Daniel A. Tompkins (12 October 1851 – 18 October 1914) was an American

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...

, industrialist, and

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

Early life

Tompkins was born 12 October 1851 to DeWitt Clinton and Hannah Virginia Smyly Tompkins. He attended Edgefield Academy as a youth. He expressed desire in the field of

Engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

since a young age.

Education

Tompkins entered the

University of South Carolina The University of South Carolina (USC, SC, or Carolina) is a Public university, public research university in Columbia, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1801 as South Carolina College, It is the flagship of the University of South Car ...

in 1867. In 1869, he transferred to

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (; RPI) is a private university, private research university in Troy, New York, United States. It is the oldest technological university in the English-speaking world and the Western Hemisphere. It was establishe ...

to study

Civil engineering Civil engineering is a regulation and licensure in engineering, professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads ...

. During school vacations, Tompkins would work as a

drafter A drafter (also draughtsman / draughtswoman in British English, British and English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English, draftsman / draftswoman, drafting technician, or CAD technician in American English, American and Canadia ...

for John A. Griswold and Company. He graduated in 1873 with a Civil Engineering degree.

Professional career

Shortly after graduation, Tompkins became a master machinist with Bethlehem Iron Works in Pennsylvania. The factory head, saw how good Tompkins was at his job and, in 1877, he sent Tompkins to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

to oversee the foundation of Schwerte Iron Works. Following his return to the United States in 1879, he reestablished his employment at Bethlehem Iron Works. In 1881, he went to become a master machinist for the Crystal Plate Glass Company in Crystal City, Missouri. In 1883, he came to Charlotte with the Westinghouse Machinery Company. In 1899, he published ''Cotton Mill, Commercial Features''. In 1899, Tompkins's textile juggernaut led to his appointment by President

William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until Assassination of William McKinley, his assassination in 1901. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...

to the U.S. Industrial Commission. By 1910, he played a role in starting more than 250 cotton oil mills, 150 electric plants, and 100 cotton mills. He was opposed to labor regulations and favored efficiency.

Death

On 18 October 1914, Tompkins died from a paralytic condition. The former Textile Building at

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State, North Carolina State, NC State University, or NCSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1887 and p ...

is named in honor of him. Former Daniel A. Tompkins Company Machine Shop is a historic

factory A factory, manufacturing plant or production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. Th ...

building located at Charlotte,

Mecklenburg County, North Carolina Mecklenburg County () is a County (United States), county located in the southwestern region of the U.S. state of North Carolina, in the United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 1,115,482, making it th ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tompkins, Daniel A. 1851 births 1914 deaths American engineers American journalists