Biography

ARCHITECT AND ENGINEER
Biography Projects Biographical References Related Architects Images printer-friendly version  
PHILADELPHIA ARCHITECTS AND BUILDINGS
SEARCH
OUR PARTNERS
 
Strickland Kneass Local ID #: MakersofPhila-076 Morris, Charles, ed. <i>Makers of Philadelphia: An Historical Work</i>. Philadelphia: L. R. Hamersly & Co., 1894., p. 076
Strickland Kneass
Local ID #: MakersofPhila-076
Morris, Charles, ed. Makers of Philadelphia: An Historical Work. Philadelphia: L. R. Hamersly & Co., 1894., p. 076

Born: 7/29/1821, Died: 1/14/1884

Brother of engineer Samuel Honeyman Kneass, Strickland Kneass benefitted from training with his older brother who allowed him to work as his assistant on the Delaware and Schuylkill Canal and the Philadelphia and Wilmington Railroad. After finishing his part on the Philadelphia and Wilmington Railroad, the younger Kneass entered Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, graduating in 1839 with his degree in civil engineering. Returning to Pennsylvania, Kneass became assistant engineer and topographer on the survey for a railroad system between Harrisburg and Pittsburgh.

Kneass established a specialty in railway systems and bridges, for a long time serving as the chief engineer and surveyor for the City of Philadelphia, in which position he re-designed Philadelphia's drainage system, designed new bridges to cross the Schuylkill River, and set up the extension of the City's streetcar system. He appears in the Philadelphia city directoriesfrom 1854 to 1883.

Written by Sandra L. Tatman.

Clubs and Membership Organizations

  • American Society of Civil Engineers
  • Engineers Club
  • Historical Society of Pennsylvania (HSP)
  • Union League of Philadelphia
  • Franklin Institute
  • American Philosophical Society

School Affiliations

  • Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

 

Philadelphia Architects and Buildings | About | Participating Institutions | Feedback | Search | Login
Website and System: Copyright © 2023 by The Athenaeum of Philadelphia.
Data and Images: Copyright © 2023 by various contributing institutions. Used by permission.
All rights reserved.