Water Resources: Hydraulics and Hydrology
The report was well received in the Chief's office, but it was suggested that a
representative of the Chief of Engineers should be on that committee. Since I was the top
hydraulic engineer in the Chief's office responsible for coastal engineering and tidal
hydraulic problems, I was appointed as
representative on the committee. I attended
the second meeting and all of the other meetings for 32 years without missing a single one.
When I started to talk about retiring, it was about time to have another committee meeting,
but they hadn't set one up. I was trying to firm this thing up before I left the Corps. I
called the chairman, Henry Simmons, and he said, "No, I haven't done anything yet, but
we need to have one soon. We want to have it down here at the Waterways Experiment
Station because I hear you're going to retire, and I'd like for you to attend it, so we can
all give you good cheers at our last meeting. That's how it went. It was also my 100th
trip to WES while I was in the Chief's office. Number 100. It made a nice, round figure.
[Laughter]
Now, the first paper I gave you was the first letter Joe Tiffany sent to me
He states
that he was the one who initiated the idea of having a Committee on Tidal Hydraulics
when
Rhodes, and Wicker were at WES looking at the Savannah River model.
But they decided that Joe should not write the letter to the Chief's office because that
office might get the idea that Joe was promoting the committee for
benefit. So
Wicker wrote the letter, and we in the Chief's office never knew that Joe was the one who
suggested the Committee on Tidal Hydraulics. I always thought it was Ralph Rhodes
and
Q ..
Would you define tidal hydraulics for me?
A:
Tidal hydraulics involves the flow of water in waterways that are subject to tides--bays,
harbors, and rivers. The Mississippi River is subject to tides clear on up almost to New
Orleans. Tides are produced by periodic changes in sea levels.
What are the differences between those kind of hydraulics and those of the normal river
or flood?
A:
Well, normal river is like the Missouri River. It carries a lot of water and just comes on
down. There's no tides to interfere with the flow. In the Mississippi River, normal flow
occurs down to the New Orleans area, where it enters the tidal zone. Some distance down
from New Orleans, for example, at the Head of Passes, flood tides occur during high
winds and hurricanes, which produce higher water levels in the river and reduces the
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