WEEK 2 (CIEN)

• 4000 BC – 2000 BC: Earliest practices of civil engineering were in ancient Egypt and ancient Mesopotamia when the humans abandoned the nomadic way of living and first built a roof for its shelter.
• 2700 BC – 2500 BC: The construction of pyramids in Egypt were some of the first instances of large structure construction.
• 2700 BC – 2500 BC: Colosseum in Rome
• 2700 BC – 2500 BC: Great Wall of China
• 2700 BC – 2500 BC: Taj Mahal of India
• 312 BC: The first major Roman road – the famed Appian Way or “queen of the roads”, was constructed to serve as a supply route between republican Rome and its allies in Capua during the Second Samnite War.
• 27 BC: Opus caementicium, or Roman concrete paved the way for the architectural frenzies of the first Roman emperor Agustus.
• 27 BC: The Romans mixed limestone with volcanic ash to form a mortar which was packed with chunks of bricks or volcanic tuff to form the basic material for roads, bridges, aqueducts, and buildings. Today’s scientists have concluded that Roman concrete, though weaker than modern cement, is astonishingly long lasting, remaining relatively intact even after centuries of exposure to sweater and other damaging elements.
• 1747: The first institution for the teaching of Civil Engineering, the Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussees was established in France. It is a university-level institution of higher education and research in the field of science, engineering, and technology and was founded by Daniel Charles Trudaine. It is one of the most prestigious and oldest French Grandes Escoles. The school is under the Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy.
• 1771: John Smeaton, who constructed the Eddyston Lighthouse, formed the Smeatonian Society of Civil Engineers, a group of leaders of the profession. He pioneered hydraulic lime, a concrete that cured under water and developed a technique of securing the blocks using dovetail joints and marble dowel.
• 1835: The first degree in Civil Engineering in the US was awarded by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
• 1905: The first Civil Engineering degree awarded to a woman was granted by Cornell University to Nora Stanton Blatch in 1905.
• Social prejudice constrained the repressed indio builders to content themselves to be called mere Maestro de Obras (Master Builders) even if they could design and build any type of structure that technology could allow at that time. Master Builders as of today were equivalent to Construction Foreman.
• It was in 1868 when the Bureau of Public Works and Highways (Obras Publicas) and Bureau of Communications and Transportation (Communicationes y Meteologia) were organized under a civil engineer known as “Director General”
• On November 24, 1892, the entire line from Manila to Dagupan, with a total length of 195.4 km, was completed and put into commercial operations.
• 1892: Two types of construction under Spanish regime were practiced: First, pavement of cut spanish road, cut adobe stone pavement. This was usually of the adobe quality, probably used because it is easily quarried, cut, and handled, the size used called ’’ordinario" 20 by 20 centimeters and 50 centimeters long. This makes a very smooth and pretty pavement, but, where an ordinary amount of traffic is encountered, wears very rapidly.
• 1892: Second, rubble-stone pavement, cobblestones. The pavement of cobblestone consisted of boulders probably taken from river beds varying in size from 10 to 30 centimeters in diameter. This type was very durable and lasting, so long as the individual stones retained their position in a bed of earth.
• 1898: The Organic Decree issued by Gen. Emilio Aquinaldo establishing the Philippine Revolutionary Government created four (4) government departments among which was the Department of War and Public Works.
• Though once included in the Department of War, now Department of National Defense, its functions as builder and maintainer of roads, bridges and other public works structures are inherent in the present Department.
• When Spain ceded the Philippines to the United States in 1898, the public works and activities were placed under the U.S. Army engineers.
• 1899: The Malolos Constitution was ratified during a general assembly of Congress, and the first Council of Government of the First Philippine Republic was created.
• From January 21, 1899 to May 7, 1899, with Apolinario Mabini as President of the Cabinet (i.e. Prime Minister), Gracio Gonzaga served as the Secretary of Public Welfare, which included the transportation and communications portfolio.
• 1899: When Mabini was replaced by Pedro Paterno as President of the Cabinet, among the seven departments set up was the Communicaciones y Obras Publicas (i.e. the Communications and Public Works Department). Maximo Paterno was appointed as Secretary of Public Works and Communications. Since then, Public Works, Transportation, and Communications have been grouped into one department.
• In his letter dated January 4, 1899 to Filipinos, US Major General Elwell S. Otis, the Military Governor of the Philippines, announced US President William McKinley’s instructions for the islands’ Benevolent Assimilation.
• 1900: Foundation of the Liceo de Manila, a private institution offering academic course for maestro de obras and headed by Leon Ma. Guerrero. The first private school to offer an academic title for Maestro de Obras (the forerunner of formal education in architecture/engineering).
• The introduction of reinforced concrete in the Philippines was in the 1900s and its use in the construction of the Masonic Temple (Grand Lodge of the Philippines), the first multi-structure in Escolta, Manila.
• 1900: Transportation in the Philippines was depended largely on trails, waterways, railroad, earth roads and partially gravelled roads. Highway in the Philippines at that time is nothing more than a dream to most Filipinos. The popular Macadam road type was introduced. It gained acceptance because of abundant supply of stones and gravel.
• By virtue of Act No. 83 passed by the Philippine Commission on February 6, 1901, public works and projects were placed under the “Provincial Supervisions”. The 1901 municipal code (February 6, 1901) provided for popularly elected municipal board members who were responsible for collecting taxes, maintaining municipal properties, and undertaking necessary construction projects.
• The first professional association of architecture and surveyors was born on September 14, 1902 with the creation of the Academia de Arquitectura y Agrimensura de Filipinas (AAAF).
• The Philippine Commission passed Act Nos. 222 and 268 creating the Department of Commerce and Police which gave birth to the Bureau of Engineering and Construction of public works and the Bureau of Architecture and Construction of public buildings. The Philippine Bill of 1902 (July 1, 1902) or the Philippine Organic Act authorized the Government of the Philippine Islands to provide for the needs of commerce.
• On December 8, 1902, the first Railroad Legislation Act (Philippine Commission Act No. 554) was passed granting the Manila Railroad Company (MRRCo) the right to construct branch lines.
• 1903: AAFF changed the name of association to Academia de Arquitectura, Ingeniera y Agrimensura de Filipinas (AIAAF) – including civil engineers and surveyors.
• 1904: The AIAAF merged with the Liceo and established the Escuela de Ingeniera y Arquitectura, which offered a five-year course in architecture and civil engineering.
• 1905: The Escuela de Ingeniera y Arquitectura ceased to operate after its first year of inception. The Bureau of Public Works was created and placed under Department of Commerce and Industry.
• Act No. 1401 of the Philippine Commission passed on October 4, 1905, abolished engineering districts and positions of district engineers.
• In order to achieve that end, provincial boards were created in 1907 with authority to collect double cedula taxes to finance the construction of provincial roads and bridges. In addition, the national government appropriated P1,700,000 as aid to such constructions.
• The Faculty of Engineering of the University of Santo Tomas (UST) is the oldest engineering school in the Philippines. It was established on May 18, 1907, as School of Civil Engineering with one program offering leading to the degree of Master of Science in Civil Engineering (MSCE). From faculty records, it appears that it was only in 1912 when the earliest batch of students was conferred their MSCE degrees.
• 1907: Don Ramon Irureta-Goyena headed the UST-COE. During the early years of U.S. occupation, most of the civil engineers in our country came from America. The College was patterned after the University of Havana in Cuba and was first set up at the second floor of the old UST building in Intramuros.
• 1908: The Escuela was reorganized and reopened its doors to students, but this time offered a three-year course for architecture, civil engineering, and electrical engineering.
• The Board of Regents of the University of the Philippines, in a resolution passed on June 3, 1910, appointed Mr. W.J. Colbert as acting Dean of the College of Engineering. His appointment was set to effect on June 13, 1910 thereby creating the College of Engineering