Charles Piez (September 24, 1866 - October 2, 1933) was an American

mechanical engineer Mechanical may refer to: Machine * Machine (mechanical), a system of mechanisms that shape the actuator input to achieve a specific application of output forces and movement * Mechanical calculator, a device used to perform the basic operations o ...

, manufacturer, and president of the Link-Belt Co. He was president of the Electric Company, and vice president and general manager of the Emergency Fleet Corporation (EFC). He is also known as president of the

American Society of Mechanical Engineers The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is an American professional association that, in its own words, "promotes the art, science, and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe" via "continuing edu ...

from 1930 to 1931.

Biography

Piez was born in

Mainz Mainz (; #Names and etymology, see below) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and with around 223,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 35th-largest city. It lies in ...

Grand Duchy of Hesse The Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine () was a grand duchy in western Germany that existed from 1806 to 1918. The grand duchy originally formed from the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1806 as the Grand Duchy of Hesse (). It assumed the name ...

, the son of Jacob Piez and Katherine (Liebig) Piez, both naturalized American citizens. He emigrated with his parents to the United States, and attended public schools in

Manhattan, New York City Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the smallest county by area in the U.S. state of New York. Located almost entire ...

.''Iron Age,'' Vol. 132. 1933. p. 53 He entered the School of Mines of Columbia University in the class of 1888. Due to financial reverses in the family he worked for a year, and graduated with the class of 1889. After graduation Piez started his career in industry as an engineer draftsman at the Link-Belt Engineering Corporation in Philadelphia under

James Mapes Dodge James Mapes Dodge (Manhattan, June 30, 1852 – Germantown, Philadelphia, December 4, 1915) was an American mechanical engineer, inventor, industrialist and president of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers in the year 1903–1904. He is k ...

. He worked his way up to chief engineer, general manager, and eventually vice-president until 1906. In 1906, the Link-Belt Engineering Corporation merged into the Link-Belt Co., and Piez was elected president. Piez held the position of president until 1917. After the outbreak of World War I, Piez was appointed vice-president of the

Emergency Fleet Corporation The Emergency Fleet Corporation (EFC) was established by the United States Shipping Board, sometimes referred to as the War Shipping Board, on 16 April 1917 pursuant to the Shipping Act (39 Stat. 729) to acquire, maintain, and operate merchant shi ...

(EFC). He represented the EFC on the priorities board of the

War Industries Board The War Industries Board (WIB) was a United States government agency established on July 28, 1917, during World War I, to coordinate the purchase of war supplies between the War Department (Department of the Army) and the Navy Department. Becaus ...

. In 1917, he was also appointed manager of the

United States Shipping Board The United States Shipping Board (USSB) was a corporation established as an emergency agency by the 1916 Shipping Act (39 Stat. 729), on September 7, 1916. The United States Shipping Board's task was to increase the number of US ships supporting ...

, succeeding Rear-Admiral Frederic R. Harris."Charles Piez Made Manager of Ship Board." ''Chicago Tribune,'' December 18, 1917 In 1919, Piez forbade the Seattle ship manufacturers from meeting workers demands, triggering the

Seattle General Strike The Seattle General Strike was a five-day general work stoppage by 65,000 workers in the city of Seattle, Washington from February 6 to 11, 1919. The goal was to support shipyard workers in several unions who were locked out of their jobs when ...

. Piez was singled out as a prime target of the strike. The action was unsuccessful. Until his retirement in April 1933, Piez served as chairman of the board of the Link-Belt Corporation. In 1925-1927, Piez served as President of the Illinois Manufacturers' Association. From 1930 to 1931, he served as president of the

. He died on October 2, 1933, in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

He was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery.

Selected publications

* Charles Piez.
Personal reminiscences of James Mapes Dodge
'' 1916

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Piez, Charles 1866 births 1933 deaths People from Mainz American mechanical engineers Columbia School of Engineering and Applied Science alumni Presidents of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Immigrants to the United States Burials at Oak Hill Cemetery (Washington, D.C.)