Ellis S. Chesbrough
| Ellis Chesbrough | |
|---|---|
| Born |
July 16, 1813 Baltimore, Maryland, United States |
| Died | August 18, 1886 (aged 72) Chicago, Illinois, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Spouse(s) | Elizabeth A. Freyer |
| Parent(s) | Isaac M. Chesbrough, Phrania Jones |
| Engineering career | |
| Institutions | American Society of Civil Engineers |
| Projects | Chicago sewer system |
Ellis Sylvester Chesbrough (1813–1886) was an engineer credited with the design of the Chicago sewer system, which are sometimes known as the 'Chesbrough sewers'. This was the first comprehensive sewer system in the United States. He is responsible for the plan to raise Chicago, construction of the first water crib in Chicago, and designing the Boston water distribution system. The water system he designed for Chicago is on the National Register of Historic Places and has been designated a Historical Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers.
Chesbrough was born in 1813 in Baltimore, Maryland to Isaac M. Chesbrough and Phrania Jones. Chesbrough's father was originally a farmer in Massachusetts, but he pursued other means of business, which mostly failed. One of these failed ventures forced Chesbrough to abandon regular schooling when he was nine. Chesbrough spent the next few years working for mercantile houses in Baltimore. Chesbrough's father became a surveyor for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1828, and Chesbrough became a surveyor for the city of Baltimore later that year through his father's job. Chesbrough moved to Pennsylvania in 1830 to become a surveyor for the Allegheny Portage Railroad under the command of Colonel Stephen Harriman Long. From 1831 to 1842, Chesbrough worked on the construction of railroads under the command of William Gibbs McNeill and his brother-in-law George Washington Whistler, the father of the artist James Abbott McNeill Whistler. Chesbrough worked as a farmer between 1842 and 1844 as the effects of the Panic of 1837 deprived him of employment as an engineer. After he returned to his profession, Chesbrough became the engineer for the water systems of Boston, and helped to build the Cochituate Aqueduct.
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