Tunneling, Explosive Compounds, and Rock Drills

Henry Drinker graduated from Lehigh in 1871 with a degree in mining engineering. He is the only alumnus to become president of Lehigh (1905 - 1920). Upon graduation he worked on the building of the Musconetong Tunnel (1872-1878) near Pattenburg, New Jersey which made travel between Easton, Pennsylvania and New York City possible. A spur railroad, the Easton and Amboy Railroad, of the Lehigh Valley Railroad carried Asa Packer’s coal to New York City through this tunnel. In its day, the tunnel was a great building feat as it required blasting and drilling through granite.  This book relates Drinker’s experiences and engineering expertize through details of practical tunnel work, modern properties of explosives, principles of blasting, and a history of rock-drilling and tunneling.  Many detailed illustrations are presented among the text.  Dr. Drinker dedicated the book to “The Technical Schools of The Lehigh University. This work is dedicated by one of the alumni of the School of Mines.”

A version of this text has been digitized and is available through Hathitrust.

Lehigh University Catalog Record: https://asa.lib.lehigh.edu/Record/269716