Alejandro Salmero Melchor Sr. (August 9, 1900 – September 5, 1947) was a Filipino civil engineer, mathematician, educator and member of the

Cabinet of the Philippines The Cabinet of the Philippines (, usually referred to as the Cabinet or Gabinete) consists of the heads of the largest part of the executive branch of the national government of the Philippines. Currently, it includes the secretaries of Executi ...

. A native of Ibajay, Aklan, Melchor was also known for his work on

pontoon bridges A pontoon bridge (or ponton bridge), also known as a floating bridge, is a bridge that uses float (nautical), floats or shallow-draft (hull), draft boats to support a continuous deck for pedestrian and vehicle travel. The buoyancy of the support ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The historic Melchor Hall in the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; ) is a Higher education in the Philippines#State universities and colleges, state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by List of Philippine laws, Re ...

Diliman campus is named after him. The hall houses most of the units of the UP College of Engineering. A building in the

Philippine Military Academy The Philippine Military Academy ( / ) also referred to by its acronym PMA is the premier military academy for Filipinos aspiring for a commission as a military officer of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). It was established on Decembe ...

, as well as a street in Ibajay, were also named in his honor.

Education

In 1924, Melchor graduated in civil engineering with the highest honors from the

. By then, the College of Engineering was barely fifteen years old and was still located in the Manila campus.

Career

During the term of Edward R. Hyde as dean of the UP College of Engineering (from 1926 to 1940), Alejandro Melchor served as the College Secretary. Prior to this position, Melchor was a regular member of the engineering faculty. Considered a brilliant mathematician in his time, Melchor also became the head of the

mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

department of the

. Melchor was known for designing the

used by the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

during the

. According t

Melchor's work "contributed significantly in winning the war for the Allies of World War II, Allied Forces". Melchor also attained the rank of

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

. Melchor served in the war cabinet of President

Sergio Osmeña Sergio Osmeña Sr. (, ; zh, c=吳文釗, poj=Gô͘ Bûn-chiau; September 9, 1878 – October 19, 1961) was a Filipino people, Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the List of presidents of the Philippines, fourth president of the Ph ...

as military adviser. This was during the Second World War, when the

Philippine government The government of the Philippines () has three interdependent branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The Philippines is governed as a unitary state under a presidential representative and democratic constitutional repub ...

was in exile. He died on September 5, 1947.

References

UP COE History
Retrieved on October 30, 2006. {{DEFAULTSORT:Melchor, Alejandro People from Aklan Academic staff of the University of the Philippines 1900 births 1947 deaths University of the Philippines Manila alumni Advisers to the president of the Philippines Osmeña administration cabinet members 20th-century Filipino engineers