Interstate Highway System

The United States' Interstate Highway System was designated as one of the Seven Wonders of the United States in 1994 by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). To put this recognition into perspective one has only to look at other structures worthy of inclusion in the ASCE's list, including the Golden Gate Bridge, Panama Canal and the Hoover Dam.
The highway system, formally known as The Dwight D. Eisenhower System of Interstate and Defense Highways, is a marvel in construction. Not only does it link the nation from coast to coast, but it also helped to increase business productivity as companies may now to get their goods anywhere in the United States more quickly and efficiently. In fact, since the highway system was started in 1956, our country has seen a tenfold increase in our gross national product, thanks to this massive project.
No one construction company is responsible for the highway system; it was a task too monumental for any single company to undertake. For the most part, each state, with help from the federal government, was responsible for its own sections of the interstate highway system. Some states built their roads through their various transportation departments and some contracted out the job to highly skilled highway builders. Here are a few of the states where construction companies overcame huge challenges to help create America's superb highway system.
Highway Construction in Louisiana
One section of I-10 in Louisiana was earning design awards before it even opened in March of 1973. That stretch is the elevated roadway that runs across the Atchafalaya Swamp. The construction company responsible for this section of the interstate highway system is Boh Brothers Construction.
The company was founded in 1909 when Arthur Boh built four duplexes in a small New Orleans neighborhood. When Arthur's brother Henry joined the company in 1913, they changed the name to Boh Brothers, a name it still carries today.
In the early part of the 20th Century they branched out from building construction and into drainage and sewage projects, growing modestly through the difficult times of the Depression. By this time the company started earning recognition for their expertise in underground work and pile-driving skills, eventually leading to them being considered the number one pile-driving contractor in the South. As the company grew, it worked on war-related facilities, utilities, subdivisions, power plants and overpasses. Henry brought in some key employees who would later play a crucial role the interstate highway system project, including J.A. Tedford, D.E. Guiza, the company's first registered engineer, and B.C.Stewart. Stewart was a man so committed to providing quality workmanship that he was known for tearing out work if he didn't feel it was good enough - even if that work had already been approved by inspectors. Stewart became the company's vice president and senior consultant, positions he still holds today.
By the time the interstate highway system was ready to be built in Louisiana, Boh Bros. was ready for the task. The elevated section of highway across the Atchafalaya Swamp was constructed from precast segments. These segments were cast at a plant on Lake Pontchartrain, and then floated through a maze of streams and canals by barge to the Atchafalaya River Basin. When they arrived at the building site, the segments were then lifted by large cranes and placed on top of the supporting columns.