1930’s to 1940’s

 

Carl Hoffman, B.S. 1930 Civil Engineering, who helped design Hoover Dam and several other Western dams, died in late December 2004. Mr. Hoffman had a 28-year career with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and went on to 30 years of international engineering consulting work, first with the World Bank and later with private engineering firms. (Spring 2005 newsletter)

The Faoro Professorship in Water Resources was filled by Jeff Niemann, Faoro Professor of Water Resources in 2003. The professorship was made possible through a series of gifts made by the late Abraham B. Faoro, B.S. 1932 Civil Engineering, and his wife Jean M. Faoro. (Fall 2003 newsletter)

Howard Lane, B.S. 1933 Civil Engineering, passed away on October 9, 2004. After working for the Bureau of Public Roads and the Army Corps of Engineers, Mr. Lane established Lane Engineering Service in Lakewood with his brother. He was president of the Professional Engineers of Colorado, President of the Lakewood Chamber of Commerce, and Chairman of the Lakewood Planning Commission. (Spring 2005 newsletter)

Wilber Ingalsbe, B.S. 1940 Civil Engineering, is living in Hollywood, California. Mr. Ingalsbe was founder of Perilter and Ingalsbe in the Los Angeles area, completing mostly large civil projects in that area. Mr. Ingalsbe and his wife, Erma, live in the house that Wilbur built with his own hands in the 1950s. (Spring 2005 newsletter)

We are saddened to report the passing of Colorado State engineering alumnus and noted benefactor Harold Short of Boulder on March 26th, 2007. Harold Short is survived by his second wife, Charlotte York Irey Short, and his three children, Kay McDowell, Carol Patten, and Jim Short, and their families.

Short graduated in 1940 from CSU with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. Following graduation, Harold Short worked briefly for the state of Wyoming, but his work was soon interrupted by World War II. He was commissioned in the 6th Infantry, 51st Field Artillery, and in 1941 he was called to active duty. Short served five years in the U.S. Army, earned the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and received two Bronze Stars and the Purple Heart. After the war, Short partnered in Milne Ready Mixed Concrete Inc. in Boulder with James G. Milne and under his management, the company evolved from a small sand and gravel outfit into Flatiron Companies which included paving, concrete, sand and gravel, and development businesses.

Short and his family have a long history of contributing their time and money to their community. Their generous contributions to Colorado State include the establishment of endowed scholarships in three colleges and land contributions. They made the first major gift to launch the Morgan Library campaign and in 1997, the Shorts gifted $2 million to the engineering and physics campaign. This gift helped to fund the expansion and renovation of the Engineering Building, to create the Harold H. Short Civil Infrastructure Systems Laboratory, and to establish the Infrastructure Chair in the College of Engineering.

Harold Short will be missed by all those who knew his generous spirit. The department offers condolences to Mr. Short’s family. (Spring 2007 newsletter)

Ralph Adkins, B.S. 1943 Civil passed away on January 5, 2006. He began his career with the Colorado Fuel & Iron Corp. in 1943, then served as a line officer in the Navy during World War II. He resumed his career at CF&I in 1946, ultimately serving as director of land and water from 1965 until his retirement in 1983. He then had his own consulting firm, Ralph Adkins & Associates. He joined the board of directors of the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District in 1973 and in 2002 received its first Distinguished Service Award. In 1997, he won the Wayne S. Aspinall Water Leader of the Year Award. He served on the advisory committee for CSU’s College of Engineering Dean’s Council and many other committees. (Fall 2006 newsletter)

William M. Simpson, 1946 Civil Engineering graduate, was the 2002 recipient of the Peter Courtois Memorial Award presented by the Tilt-Up Concrete Association (TCA). Bill Simpson’s contribution to the tilt-up industry has spanned half a century. From the formation stages of the site-cast tilt-up medium in the 1940s to its state-of-the-art applications today, Simpson was a trendsetter for his time and pioneered many innovations. Perhaps his most noteworthy contribution to the industry was his chairmanship of the influential Test Report (later known as The Green Book) on the Slender Walls program from 1980-82. The result of the full-scale testing program validated the strength of the tilt-up concrete method. Simpson retired to Poulsbo, Wash., in 1996. (2002 newsletter)

Art Corey, M.S. 1949 Civil has been elected as a Fellow of the Soil Science Society of America. Dr. Corey is an emeritus professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Colorado State University. Read more. (Fall 2006 newsletter)

A Distinguished Alumni Athletic Award was presented in April 2005 to Lewis Nelson, B.S. 1949 Civil Engineering. Nelson, who spent 20 years with the Bureau of Reclamation, played a key role in the Big Thompson Canyon project. As a dedicated supporter of the Rams, Nelson created the Lewis J. and Jean Nelson Scholarship Fund with his late wife, Jean, and the Lew and Jean Nelson University Greatest Needs Fund, which has provided funding for many CSU initiatives. (Spring 2005 newsletter)