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  • February

    TN H2O Steering Committee

    Memphis District Commander serving on state water steering committee

    With an eye on water resource issues both near term and out to the year 2040, Tennessee leaders headed by Gov. Bill Haslam, recently created the Tennessee Water Plan, or TN H2O. Memphis District Commander Col. Mike Ellicott is on the steering committee, and Hydraulics and Hydrology (H&H) Branch Chief Dave Berretta is a member of the groundwater working group.

  • November

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    Wilmington District dredge arrives in Memphis to get new lease on life

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Dredge Merritt, homeported in the Corps’ Wilmington (North Carolina) District, arrived at Memphis District’s Ensley Engineer Yard today to undergo major maintenance to extend its service life. The vessel left Wilmington on Oct. 19 for the long voyage around the coast to Mobile, Ala., up the Tennessee–Tombigbee Waterway to the Ohio River and finally down the Mississippi River to Memphis.

  • July

    Shane and Edna Boehmer posing with Edna's 2017 National Physique Committee Battle on the Bluff Bodybuilding Contest trophies.

    Wife, mother of six places first in bodybuilding competition

    She manages a household consisting of six young children and a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers husband, six budgerigar parakeets, five cats, and two Mexican Fox squirrels while successfully training and competing in bodybuilding competitions. When you add a toned muscular physique, strength, and steely discipline to the superpowers she already possesses as a mother and wife, Edna Boehmer is a real-life Wonder Woman. On May 6, Boehmer earned the first place trophy in the Masters over 35 Class-A bikini category of the 2017 National Physique Committee (NPC) Battle on the Bluff Bodybuilding Contest. She also took home the fifth-place trophy in the Bikini Novice Class-A category. The event took place at the Gold Strike Casino in Tunica, Miss. The NPC, started in 1982, is the premier amateur physique organization in the world.
  • Workers drilled two holes through the top of the gate then installed pins through the holes. Each pin was nine inches in diameter and four feet six inches long. Once the pins were in place, collars were welded around the pins to help stabilize them. The final step was to install pad eyes so a crane could lift each gate and gently lay it down on a waiting platform barge.

    Nearly century year old lock gates get a lift

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has a long history of building projects to last. But 95 years is asking a lot from any structure. So when it became necessary to replace some enormous steel gates that are part of an Inner Harbor Navigation Canal (IHNC) lock in the New Orleans District, the challenge was monumental. But Memphis District structural engineer Marneshia Richard proved she was up to the task when she was assigned a central role in the project.
  • Sarah Girdner portrait

    Girdner wins prestigious engineer award

    On May 26, Girdner won the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Young Engineer of the Year award at age 27. She won this prestigious award because of work she is doing, both with the American Society of Civil Engineers and Engineers Without Borders (EWB).

  • June

    (Left) Sweeney's team portrait. (Right) Priscilla Gary Sweeney using her 40-inch vertical leap to score two of her 1,169 career points.

    The Kansas Sports Hall of Fame welcomes Priscilla Gary Sweeney

    What do Legendary Major League Baseball star George Brett and our own District Contracting Officer, Priscilla Gary Sweeney have in common? They're both 2017 Inductees to the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame.

  • May

    Capt. James Washington (J.W.) Rouse. The Memphis District's Dry Dock Rouse is named in his honor.

    Family discovers surprising connection to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

    MEMPHIS, Tenn., May 16, 2017 - If you’ve ever researched your family’s history, you know that each uncovered fact enriches your family story. This is exactly what Mary Juliette Tiedgen and her daughter Karen Tiedgen experienced when, in 1996, they discovered their surprising family connection to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Memphis District. While doing genealogical research on the Rouse family, Karen Tiedgen discovered that the District’s Dry Dock Rouse is named after her great-grandfather, Capt. James Washington (J.W.) Rouse. Mary Tiedgen, 88, and her daughter visited the Memphis District’s Ensley Engineer Yard (EEY) on April 4 to see the Rouse. They traveled 750 miles from Norfolk, Neb., for the visit.

  • April

    Memphis Corps of Engineers selected as one of “Best Federal Places to Work”

    The Memphis District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has been nationally selected as one of the Best Places to Work in Federal government in the medium sized organizations category. Judging took place through the annual Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey that is administered by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.
  • Lt. Gen. Michael C. Wehr (left), President of the Mississippi River Commission, greets Dr. Tran Hong Ha (right), Vietnam’s Minister of Natural Resource and Environment, aboard the Corps of Engineers’ Motor Vessel Mississippi.

    Mekong meets Mississippi in Memphis

    Twelve members of the Mekong River Commission, headquartered in Vientiane, Laos, spent five days in the Lower Mississippi Valley sharing knowledge and learning from their counterparts on the Mississippi River Commission. They arrived in Memphis, Tenn., on April 2 and traveled from there to a variety of locations in the region. The two commissions formed a partnership in 2010 built around common interests in water resource development and management, and sharing of technical expertise and lessons learned.

  • July

    Memphis District Dive Team members on a survey trip to U.S. Coast Guard Foscue Creek Station to ensure federally threatened mussels are not endangered by a proposed dredging operation. (Rear, left to right) Josh Koontz, Mike Thron. (Front, left to right) Andrea Carpenter, Mark Smith.

    USACE Dive Team on a mission to protect federally threatened mussel

    On May 23, four members of the USACE Memphis District Dive Team set-off on a mission to help ensure
  • The women pictured were among 389 graduates of the Afghan National Police (ANP) Basic Police Officer Training waiting to be recognized in Kabul, Afghanistan, March 13, 2016. Memphis District engineers are participating in a Reachback Engineering project that supports increasing the ANP’s capacity to house and train more female officers to combat insurgency. An increase in the number of trained female officers enhances the ANP’s effectiveness because female officers can enter certain places and form bonds with other females in the community that their male counterparts cannot due to cultural propriety. (U.S. military photo by Lt. Charity Edgar/Released)

    Memphis Reachback Engineering: Helping to Combat Afghan Insurgency

    Six members of the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Memphis District are helping the Afghan
  • Memphis District engineers survey a section of the Chamisal Acequia to design a solution that will help keep the acequia flowing and clear of loose cobbles and boulders.

    Working to improve centuries old acequias for New Mexico community

    Engineers Mike Clay and Josh Giannini, members of the USACE Memphis District’s Design Branch, are
  • Codi Till prepares solar panels to power the Data Collection Platform (DCP) box.

    Hydraulics and Hydrology takes on new gage site at Mhoon Landing

    The Hydraulics and Hydrology Branch is currently working on a project to construct a new Mississippi

  • November

    Close up look at two of the samplers that will be used on each boat for collecting bed material.

    Sampling the Mississippi River

    For the third time in almost eight decades, bed material samples are being taken from the Mississippi River. The first was in 1935 and the second was in 1989, but this is the first time it’s an effort being coordinated between different government agencies.

  • October

    Memphis District Commander COL Jeffery Anderson joined Mississippi Sen. Roger Wicker and Rep. Alan Nunlee for a ribbon cutting ceremony today (Sept. 5) at the Johnson Creek Wastewater Treatment Facility in DeSoto County, Miss. The DeSoto County Regional Utility Authority was the local sponsor for this project. They had primary responsibility for all work with the Federal cost share provided in the form of reimbursements through the Memphis District. The state-of-the-art facility will give the people of this fastest growing region of Mississippi a highly efficient and environmentally friendly wastewater treatment facility that will serve the citizens of the community for decades to come.

    Wastewater Treatment Facility to open doors for future growth

    It’s not sexy, but it’s the greatest thing for the county,” said DeSoto County Board of Supervisors President Mark Gardner, “And it’ll open doors for DeSoto County’s future growth.”

  • Grugett christened

    “Wooooh!” The blare from the mighty air horn announces “I’m the Motor Vessel George C. Grugett and I’m here to join the fleet!” A few seconds later, more horns blare in welcome response, filling the afternoon air with sounds reminiscent of early days on the Mississippi River.

  • Anderson takes command

    The soaring marble columns at One Commerce Square provided an inspiring venue for Memphis District’s change of command July 12. Col. Vernie L. Reichling Jr. turned over leadership of the district to Col. Jeffery A. Anderson at the event attended by employees, retirees, family members, partners, stakeholders and others. Deputy District Commander Lt. Col. Dave Patton acted as the master of ceremonies.

  • August

    Gallery of Distinguished Civilian Employees

    District accepting nominations for distinguished civilian employee

    Since 1927, Memphis District has been recognizing Civilian employees for their extraordinary performance. A portrait of each individual hangs in the Gallery of Distinguished Civilian Employees, located on the 5th floor of the Memphis District headquarters, to honor these role models who’ve made significant contributions to the Corps of Engineers.
  • Thomas George packed a lot of life into his brief 56 years with us. The former Memphis District employee passed away April 5 doing one of the many things he loved – being close to the river. Thomas was Master of the Corps’ Dredge Potter based in the St. Louis District. He died in his sleep aboard the dredge which was at Ensley Engineer Yard in Memphis for maintenance work.

    A life well-lived ... Remembering Thomas George

    Thomas George packed a lot of life into his brief 56 years with us. The former Memphis District employee passed away April 5 doing one of the many things he loved – being close to the river. Thomas was Master of the Corps’ Dredge Potter based in the St. Louis District. He died in his sleep aboard the dredge which was at Ensley Engineer Yard in Memphis for maintenance work.

  • Keeping pace … my journey to the finish

    I had the honor of running in the 117th Boston Marathon this year. During my 26-mile, 385-yard race I had the pleasure of witnessing how incredible people can be as well as the displeasure of seeing how despicably low people are capable of becoming.