The Mid-Atlantic Engineers: A History of the Baltimore District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 1774-1974.

Abstract

Abstract : The US Army Corps of Engineers has played a vital role in the development of our nation, dating back to the Revolutionary War. In fact the first known Corps project in the Baltimore area was the building of Fort McHenry. No one at the time could predict just how successful this project would be, but historians have recorded the fierce bombardment of Fort McHenry by the British during the War of 1812. Fort McHenry saved the city of Baltimore. The stirring account of the battle by Francis Scott Key, who was on board a British ship trying to arrange the release of an American prisoner of war, was written down in verses of The Star Spangled Banner. Though much of the early Corps work in the Maryland area was for national defense, Corps personnel also assisted in private and public efforts to develop the nation's transportation system in this area. The assistance of Army engineers in construction of communications networks in the Maryland area roads, railroads, canals, and navigation channels-was an important influence on the economic development of the state. Throughout the years the Corps has performed military construction, been assigned responsibility for water navigation, flood control, water resources management, and the unique mission of providing drinking water for the city of Washington, DC. The Baltimore District, with an illustrious record of past accomplishments, looks to future opportunities to serve our nation.