The Obligation

Engineering is more than a number-crunching business. It is a matter of life and death. In 1907, when engineering errors led to a Canadian bridge collapse that killed seventy-five men, the profession’s moral obligations were stark and obvious. Engineers increasingly realized that technical expertise was not enough, and in 1925, a group of Canadian engineers formally and publicly promised to uphold the highest ethical standards. To remind themselves of their pledge, they fashioned iron rings to be worn on the outer finger. Unfortunately, for decades engineers in the United States had no similar institution. Then, on a summer day in 1970, 170 engineers, students, and teachers met on the campus of Cleveland State University for the first ceremony of what would become the Order of the Engineer. Today, the stainless steel rings worn by the Order’s members are recognized throughout the world as the outward sign of an inward commitment to ethical engineering. This 50th Anniversary edition tells the story of the Order’s origins and growth over half a century. Kip A. Wedel teaches American history at Bethel College in North Newton, Kansas.