Holland Tunnel Construction Records, 1920-1926 | The Green-Wood Cemetery

By Stacy Locke, Manager of Historical Collections

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Collection Overview

Title: Holland Tunnel Construction Records, 1920-1926

Primary Creator: New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission

Other Creators: New York State Bridge and Tunnel Commission

Extent: 1.0 Boxes

Arrangement: Arranged chronologically within series.

Date Acquired: 09/27/2018

Subjects: Freeman, Milton Harvey, 1871-1925, Holland, Clifford Milburn, 1883-1924, Holland Tunnel (Jersey City, N.J., and New York, N.Y.), New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission, New York State Bridge and Tunnel Commission, Singstad, Ole, 1882-, Tunnels--Design and construction, Tunnels--Ventilation

Languages: English

Abstract

This collection includes reports and contracts put forth by the New York State Bridge and Tunnel Commission and the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission during the construction of the Hudson River Vehicular Tunnel, later known as the Holland Tunnel. Included are reports detailing the design and construction of the tunnel, along with plans, technical drawings, and construction photographs.

Scope and Contents of the Materials

This collection includes official records produced during the construction of the Hudson River Vehicular Tunnel, later known as the Holland Tunnel, and is comprised of several series: reports, contracts, and correspondence.

The series of reports encompasses ten bound volumes of official reports submitted to state government by the New York State Bridge and Tunnel Commission and/or the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission. Each contains a report by the project Chief Engineer as well as plans and photographs. Included are both rough drafts and final printed copies, arranged in Chronological order.

The series of contracts encompasses four contracts in eight volumes, between the New York State Bridge and Tunnel Commission and the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission. Each contains a multitude of contract drawings signed off on by both the Chief Engineer and Engineer of Designs, arranged in chronological order.

The correspondence series includes a single letter pertaining to the construction of the tunnel.

Collection Historical Note

The Holland Vehicular Tunnel, originally known as the Hudson River Vehicular Tunnel, is a tunnel running under the Hudson River between Canal Street in Manhattan in New York City, and 12^th and 14^th Streets in Jersey City, New Jersey. Work was begun in 1920 and completed in 1927. The tunnel was the first means of vehicular crossing of the Hudson River, aside from ferries, and the longest vehicular tunnel in the world at the time of its construction at 8,557 feet—or more than 1.5 miles. It was a massive undertaking and an engineering feat, specifically because of the necessity of an unprecedented ventilation system due to the amount of vehicle emissions.

Construction began on the Hudson River Vehicular Tunnel in 1920, under the supervision of the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission and the New York State Bridge and Tunnel Commission. The design called for two tubes, each accommodating two lanes of traffic. The designer and first Chief Engineer of the project was Clifford Milburn Holland (1883-1924). He oversaw the tunnel’s construction until his sudden death on October 27, 1924, just days before the two sides of the tunnel were scheduled to meet. Upon his death, the project was renamed the “Holland Tunnel” in his memory. Milton Harvey Freeman (-1925) was then appointed Chief Engineer, but died less than a year later. It was Ole Singstad (1882-1969), the engineer who had designed the ventilation system for the tunnel, who oversaw the completion of the project.

The pioneering ventilation system devised for implementation in the Holland Tunnel by engineer Ole Singstad was groundbreaking, and made for the first mechanically ventilated underwater vehicular tunnel in the world. The system was unique in that it ran transversely to the tube, as opposed to parallel. It operated by use of four ventilation buildings, each housing large fans that would replace the air every 90 seconds. The innovative system soon became commonly used in other automotive tunnels. Singstad went on to engineer many tunnels across the world, including the Lincoln Tunnel, Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, and Queens-Midtown Tunnel in New York City. Singstad is interred at The Green-Wood Cemetery (Lot 37084, Sec. 130).

Subject/Index Terms

Freeman, Milton Harvey, 1871-1925
Holland, Clifford Milburn, 1883-1924
Holland Tunnel (Jersey City, N.J., and New York, N.Y.)
New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission
New York State Bridge and Tunnel Commission
Singstad, Ole, 1882-
Tunnels--Design and construction
Tunnels--Ventilation

Administrative Information

Repository: The Green-Wood Cemetery

Acquisition Source: Swann Auction Galleries, 104 East 25th Street, New York, NY 10010

Acquisition Method: Purchase

Processing Information: Accession # 2018-013

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Series:

[Series 1: Reports on the Holland Tunnel, 1920-1926],
[Series 2: Contracts, 1924-1925],
[Series 3: Correspondence, 1925],
[All]

Series 1: Reports on the Holland Tunnel, 1920-1926

Official reports submitted to state government by the New York State Bridge and Tunnel Commission and/or the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission on construction of the Holland Tunnel.

Item 1: Report of the New York State Bridge and Tunnel Commission to the Governor and Legislature of the State of New York, 1920, 1920: Includes, among other appendices, The Report of the Chief Engineer Clifford Holland dated December 31, 1919
Item 2: Report of the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission to the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey, March 17, 1920, March 17, 1920: Includes, among other appendices, The Report of the Chief Engineer Clifford Holland dated December 31, 1919
Item 3: Report of the New York State Bridge and Tunnel Commission to the Governor and Legislature of the State of New York, 1921, 1921: Includes, among other appendices, The Report of the Chief Engineer Clifford Holland dated December 31, 1920
Item 4: Report of the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission to the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey, February 26, 1921, February 26, 1921: Includes, among other appendices, The Report of the Chief Engineer Clifford Holland dated December 31, 1920
Item 5: Rough draft, Report of Chief Engineer Clifford Holland on the Hudson River Vehicular Tunnel, December 31, 1921 (New York State Bridge and Tunnel Commission and the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission), December 31, 1921: Contains 17 original photographs of the tunnel construction, and several fold out design plates of construction, experimental tunnels, and overseas research on other tunnel designs.
Item 6: Rough draft, Report of the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission to the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey on the Hudson Vehicular Tunnel, 1923., 1923: Includes a Report of the Chief Engineer, Clifford Holland, dated December 31, 1922. Includes 17 original photographs of the tunnel construction, and several fold out design plates. Original signature of Clifford Holland on page 43.
Item 7: Rough draft, Report of the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission to the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey, on the Hudson River Vehicular Tunnel, dated January 14, 1924., January 14, 1924.: Includes a Report of the Chief Engineer Clifford Holland dated December 31, 1923 as well as 21 original photographs, and several fold out design plates. Can be compared to Item #8, which is a final printed copy of this rough draft.
Item 8: Report of the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission to the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey on the Holland Vehicular Tunnel, January 14, 1924, January 14, 1924: Includes the Report of the Chief Engineer Clifford Holland dated December 31, 1923.
Item 9: Rough draft, Report of Chief Engineer M.H. Freeman on the Holland Tunnel (formerly the Hudson River Vehicular Tunnel), December 31, 1924 (New York State Bridge and Tunnel Commission and the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission): Contains 10 original photographs of the tunnel construction, and several fold out design plates. Plate 1: “Holing through - North Tunnel” shows the 2 sides breaking through on the North Tunnel, workers from different sides shaking hands. (Chief Engineer Milton Harvey Freeman was appointed after the sudden death of Clifford Holland in October 27, 1924, and the tunnel renamed after him. Recognition is given in this report for the work he put in.)
Item 10: Report of the New Jersey Interstate Bridge and Tunnel Commission to the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey on the Holland Tunnel, January 2, 1926, January 2, 1926: Includes the Report of the Chief Engineer Ole Singstad dated December 31, 1925. (Singstad took over Chief Engineer upon the death of Milton Harvey Freeman.)