page_title: Hiram M. Chittenden
section_title: Engineering projects
hierarchical_section_title: Hiram M. Chittenden / Career / Engineering projects
caption_attribution_description: English: Color postcard of 1903 Chittenden Bridge across Yellowstone River, Yellowstone National Park
context_page_description: Hiram Martin Chittenden was an American engineer and historian. A graduate of West Point, he was the Seattle district engineer for the Army Corps of Engineers from 1906 to 1908. Chittenden was one of the first three elected Port Commissioners at the Port of Seattle. He also helped found the Pacific Coast Association of Port Authorities, later known as the Association of Pacific Ports in 1913. The Hiram M. Chittenden Locks in Seattle are named in his honor.
  As a historian he was noted for his work on the American West, especially the fur trade. Historian Gordon B. Dodds stated,
  His works on the Yellowstone, the fur trade, and on Missouri River steamboating were long recognized as definitive....His style was formal, clear, and undramatic. His works contain a mass of detail. He was typical of the Progressive era of American history in his strong belief in progress and in 'the divine mission of the Anglo-Saxon.'
  Chittenden also wrote the noted work History of early steamboat navigation on the Missouri River: life and adventures of Joseph La Barge.
context_section_description: With the Army Corps of Engineers, Chittenden was in charge of many notable projects throughout the United States. In 1899 after the Spanish-American War he was again sent to Yellowstone National Park and was in exclusive charge of the road work and general improvements, the basalt arch at the northern entrance and the single-span Chittenden Memorial Bridge (formerly the Melan arch bridge) across the Yellowstone River.
  Chittenden served as an engineer in two terms of service at Yellowstone National Park in 1891–1892 and 1899–1906. In 1891 he was commissioned as an assistant to the officer in charge of road construction. From 1899 to 1906 Chittenden held several posts concurrently and was assigned to a number of projects that kept him moving to different regions, eventually bringing him to Yosemite National Park in the far west. Yosemite was in need of having its boundaries officially established, as the national park was created in stages in piecemeal fashion. Chittenden was commissioned by the Secretary of the Interior, Ethan A. Hitchcock, to determine boundary changes because of his expertise in such matters. Of greatest concern to the government was the various private land claims in and around the park. Chittenden was requested by Hitchcock to take on the task and assume the role of senior member on the commission to study the Yosemite region. The chief of Engineers approved the choice of Chittenden, asserting that his "service would be of more value than any other officer" because of his extensive experience. Along with Chittenden, R. B. Marshall, a topographer, and Frank Bond, from the United States General Land office were also members of the commission.
  In the  spring  of 1906 Chittenden moved to Seattle, Washington. That year the developer James A. Moore offered to complete a canal to link Lake Washington, Lake Union, and Salmon Bay, at a cost of half a million dollars. Calls for such a project had been in the works for years. Since the Federal government had jurisdiction over the navigable waters, congressional approval was necessary to commence work on the project and would inevitably require Chittenden's involvement. Chittenden in May 1906 was directed to review Moore's plan for canal work. Having found it inadequate he reported his findings on May 26. However, on June 11 President Taft signed a bill approving Moore's proposal. Disappointed, Chittenden prepared an extensive report on how to accomplish the task of completing the canal work. He submitted several proposals that called for alterations to Moore's plan, some of them proving to be controversial, calling into question the required number of locks and their locations. An issue that had bothered Chittenden from the start was the location of the locks on Salmon Bay; either location would compromise the interests of the various parties involved, including residents, mill owners, and steamboat owners. He came up with a proposal calling for both a large and a small lock, which would be constructed of concrete and masonry work next to each other at the narrow foot at the west end of Salmon Bay, rather than using Moore's proposal for a single lock constructed of wood at the head of the bay. Chittenden found himself in an uncomfortable position and did not want to shoulder the responsibility of making the difficult choice. He ultimately contended that the decisions should be made by the various local interests since they were providing the financing required for the work involved. On March 18, 1907, the Washington legislature passed a bill permitting the construction of locks on the western end of Salmon Bay. Chittenden prepared a full report on the existing canal to the Chief of Engineers, knowing that if the plan and its financing were supported by the people he could complete the canal before the winter of 1909 set in. Chittenden reached the rank of Brigadier General on February 5, 1910, and five days later he retired.
  Chittenden's outlook over his remaining years in the service changed when an order issued by President Theodore Roosevelt a famous veteran c
caption: 1903 colored postcard image of the Chittenden Memorial Bridge
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