In 1904, Baltimore burns to the ground.

The Great Baltimore Fire rages for two days, destroying more than 1,500 buildings and causing the present-day equivalent of $4 billion in damages.

History Called.
We Answered.

Surveyor Gustav Requardt helps with the rebuilding of the underground sewer system after the fire.

Upon completion, Requardt and others who worked on the project are served lunch in a diversion tunnel—with the mayor.

History Called.
We Answered.

Typhoid, the urban scourge.

Like many booming American cities in the early 1900s, Baltimore faces the threat of crippling outbreaks due to poor sanitation and pest infestations.

History Called.
We Answered.

Ezra Whitman spearheads the design of the Montebello Water Filtration Plant.

Called one of the "most important undertakings in the history of the city" by Mayor Preston, the plant supplies clean water to thousands—helping to eliminate Typhoid.

History Called.
We Answered.

Millionaire John D. Rockefeller buys a Maryland railroad.

Railways emerges as the fastest, most efficient means to move people and goods. For some, they were also quite profitable.

History Called.
We Answered.

WRA rides Rockefeller's rails to notoriety.

In 1915, the fledgling firm designed the Western Maryland Rail Bridge to tame the region's treacherous, rocky terrain.

History Called.
We Answered.

Optimism and tumult collide.

The year 1940 ushers in an era of dramatic innovation, deep-rooted patriotism and a world-changing conflict.

History Called.
We Answered.

The first to answer the call.

Whitman, Requardt & Smith is awarded the nation’s first defense contract, establishing a long-lasting legacy of serving the military.

History Called.
We Answered.

In 1941, the shadow of war creeps across the world.

The United States waits—and prepares—for an inevitable showdown with the axis of evil.

History Called.
We Answered.

Whitman, Requardt & Smith, does its duty to help end the Nazi threat.

WRA designs and builds Army arsenals in three states. From the manufacturing plant and sewage to the airfields and railroads, WRA's work provides critical support to help the world through its darkest hours.

History Called.
We Answered.

Richmond, VA's population grows by more than 12% over two decades.

Demand spikes for safer, more efficient water treatment to serve nearly 200,000 people.

History Called.
We Answered.

Helping Richmond's water supply come clean.

In the late 1940s, the firm upgrades water treatment plants to better serve Virginia's fourth-largest city.

History Called.
We Answered.

The new face of travel in post-war America.

With a resurgence in the middle-class and unprecedented prosperity, more and more people look to the skies to get from coast-to-coast and country-to-country.

History Called.
We Answered.

WRA drafts the blueprint for modern commercial aviation

A team from WRA develops the master plan for Friendship Airport—or as we know it today, BWI-Marshall Airport, an international hub for more than 20 million passengers annually.

History Called.
We Answered.

The U.S. Naval Academy embarks on its second century.

The Academy's graduates since 1845 include war heroes, Nobel honorees, astronauts, and a U.S. president.

History Called.
We Answered.

WRA helps write a chapter in the Naval Academy's storied history.

The firm updates multiple facilities on the campus, enhancing the school's ability to provide generations of midshipmen with unmatched training.

History Called.
We Answered.

The automobile boom creates a crunch.

The 1950s saw the number of cars on the road in America nearly double, with 4 in 5 American households owning at least one car.

History Called.
We Answered.

WRA collaborates on President Eisenhower's Interstate Highway System.

WRA designs the I-83 Baltimore-Harrisburg Expressway, the I-895 Patapsco Tunnel approach, and US 140—a vital link between Baltimore and Gettysburg.

History Called.
We Answered.

Maryland grows thirsty.

The Old Line State's population increases 70% from the 1930s and 1950s, creating an insatiable demand for water.

History Called.
We Answered.

In 1958, WRA taps the Susquehanna River

WRA designs the Susquehanna Water Supply line, nicknamed "The Big Inch"—a 9-foot wide pipe transporting water from the river to hundreds of thousands in central Maryland.

History Called.
We Answered.

Fortifying America's Infrastructure, One Pothole at a Time

To improve aging roads, President Kennedy approves the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1961, adding $900M to the interstate program.

History Called.
We Answered.

On the road again.

WRA spearheads an array of projects including JFK Memorial Highway, MD 177, I-95 in Wilmington, and multiple byways in Virginia.

History Called.
We Answered.

Pushing the limits of space and time.

In his 1961 speech to Congress, President Kennedy challenges the nation to send a man to the moon and bring him back safely—before the end of the decade.

History Called.
We Answered.

WRA gives the U.S. space program a boost.

Engineers design the Bendix ESAR (Electronically Steerable Array Radar) Facility and Spadat Radar AN/FPS 85 Space Tracker to monitor objects in orbit.

History Called.
We Answered.

America moves to the 'burbs

The post-WWII trend of the middle-class trading city life for yards and picket fences reshapes the American experience.

History Called.
We Answered.

In 1967, WRA helps start a suburb from scratch.

WRA handles civil site and land development for Columbia, MD, a planned community with the mission of improving quality of life and eliminating racial and class segregation.

History Called.
We Answered.

In 1960, Jacques Cousteau reveals the sea's greatest secrets.

His Deepstar 4000 submersible allows a three-person crew to venture nearly a mile beneath the ocean surface.

History Called.
We Answered.

WRA helps humankind touch the bottom of the ocean.

WRA develops the first industrial research facility for oceanography. Built for Westinghouse, it serves as a state-of-the-art laboratory and testing ground of generations of Cousteau’s Deepstar submersibles.

History Called.
We Answered.

Marylanders head down the ocean.

Ocean City experiences a massive boom in tourism as hundreds of thousands flock to the beach each year.

History Called.
We Answered.

Bringing water to the beach.

WRA develops a water supply plan for the city that minimizes salt water exposure while providing enough to meet OC's growing need.

History Called.
We Answered.

Renewing America's cities, en masse.

After the population's decades-long exodus to the suburbs, President Johnson sees mass transit as a way to bring people back to cities.

History Called.
We Answered.

Federal aid in the early 70's helps jump-start commuter rail transportation.

WRA oversees the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority's New Carrollton Route with two aerial stations, surface and aerial tracks.

History Called.
We Answered.

Finding a port in a storm of growth.

Booming foreign and domestic trade challenges U.S. ports to keep up with increases in traffic, volume, and environmental regulations.

History Called.
We Answered.

WRA prepares Baltimore for a new era of waterborne trade.

The firm's improvements to the South Locust Point terminal at the mouth of the Inner Harbor increases capacity—and opportunity.

History Called.
We Answered.

Baltimore makes its pitch to tourists.

With the development of Harborplace, the Maryland Science Center, and the National Aquarium the city's Inner Harbor becomes a top destination.

History Called.
We Answered.

WRA and the Baltimore Zoo give tourists a reason to explore beyond the harbor.

Throughout the 1980s, WRA handles site planning for the Tiger Exhibit, Children’s Zoo and Chimpanzee Exhibit.

History Called.
We Answered.

To infinity and beyond.

The U.S. space shuttle program quadruples its number of missions between 1981 and 1986.

History Called.
We Answered.

Testing the limits of space travel.

WRA designs the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory Space Flight Test Building to support space exploration

History Called.
We Answered.

Arming for the "Second Cold War."

Military spending reaches an all-time high in 1987 as the Communist threat remains.

History Called.
We Answered.

WRA helps America stay vigilant.

Engineers update critical infrastructure at the Newport News and Norfolk Naval Shipyards, as well as Aberdeen Proving Ground.

History Called.
We Answered.

The ghosts of Baltimore's past threaten progress.

The Inner Harbor's modern facelift hides a crumbling infrastructure built centuries ago.

History Called.
We Answered.

Shoring up the shores.

WRA oversees the dredging and backfilling of Pier VI, stabilizing it for future projects like The Pier VI Hotel and Pierce’s Park.

History Called.
We Answered.

The Social Security Administration gains its independence.

President Clinton signs the law untethering the organization from the Department of Health and Human Services—leading to an increase in funding and employees.

History Called.
We Answered.

In 1995, WRA gives the SSA room to grow.

The firm oversees renovations to the administration annex, creating a larger, more modern facility to serve the needs of future generations of Americans.

History Called.
We Answered.

Maryland experiences nature's fury.

The "Storm of the Century" in 1993 and the crippling East Coast Blizzard of '96 prompt the state to reassess its emergency response capabilities

History Called.
We Answered.

WRA helps state government prepare for the worst.

WRA develops the Maryland Emergency Management Agency Command Center, a state-of-the-art facility to coordinate response efforts —and save lives.

History Called.
We Answered.

A renaissance at the water's edge.

In the 80s, Baltimore remakes itself as a tourist destination with the redevelopment of its Inner Harbor into an entertainment and cultural hub.

History Called.
We Answered.

The sun rises in the east for Baltimore's harbor expansion.

Inspired by the Inner Harbor's success, WRA and the city look to new frontiers in 1999: redeveloping a dilapidated industrial area known as Harbor East.

History Called.
We Answered.

Delaware searches for a smarter way to get there.

Anne Canby, DelDOT's first female secretary in history, urges sustainability with initiatives like bike and pedestrian facilities, mass transit, and context sensitive design.

History Called.
We Answered.

WRA's plan to move people.

Helping Delaware move from highways focus to a transportation focus, WRA develops a 20-year transportation plan for Route 40.

History Called.
We Answered.

9/11.

Terrorists hijack four U.S. airliners and crash them into the Pentagon, the World Trade Center, and a field in Pennsylvania—2,977 lose their lives.

History Called.
We Answered.

"A great people has been moved to defend a great nation.”

WRA develops the Patuxent Naval Air Station's Research and Development Facility: the testing ground for aircraft that take on the Taliban and Al-Qaeda.

History Called.
We Answered.

Education in the new millennium.

Towson University in Maryland launches a new vision of the institution as a metropolitan university, undergoing a technological and building renaissance.

History Called.
We Answered.

Redesigning the university of the future.

WRA transforms the campus' 40-year old administrative offices into a 140,000-square foot signature building gracing the new southeast campus gateway.

History Called.
We Answered.

Mileage in Maryland adds up

Maryland vehicles log nearly 57 billion miles in 2005, a trend that's predicted to rise due to population increases and development in Baltimore's surrounding counties.

History Called.
We Answered.

Building the road to Somewhere.

WRA leads the reconstruction of the MD 22 /I-95 Interchange, a state-of-the-art transportation project improving the capacity and safety of a major thoroughfare.

History Called.
We Answered.

Bringing mass transit to the masses

Secretary of Transportation John Porcari appoints a committee to make suggestions for new rail lines and expansions of existing lines in Baltimore.

History Called.
We Answered.

A rail to bridge Baltimore.

In 2006, WRA studies the feasibility of a new 14-mile transit line through the city—the first comprehensive plan for a rail system in nearly 40 years.

History Called.
We Answered.

Six states and the District of Columbia come together for the Chesapeake Bay.

The Chesapeake 2000 Agreement aims to dramatically improve water quality in the bay and its tributaries.

History Called.
We Answered.

Bay-saving funds filter down to wastewater facilities in need.

With a grant from the state, WRA upgrades the Cumberland Wastewater Treatment Plant with industry leading Enhanced Nutrient Remove technology.

History Called.
We Answered.

The terrorist threat intensifies...

On June 2, 2007, four terrorists are arrested and charged with a plot to blow up JFK International Airport in New York City.

History Called.
We Answered.

...and America is ready for it.

WRA redesigns and redevelops the Air National Guard headquarters into a modern, open and flexible facility, enhancing its ability to respond to threats, worldwide.

History Called.
We Answered.

The Great Recession's grip.

As unemployment jumps to 10%, the White House passes a $780 billion economic stimulus to jump-start the economy.

History Called.
We Answered.

Highway speed toll lanes provide a fast lane for the recovery.

With a stimulus grant, WRA helps modernize the Newark Toll Plaza, easing congestion for the 28 million vehicles that use it.

History Called.
We Answered.

"All of us have a role to play in building an education system that is worthy of our children." President Barack Obama

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 provides $100 billion to meet the needs of schools in the midst of the economic crisis.

History Called.
We Answered.

An 82-year old school in Southwest Baltimore starts anew

WRA designs a 60,000 square-foot expansion for Violetville Elementary and rehabs the historic building.

History Called.
We Answered.

Maryland aims to add mass appeal to mass transit.

The state passes the Transportation Infrastructure Investment Act of 2013 in hopes of improving and increasing commuter options.

History Called.
We Answered.

Designing a MARC train station that hits the mark.

WRA's Halethorpe Station design improves ADA accessibility and reduces maintenance needs for one of MARC's busiest hubs.

History Called.
We Answered.

The business of preserving the Chesapeake Bay.

Maryland funds upgrades to sewage treatment and septic systems to improve wetlands and reduce polluted storm water runoff in the Bay.

History Called.
We Answered.

A century of expertise comes full circle.

WRA continues to pioneers new approaches to water/wastewater treatment with its design for Baltimore County Pumping Stations.

History Called.
We Answered.

This isn’t our legacy. It’s our blueprint.

While we’re proud of the last 100 years, we’re ready to embark on a new century of challenges, innovation, and human triumphs. Let’s get building.

Let’s get building