​Scope and Content

Collection contains reports, correspondence, and photos.  Most, but not all, are related to the Corps's work around the Trinity River.   It is an ongoing collection with additions expected over time. 

The Fort Worth District of the Corps was established in 1950, following the disastrous Trinity River floods, and is responsible for water resources development for two-thirds of Texas. The district is also responsible for military and interagency design and construction in Texas and Louisiana.

The district covers a geographical area of approximately 140,000 square miles and employs over 1200 team members.   The Corps operates and maintains 25 multipurpose reservoirs in six river basins, three hydropower plants, and over 350 recreation areas, which receive over 20 million visitors annually.  Through FY20, its reservoirs have prevented more than $150 billion in flood damages since their construction.

The district’s civil works mission includes flood risk management, water supply, recreation, hydropower, fish and wildlife mitigation, environmental restoration, and regional stewardship.  Additionally, the district has a continuing authorities program that supports projects involving flood control, stream bank protection, clearing, and snagging.  The district’s civil works area of responsibility covers approximately 53 percent of the state of Texas and portions of 10 river basins, many of which are shared with the Galveston District, from the Rio Grande River in the southwest to the Red River in the northeast.

The Corps delivers major military construction projects to Fort Bliss, Fort Hood, Fort Polk, and Joint Base San Antonio and, in the past, has deployed team members to support the recovery operations under the National Response Framework, and as part of federal response missions, including Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria.   Overall, the district’s team of professionals provides services to other federal agencies including the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Agriculture, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.  [Taken from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Fort Worth District website]

The Trinity River survey book includes surveys and sketches of the bridges crossing the Trinity River in Dallas.  The book is a hand-written survey book from an 1894 Corps survey team that contains Trinity River data.  The Corps continues to measure streams and rivers and associated structures such as bridges in its current work.  A typical survey group is composed of several people with one recording data in the log book.   This information is used by engineers to develop models of the stream or river to compute water-surface elevations.  These water surface elevations are computed using stream or river flows produced from the watershed.  Today, models are developed on a computer; in 1894, they were hand-drawn.   

The survey book contains not only the actual distance and elevation measurements along certain locations along the Trinity River but also pertinent sketches of the river channel and bridges.  The Corps developed river basin studies for most of the major rivers in Texas.  It is possible, but unknown, that the survey in this book was part of a larger Trinity River basin study.

Organization

The collection is ongoing; items are added as they are acquired.

Access​

Permission to publish, reproduce, distribute, or use by any and all other current or future methods or procedures must be obtained in writing from the Dallas Municipal Archives. All rights are reserved and retained regardless of current or future development or laws that may apply to fair use standards.   The researcher assumes full responsibility for observing all copyright, property, and libel laws as they apply.

Citation

US Army Corps of Engineers Collection (Box #, Folder #), Dallas Municipal Archives

Related Materials

None

Index Terms

Dallas -- Texas -- History
Trinity River (Tex.)
United States Army Corps of Engineers

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