Guide to the William L. Mertz transportation collection, 1895-1995 C0050 William L. Mertz transportation

Guide to the William L. Mertz transportation collection, 1895-1995 C0050

William L. Mertz transportation


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George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center

Fenwick Library, MS2FL
4400 University Dr.
Fairfax, Virginia 22030
Business Number: 703-993-2220
Fax Number: 703-993-8911
speccoll@gmu.edu
URL: https://scrc.gmu.edu

Eron Ackerman

Repository
George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center
Identification
C0050
Title
William L. Mertz transportation collection 1895-1995
URL:
http://sca.gmu.edu/finding_aids/mertz.html
Quantity
47.5 Linear Feet, (60 boxes)
Creator
Mertz, Lee, 1920-1993
Language
English .
Abstract
The collection contains transportation related materials collected over a 45-year period. Types of materials include scholarly journal articles dealing with transportation topics, summaries of congressional acts relating to transportation, official reports and studies of transportation agencies, summaries of speeches given by transportation officials, and personal correspondence among transportation officials.

Administrative Information

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Access Restrictions

Collection is open to research.

Preferred Citation

William L. Mertz transportation collection, Collection #C0050, Special Collections and Archives, George Mason University Libraries.

Acquisition Information

Collection donated by Jonathan Gifford, Marty L. Freeman, and Perry M. Kent in 1994-2000.

Processing Information

Processed and finding aid compiled by Robert Vay, Vikram David, Estee L. Dudash, Barbara Haase, and Kaycee Morgan in 1995. EAD markup completed in February 2009 by Eron Ackerman and Jordan Patty.


Biographical Information

William Lee Mertz, a former Federal Highway Administration Associate Administrator, played a leading role in planning and developing the Interstate system of highways in the United States. Born in 1920, Mertz started his career as a highway engineer with the Bureau of Public Roads in the Department of Commerce. As a field engineer, Mertz worked on many interesting and important transportation projects. He took part in the 1955 Road Test in Ottawa, Illinois, where the basic designs for Interstate pavements were developed. Mertz was assigned in 1956 to the Bureau of Standards to develop standards for computer software for use in highway engineering applications. During the 1960s he worked with such groups as the National Capital Transit Agency in Washington, D.C. and the Tri-State Transportation Commission in New York. He also served as an administrator in the planning of the Interstate Highway System, including the Washington Beltway, I-95 in Maryland, and the Washington Metrorail System. In 1969 Mertz returned to the Federal Highway Administration as Chief of the Urban Planning Division and developed transportation planning studies in all 213 metropolitan areas of the nation. After he left the Federal Highway Administration, Mertz took it upon himself to assemble documents and materials that were important in the development of the Interstate system, and, more generally, to the development of highways and urban transportation policy. Mertz died in 1993.

Scope and Content

The collection contains transportation related materials collected over a 45 year period. Types of materials include scholarly journal articles dealing with transportation topics, summaries of congressional acts relating to transportation, official reports and studies of transportation agencies, summaries of speeches given by transportation officials, and personal correspondence among transportation officials. Many of these documents are photocopies of the original materials. The material covers a wide variety of topics, such as The Federal Highway Acts, bridges, buses, the environment, transportation in cities, commuting, and trucking. Organizations represented by materials in the collection include the Federal Highway Administration,the Department of Transportation, the Tri-State Transportation Commission, and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.

Arrangement

This collection is arranged alphabetically by subject.

Related Material

Special Collections and Archives also holds other transportation collections.

Subjects and Indexing Terms


Significant Persons Associated With the Collection

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Container List

William L. Mertz transportation collection
1895-1995
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