Circleville Herald reporter Steven Collins delves into the life of an early Ohio University alum in a July 12 story, “William Sooy Smith: Engineer of bridges, buildings and battle.” Collins writes that the historical marker in Tarlton heralds Smith as a Civil War veteran, but his accomplishments included some engineering landmarks.
Smith was born July 22, 1830 in Tarlton and later he attended Ohio University in Athens and graduated in 1849. Following graduation from Ohio University he pursued a career in engineering at West Point where he graduated sixth in his class (of 52) in 1854.
During this time he was one of the first people to survey the area around Niagara Falls for a bridge that would connect the United States and Canada….
Following the Civil War, Smith resumed his career as an engineer and worked on the first all steel railroad bridge to cross the Mississippi River at Glasgow, Mississippi. He also designed the People’s Palace in Chicago, which serves as the city’s cultural center and was a former library, although never the main Chicago Public Library.
“He was a very smart man and he built a lot of buildings and bridges that are still standing today,” Gentzel said. “He built some of the tallest buildings in Chicago.”
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