History of architectural engineering facts for kids

The amazing Eiffel Tower, a great example of engineering and architecture working together!

Have you ever wondered who designs those super tall skyscrapers or amazing bridges? It's often a mix of architects and engineers! Architectural engineering is a cool field that combines the art of designing buildings with the science of engineering them to be strong and safe. For a long time, building design and engineering were done by the same people. But over time, they became separate jobs. In the late 1800s, architectural engineering became its own special subject you could study at universities. The University of Illinois was one of the first to offer this program. Pennsylvania State University has had its architectural engineering program approved by ABET (a group that checks engineering programs) since 1935, which is a very long time!

When Architecture and Engineering Met

For many years, there wasn't a big difference between architects and engineers. People who built things, like the ancient Romans, used their experience to figure out how to make strong buildings. A famous Roman writer named Vitruvius wrote about both the beauty of buildings and how to build them using materials like concrete.

During the Middle Ages, the "master builders" who created huge cathedrals learned their skills through practice and rules passed down over time. They didn't use modern science to calculate how strong things needed to be.

Then, in the 1600s, smart scientists like Galileo started to study how materials break and how strong beams are. This was the beginning of using science to design buildings. By the mid-1700s, special schools for engineers started to appear, and that's when architecture and engineering began to become different jobs.

Modern Buildings and Big Ideas

In more recent times, many famous architects, like Frank Lloyd Wright, actually trained as engineers first. And engineers, like Gustave Eiffel (who designed the Eiffel Tower!), created incredible structures that are also works of art.

In the United States, architectural engineering became a university subject in the late 1800s. Today, it's a field that touches almost every part of our built world. This includes planning, designing, building, and even running structures. Important modern engineers who work closely with architecture include Santiago Calatrava and Ove Arup.

Thanks to new advances in computers, engineers can now do very complex calculations. This allows architects to design even more daring and unique buildings! In 1998, two big groups for architectural engineers joined together to form the Architectural Engineering Institute (AEI), which is part of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Learning Architectural Engineering

The very first architectural engineering program at a university started in 1891 at the University of Illinois. It was part of their engineering school and worked with their architecture school. Soon after, in 1897, MIT also started a program. By 1912, there were 11 such programs! These programs eventually got their special approval from ABET. Many other universities have since been approved for their architectural engineering programs, like the University of Wyoming.

Today, most architectural engineering courses are taught in engineering schools. Around the world, about 60 schools offer classes and degrees in this field. Here are some of the universities in the United States that offer these programs:

Universities with Architectural Engineering Programs

See also

• HVAC
• History of structural engineering
• History of architecture