Hiram Martin Chittenden | |
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Hiram M. Chittenden, 1916
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Born |
Yorkshire, New York |
October 25, 1858
Died | October 9, 1917 Seattle, Washington |
(aged 58)
Education | United States Military Academy at West Point |
Engineering career | |
Projects | Chittenden Memorial Bridge, Grand Loop Road Historic District, Roosevelt Arch, Chittenden Locks |
Hiram Martin Chittenden (1858–1917) was a leading historian of the American West, especially the fur trade. A graduate of West Point, he was the Seattle district engineer for the Army Corps of Engineers (April 1906 – September 1908) for whom the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks in Seattle, Washington, were named.
He 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 (PCAPA), later known as the Association of Pacific Ports (APP) in 1913.
Dodds says, "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 was born on October 25, 1858 in Yorkshire, New York. He graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in June 1884 and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army Corps of Engineers. After advanced study in applied engineering, his tours of duty were mainly in the West, including two in Yellowstone Park (1891–93, 1899-1904). Yellowstone sparked his lifelong interest in history and conservation.
He reached the rank of Brigadier General in 1910. He died on October 9, 1917 in Seattle, Washington.
With the Army Corps of Engineers, Chittenden was in charge of many notable projects throughout the United States: