Joseph Chaley
Encyclopedia
Joseph Chaley was a French
civil engineer
and a pioneer designer of suspension bridge
s in the 19th century. He was a medical officer in the army before becoming a bridge designer.
Chaley pioneered the construction of suspension bridge cables by bringing together individual wire strands in mid-air, a technique later known as aerial spinning. Previously, the entire cable had been bound together before lifting into place, but Chaley's system, inspired by the ideas of Louis Vicat
, allowed considerably longer cables to be erected at less cost.
He built the Grand Pont Suspendu at Fribourg
in 1834, a world record-breaking span of 273m, only overtaken 16 years later by Charles Ellet Jr.'s 308m span Wheeling Suspension Bridge
. Chaley had previously worked with Marc Seguin
's brother Jules on the Tarascon
-Beaucaire Bridge (1828) and also the Chazey-sur-Ain
Bridge (1829).
Chaley first presented a proposal for the Grand Pont Suspendu in February 1830, and was awarded the contract in June of that year. His estimated cost of less than 300,000 florins was well below other competitors, including Guillaume Henri Dufour
. Chaley's bridge was supported on four main cables (two per side), each consisting of 1056 wire
s each 3.08mm in diameter. It carried 2000 people on its opening day. It was replaced in 1923 by a reinforced concrete
arch bridge
.
Chaley's other suspension bridges include the 227m Pont du Gottéron (1840); and a 64m span at Collomby in Valais
(1840). He collaborated with Bordillon on the Basse-Chaîne Bridge at Angers
, completed in 1839. This bridge collapsed in 1850 killing 226 soldiers, a major setback to suspension bridge construction in France and beyond.
His only bridge still in existence is the 121m suspension bridge at Corbières
(1837).
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
civil engineer
Civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...
and a pioneer designer of suspension bridge
Suspension bridge
A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck is hung below suspension cables on vertical suspenders. Outside Tibet and Bhutan, where the first examples of this type of bridge were built in the 15th century, this type of bridge dates from the early 19th century...
s in the 19th century. He was a medical officer in the army before becoming a bridge designer.
Chaley pioneered the construction of suspension bridge cables by bringing together individual wire strands in mid-air, a technique later known as aerial spinning. Previously, the entire cable had been bound together before lifting into place, but Chaley's system, inspired by the ideas of Louis Vicat
Louis Vicat
Louis Vicat French engineer.He graduated from École Polytechnique 1804 and École des Ponts et Chaussées 1806....
, allowed considerably longer cables to be erected at less cost.
He built the Grand Pont Suspendu at Fribourg
Fribourg
Fribourg is the capital of the Swiss canton of Fribourg and the district of Sarine. It is located on both sides of the river Saane/Sarine, on the Swiss plateau, and is an important economic, administrative and educational center on the cultural border between German and French Switzerland...
in 1834, a world record-breaking span of 273m, only overtaken 16 years later by Charles Ellet Jr.'s 308m span Wheeling Suspension Bridge
Wheeling Suspension Bridge
The Wheeling Suspension Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the main channel of the Ohio River at Wheeling, West Virginia. It was the largest suspension bridge in the world from 1849 until the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge was opened in 1851. It was designed by Charles Ellet Jr., who also worked...
. Chaley had previously worked with Marc Seguin
Marc Seguin
Marc Seguin was a French engineer, inventor of the wire-cable suspension bridge and the multi-tubular steam-engine boiler.- Biography :...
's brother Jules on the Tarascon
Tarascon
Tarascon , sometimes referred to as Tarascon-sur-Rhône, is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in southern France.-Geography:...
-Beaucaire Bridge (1828) and also the Chazey-sur-Ain
Chazey-sur-Ain
Chazey is a commune in the Ain department in eastern France.-Population:-References:*...
Bridge (1829).
Chaley first presented a proposal for the Grand Pont Suspendu in February 1830, and was awarded the contract in June of that year. His estimated cost of less than 300,000 florins was well below other competitors, including Guillaume Henri Dufour
Guillaume Henri Dufour
Guillaume-Henri Dufour was a Swiss army officer, bridge engineer and topographer. He served under Napoleon I and held the office of General to lead the Swiss forces to victory against the Sonderbund. He presided over the First Geneva Convention which established the International Red Cross...
. Chaley's bridge was supported on four main cables (two per side), each consisting of 1056 wire
Wire
A wire is a single, usually cylindrical, flexible strand or rod of metal. Wires are used to bear mechanical loads and to carry electricity and telecommunications signals. Wire is commonly formed by drawing the metal through a hole in a die or draw plate. Standard sizes are determined by various...
s each 3.08mm in diameter. It carried 2000 people on its opening day. It was replaced in 1923 by a reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete is concrete in which reinforcement bars , reinforcement grids, plates or fibers have been incorporated to strengthen the concrete in tension. It was invented by French gardener Joseph Monier in 1849 and patented in 1867. The term Ferro Concrete refers only to concrete that is...
arch bridge
Arch bridge
An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side...
.
Chaley's other suspension bridges include the 227m Pont du Gottéron (1840); and a 64m span at Collomby in Valais
Valais
The Valais is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland in the southwestern part of the country, around the valley of the Rhône from its headwaters to Lake Geneva, separating the Pennine Alps from the Bernese Alps. The canton is one of the drier parts of Switzerland in its central Rhône valley...
(1840). He collaborated with Bordillon on the Basse-Chaîne Bridge at Angers
Angers
Angers is the main city in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France about south-west of Paris. Angers is located in the French region known by its pre-revolutionary, provincial name, Anjou, and its inhabitants are called Angevins....
, completed in 1839. This bridge collapsed in 1850 killing 226 soldiers, a major setback to suspension bridge construction in France and beyond.
His only bridge still in existence is the 121m suspension bridge at Corbières
Corbières
Corbières is a municipality in the district of Gruyère in the canton of Fribourg in Switzerland. On 1 January 2011 the former municipality of Villarvolard merged into the municipality of Corbières.-History:...
(1837).