John A. Elliott
Robert W. Hadlow, Columbia River Highway Historic District, National Historic Landmark Nomination
Hill proclaimed his gospel to more influential groups, including the University of Washington Board of Regents. In 1907, he convinced its members to establish a highway engineering curriculum at the University with Lancaster as its chair. The position was the first of its type in the country, and interestingly, Lancaster was one of three faculty members without any collegiate credentials, and a full professor at that! Hill’s dream of creating a large supply of highway engineers to improve Washington’s road system seemed fulfilled as nearly two hundred students enrolled in Lancaster’s first class. They included Frank A. Kittredge and John A. Elliott. Both men studied under Lancaster and within a decade had made their mark on Pacific Northwest roads.
In 1909-10, Kittredge located and oversaw construction of portions of what eventually became Washington State Route 8, along the north shore of the Columbia River, near Lyle, in Skamania County.
In 1913-14, he located the Pacific Highway in Jackson County, Oregon, near the California State line. Elliott surveyed a route for the CRH in Hood River County and designed the Mitchell Point Tunnel.
Carl Nitteberg, “John Arthur Elliott, Life Member ASCE, Died March 3, 1956,” obituary, pp. 1-2, copy in the files of Jeanette Kloos, ODOT, Portland.
Hadlow, Landmark Nomination, 50