{{Short description|American structural engineer (1899–1990)}} {{Infobox person | name = Fred Severud | birth_name = Fridtjof Hermann Nicolai Sæverud | birth_date = {{Birth date|1899|06|08}} | birth_place = Bergen, United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway | death_date = {{Death date and age|1990|06|11|1899|06|08}} | death_place = Miami, Florida, United States | alma_mater = Norwegian Institute of Technology | occupation = {{hlist | Structural engineer | civil engineer}} | organization = {{hlist | Severud Associates | ASCE | National Academy of Engineering}} | movement = Jehovah's Witnesses | spouse = Signe ({{abbr|m.|married}} 1923; {{abbr|d.|died}} 1982) | children = 4 | awards = {{hlist | Franklin P. Brown Medal (1952) | Ernest E. Howard Award (1964)}} | signature = Signature of Fred Severud.png }}
'''Fred Nicholas Severud''' (né '''Fridtjof Hermann Nicolai Sæverud'''; June 8, 1899 – June 11, 1990) was a Norwegian-born, American structural engineer. His projects included the St. Louis Gateway Arch, Seagram Building and Madison Square Garden. <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/06/14/obituaries/fred-severud-civil-engineer-91.html|title=Fred Severud; Civil Engineer, 91 |work=New York Times|date=1990-06-14|accessdate=2015-08-04}}</ref>
==Background== Severud was born in Bergen, Sweden-Norway. He was the son of Herman Sæverud (1861–1931) and Cecilie Tvedt (1869–1956). His father was a businessman and owner of a margarine factory in Bergen. His parents encouraged their children to attend college.<ref>Engineering Legends: Great American Civil Engineers, Richard Weingardt, ASCE Press, 2005</ref> Severud had two brothers and nine sisters. One brother, Harald Sæverud, gained recognition as a modern classical composer. Another brother, Bjarne Sæverud (1892–1978), would be active within the Norwegian Resistance during the Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during World War II and serve as a representative in the Norwegian Parliament from Bergen (1945–1949).<ref>{{cite web|url= https://nbl.snl.no/Harald_S%C3%A6verud|title= Harald Sæverud, Komponist|publisher= Norsk biografisk leksikon |accessdate= March 5, 2016}}</ref> Severud attended the Bergen Cathedral School and later studied at the Norwegian Institute of Technology. In 1923, Severud emigrated to the United States, entering through Ellis Island. Shortly thereafter, Severud started work for an engineering company, where he was rapidly promoted.<ref>[http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=1966&page=253 Fred N. Severud Memorial Tributes] (National Academy of Engineering, Volume 5 (1992)], National Academy of Engineering (NAE), article by Anton Tedesk)</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.stortinget.no/no/Representanter-og-komiteer/Representantene/Representantfordeling/Representant/?perid=BJS%C3%86|title= Bjarne Peder Olai Sæverud (1892–1978)|publisher=Stortinget |accessdate= March 5, 2016}}</ref>
==Career== Severud utilized the experience he gained in his early years of designing successful housing projects. In 1928 he founded an engineering consultancy in Manhattan called Severud-Elstad-Krueger Associates, renamed twenty years later as Severud-Perrone-Sturm-Bandel, and now known as Severud Associates. He also lectured and was the author of several books and articles on architectural and engineering subjects.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://nibasapu.wordpress.com/blog/fred-n-severud/|title= Fred N. Severud, Cable Roof Pioneer and Monument Builder|publisher= Nibas B. Apu|author=Richard G. Weingardt, P.E.|accessdate=2015-08-04}}</ref>
Along with Joseph H. Abel (1905–1985), he wrote one of the industry’s first comprehensive books, ''Apartment Houses'' (Reinhold Publishing Corporation, 1947) on how to best design, build and operate apartment ventures. A few years later, as one of the few structural engineers in the world to have analyzed the forces from and the effects of atomic bombs, together with Anthony F. Merrill he wrote a textbook on protection from nuclear explosions called ''The Bomb, Survival and You'' (Reinhold Publishing Corporation, 1954).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://public.aia.org/sites/hdoaa/wiki/Wiki%20Pages/ahd1000044.aspx |title= Joseph Henry Abel (1905–1985)|publisher= AIA Historical Directory of American Architects|accessdate= March 5, 2016}}</ref>
Frei Otto, the German architect and engineer known for membrane and tensile structures such as the Olympic Stadium in Munich, visited his office in 1951 during the construction of the Raleigh Livestock Arena. Edmund (Ted) Happold founder of Buro Happold, worked for several years in his office.<ref>Philip Steadman, ''The evolution of designs: biological analogy in architecture and the applied arts'' (revised edition, Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2008)</ref>
==Selected projects== * Madison Square Garden * Dorton Arena, Raleigh, N.C. (1953) (architect Matthew Nowicki)<ref>[http://www.ncstatefair.org/facilities/dortonhistory.htm Extended history of the J.S. Dorton Arena] (N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services)</ref> * Place Ville Marie, Montreal (1962) (architect I M Pei)<ref>[http://www.pcf-p.com/a/p/5503/s.html Place Ville Marie] Pei, Cobb, Freed & Partners)</ref> * Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin (House of the Cultures of the World) (1957) (architect Hugh Stubbins)<ref>[http://www.berlin.de/en/attractions-and-sights/3560514-3104052-house-of-the-cultures-of-the-world.en.html House of the Cultures of the World] (berlin.de)]</ref> * David S. Ingalls Hockey Rink at Yale University (1959) (architect Eero Saarinen)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://structurae.net/structures/david-s-ingalls-rink|title=David S. Ingalls Rink|publisher=structurae|accessdate=2015-08-04}}</ref> * Toronto City Hall (opened 1965) (architect Viljo Revell)<ref>[https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/toronto-city-hall-how-finnish-architecture-rebranded-a-city/article4328993/ Toronto City Hall: How Finnish architecture rebranded a city] (Lisa Rochon. The Globe and Mail Inc. Sep. 17, 2010)</ref> * St Louis Gateway Arch, (completed 1965) (architect Eero Saarinen)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nps.gov/jeff/planyourvisit/materials-and-techniques.htm|title=The Construction of the Arch|publisher=National Park Service|author=J.E.N. Jensen, Associate Director |access-date=2015-08-04}}</ref>
==Gallery== <gallery> Image:Haus_der_Kulturen_der_Welt_Nachtaufnahme.jpg| Haus der Kulturen der Welt in Berlin, Germany Image:Ingalls Rink Highsmith.jpg| Ingalls Rink in New Haven, Connecticut File:Dorton Arena.jpg|J.S. Dorton Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina City Hall, Toronto, Ontario.jpg|Toronto City Hall in Toronto, Ontario File:Madison Square Garden IV.jpg| Madison Square Garden in New York City </gallery>
==Selected works== *''The Bomb, Survival, and You: Protection for people, buildings, equipment'' with Anthony F. Merrill (1954) *''Apartment Houses: Progressive Architecture Library'' with Joseph H. Abel (1947)
==Honors== A fellow in the ASCE, Severud was elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering (1968). Severud received numerous personal engineering awards for being an industry pacesetter, among them the Ernest Howard Award (1964) and the Franklin P. Brown Medal (1952). The American Institute of Architects presented him with its prestigious Honorary Associate Member award for his lifetime of contributions to structural design.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.asce.org/templates/award-detail.aspx?id=624&all_recipients=1|title= 1964 Fred N. Severud|publisher= Ernest E. Howard Award Past Award Winners|accessdate= March 5, 2016|archive-date= February 15, 2016|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160215130112/http://www.asce.org/templates/award-detail.aspx?id=624&all_recipients=1|url-status= dead}}</ref>
==Personal life== On Sept. 11, 1923 he married Signe Hansen, whom he had known at the Norwegian Institute of Technology. They would have four children – Fred, Jr. (1936–2021), Inger [Jonsen] (1924–1961), Laila [Shalkoski] (1925–2016), and Sonja [Susich] (1931–2015). As a Jehovah's Witness since the 1930s, he helped design many of their religious buildings throughout his engineering years.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1982763|title=From Atheism to a Purposeful Life|publisher= Watchtower Bible and Tract Society|date= October 15, 1982|accessdate= August 9, 2019}}</ref> Severud left engineering behind on his retirement in 1973, just before his 74th birthday. He died at his home in Miami, Florida at the age of 91 from Alzheimer's disease.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-06-15-mn-42-story.html|title=Fred Severud; Designed Madison Square Garden, Gateway Arch|work=Los Angeles Times|date=June 15, 1990|access-date= March 5, 2016}}</ref>
==See also== *Engineering Legends *Severud Associates *Fazlur Khan *Tung-Yen Lin *Hal Iyengar
==References== {{Reflist|2}}
==Other sources== *da Sousa Cruz, Paulo J., ed. (2013) ''Structures and Architecture: New concepts, applications and challenges'' (CRC Press) {{ISBN|9781482224610}} *Campbell, Tracy (2013) ''The Gateway Arch: A Biography'' (Yale University Press) {{ISBN|9780300169492}} *Lemire, Elise; Benjamin Flowers (2012) ''Skyscraper: The Politics and Power of Building New York City in the Twentieth Century'' (University of Pennsylvania Press) {{ISBN|9780812202601}} *Weingardt, Richard G. (2005) ''Engineering Legends: Great American Civil Engineers'' (American Society of Civil Engineers) {{ISBN|9780784408018}}
==External links== *[http://www.severud.com Severud Associates website]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Severud, Fred}} Category:1899 births Category:1990 deaths Category:Engineers from Bergen Category:People educated at the Bergen Cathedral School Category:Norwegian Institute of Technology alumni Category:Norwegian emigrants to the United States Category:American former atheists and agnostics Category:American structural engineers Category:Norwegian civil engineers Category:American civil engineers Category:Members of the United States National Academy of Engineering Category:20th-century American engineers Category:American Jehovah's Witnesses Category:Converts to Christianity from atheism or agnosticism Category:Converts to Jehovah's Witnesses