Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
March 21, 1850 Trailblazing bicycle manufacturer Albert H. Overman was born in Fulton County, Illinois. Early on in life, he developed a strong interest in the mechanics of transportation. Overman said in an 1897 interview with the New York-based World newspaper, “I have all my life been engaged in experimental work connected with man-propelled machinery,... Continue Reading →
March 20, 1905 A three-hinged steel through arch bridge, crossing the Connecticut River and linking the Vermont village of Bellows Falls with the New Hampshire community of North Walpole, was formally opened. Measuring 644 feet and eight inches (196.5 meters) in length, the Bellow Falls Arch Bridge had been designed by Boston civil engineer J.R.... Continue Reading →
March 16, 1938 A dedication ceremony was held for an airport built in the Sydenham ward of Northern Ireland’s capital city of Belfast. (This city also has the distinction of being the largest one in Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom.) The inauguration of the facility originally known as Sydenham Airport was... Continue Reading →
March 15, 1906 A caisson lighthouse in the Gulf of Mexico was lit for the first time. (Each caisson lighthouse has a superstructure resting on a concrete or metal caisson in order to better withstand potentially severe weather conditions.) This addition to American lighthouses off the Gulf Coast of the United States was specifically installed... Continue Reading →
March 14, 2018 In the Republic of the Philippines, an inaugural ceremony was held for a newly renovated and expanded passenger terminal building at Tuguegarao Airport. This airport serves the city of Tuguegarao, the capital of the province of Cagayan at the northern tip of Luzon (the country’s largest and most populous island). Tuguegarao Airport,... Continue Reading →
March 13, 1883 Civil engineer Clifford Milburn Holland was born in the town of Somerset, Massachusetts. His career would encompass construction on several tunnels in and around New York City. His crowning achievement when it came to those tunnels involved the one that now bears his name: the Holland Tunnel, which was built under the Hudson... Continue Reading →
March 9, 1951 The public transport agency Servicio de Transportes Eléctricos del Distrito Federal (now known as Servicio de Transportes Eléctricos de la Ciudad de México [STE]) officially launched the first trolleybus route in Mexico City. Transportes Eléctricos, in preparation for this new transit service in Mexico’s capital, had purchased a total of 20 trolleybuses... Continue Reading →
March 8, 1946 A major milestone in aviation history took place when the Bell 47 became the world’s first helicopter certified for commercial use. This first-of-a-kind certificate was issued for the Bell 47 by the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA), forerunner to the present-day Federal Aviation Administration. The Bell 47 was a single-rotor, single-engine light helicopter manufactured... Continue Reading →
March 7, 1969 The Victoria line of the London Underground, the wide-ranging rapid transit system of England’s capital city and the metropolitan area surrounding it, was officially opened. The Victoria line was the first entirely new line of the London Underground to be built in a half-century. The first portion of the Victoria line to... Continue Reading →
March 6, 1913 A large number of highway officials and supporters from all of the states showed up at the Raleigh Hotel in Washington, D.C., for the Second National Good Roads Federal-Aid Convention. This heavily attended conference was held under the auspices of the American Automobile Association (AAA). Laurens Enos, the president of AAA, opened the... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 