American Society of Civil Engineers

Overview

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) is America’s oldest engineering society — founded November 5, 1852, in New York City — and the profession’s most visible public scorekeeper: every four years since 1998 it has graded the nation’s infrastructure, and the 2025 edition gave the United States a C, the highest mark in the report’s history (Municipal Sewer & Water). By its own account the society represents more than 150,000 civil engineers in 177 countries, and it calls itself the world’s largest publisher of civil engineering content (ASCE Missouri S&T). Less visible but more structural: ASCE was one of the seven societies that founded the Engineers’ Council for Professional Development in 1932 — the body now known as ABET (ABET).

The 1852 founding: twelve engineers in the Croton Aqueduct office

On October 23, 1852, a notice went out to practitioners of civil engineering in and near New York City, inviting them to develop an association that would serve “the professionals who design and construct America’s built environment” (Invention & Technology). Twelve men answered. On November 5 they met in the office of Alfred W. Craven, chief engineer of the Croton Aqueduct Department — then housed in the Rotunda near what is now City Hall Park — and founded the American Society of Civil Engineers and Architects. The founders were Julius W. Adams, J.W. Ayres, Alfred W. Craven, Thomas A. Emmet, Edward Gardiner, Robert B. Gorsuch, G.S. Greene, James Laurie, W.H. Morell, S.S. Post, W.H. Talcott, and W.H. Sidell (ASCE Metropolitan Section).

The society’s first headquarters stood in the Chamber of Commerce Building in Lower Manhattan. In 1868 — a few years after the architects formed a professional society of their own — it adopted its current name (ASCE Missouri S&T). On June 16, 1981, the ASCE Metropolitan Section unveiled a founders’ plaque in City Hall Park near Chambers and Centre Streets, marking the 1852 meeting site. ASCE remained headquartered in New York City for 144 years, relocating six times to progressively larger facilities, before moving to Reston, Virginia — just outside Washington, D.C. — in 1996, “to position the organization at the crossroads of global commerce and power” (Invention & Technology).

What ASCE does: standards, publishing, and the profession’s infrastructure

ASCE describes its mission as standing “at the forefront of a profession that plans, designs, constructs, and operates society’s economic and social engine – the built environment – while protecting and restoring the natural environment” (ASCE Missouri S&T). In practice that means three things: it is a leading provider of technical conferences and continuing education; it is, by its own account, the world’s largest publisher of civil engineering content; and it is an authoritative source for the codes and standards that protect the public, advancing specialties through nine technical institutes.

The fellow 1932 ECPD founding societies — the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers (now AIME), the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the American Institute of Electrical Engineers (now IEEE), the Society for the Promotion of Engineering Education (now the American Society for Engineering Education), the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, and the National Council of State Boards of Engineering Examiners (now NCEES) — built the accreditation system alongside it (ABET).

The Report Card: America’s infrastructure GPA

ASCE’s signature public product is the Report Card for America’s Infrastructure, published every four years since 1998, grading the nation’s infrastructure overall and across 18 individual sectors on an A-to-F scale. The arc of the grades tells a story of long decline and recent repair:

Edition	Overall grade	Context
1998	D	First edition
2001–2017	D / D+	Five straight editions stuck in the D range
2021	C−	First break above D+
2025	C	Highest mark since 1998

The 2025 edition, released March 25, 2025, gave the cumulative C and credited the November 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act — $1.2 trillion authorized for 2022–2026 — for the improvement: eight categories improved (dams, hazardous waste, inland waterways, levees, ports, public parks, roads, transit), seven held steady, and two (energy, rail) slipped (ASCE). Ports earned the best grade (B); stormwater and transit the worst (D). Broadband debuted as a new category at C+, with 12.7 million American households still lacking a broadband subscription. ASCE estimates $9.1 trillion is needed to bring all 18 categories to a state of good repair, and says sustained investment could save each American household $700 a year (Municipal Sewer & Water).

The report has a credible critic. Strong Towns, the urbanist advocacy group, argues the exercise is a lobbying tool: the $1.2 trillion IIJA “barely moved the national GPA from a C− to a C,” it says, while ASCE’s own cited funding gap grew from $2 trillion (2017) to $2.6 trillion (2021) to $3.7 trillion (2025) — “the equivalent of a doctor congratulating themselves while your health declines” (Strong Towns). ASCE’s answer is patience: projects take years to move from planning to constructed reality, and without continued funding the grades will slide back.

Timeline

• 1852-11-05 — Twelve engineers found the American Society of Civil Engineers and Architects in New York City.
• 1868 — The society adopts its current name.
• 1932 — ASCE co-founds the Engineers’ Council for Professional Development (now ABET).
• 1981 — Founders’ plaque unveiled in New York’s City Hall Park.
• 1996 — Headquarters moves to Reston, Virginia after 144 years in New York.
• 1998 — First Report Card for America’s Infrastructure (grade: D).
• 2025 — Report Card grade reaches C, the highest ever; $3.7 trillion gap estimated.

Frequently asked questions

When was ASCE founded? November 5, 1852, in New York City, when twelve engineers met in the Croton Aqueduct Department office of chief engineer Alfred W. Craven. It was first called the American Society of Civil Engineers and Architects and took its current name in 1868.

What is the ASCE Report Card for America’s Infrastructure? A quadrennial assessment, published since 1998, grading U.S. infrastructure overall and in 18 sectors on an A–F scale. The 2025 edition gave a cumulative C — the best grade ever — while estimating a $3.7 trillion investment gap.

Is ASCE the oldest engineering society in the U.S.? By its own account, yes — founded 1852, it calls itself the nation’s oldest engineering society. It represents more than 150,000 members in 177 countries by its stated figures.

What is ASCE’s connection to ABET? ASCE was one of seven engineering societies that founded the Engineers’ Council for Professional Development in New York City in 1932; ECPD was renamed the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) in 1980.

Where is ASCE headquartered? Reston, Virginia, outside Washington, D.C., since 1996 — after 144 years headquartered in New York City.

What this profile does not claim

This profile does not state an independently audited membership count — “more than 150,000” is the society’s own figure. It does not name current officers or quote revenue and staffing, which no fully-read source verified. It does not adjudicate the Strong Towns critique of the Report Card’s gap methodology; it reports ASCE’s estimates and the criticism side by side. The 1868 rename’s link to the architects’ 1857 split follows the society chapter’s account.