frustrated Wallace abruptly resigned and returned to the mainland United States.
[8]
Wallace's resignation ultimately led to a better understanding of the difficult nature of the project by the Roosevelt administration, resulting in reforms that included larger, more realistic construction budgets. In 1948 Wallace was
commemorated
on a
Canal Zone
postage stamp.
Post-Panama Canal work
edit
- ^
Parker, Matthew (2008).
Hell's Gorge:The Battle to Build the Panama Canal
(1st?ed.). Arrow. pp.?214?216.
- ^
Scotland, Electric.
"John Findley Wallace"
. Electric Scotland
. Retrieved
June 8,
2015
.
- ^
"John F. Wallace"
,
Engineering News-Record
, vol.?87, no.?2, p.?83, July 14, 1921
, retrieved
April 16,
2022
- ^
Parker p. 253-255
- ^
Parker p. 284
- ^
Parker p. 216
- ^
McCullough, David (1977).
The Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870?1914
. Simon & Schuster.
- ^
Parker pp. 251?252