Arthur N. Sollee Papers
Scope and Contents
As Director of the Jacksonville Expressway Authority during the pivotal transportation years of 1956-1972, Mr. Sollee was a major influence in the development of the Jacksonville, Florida road system in Duval County, Florida in the mid-twentieth century. The collection consists primarily of correspondence, subject files and reports, and newspaper clippings relating to transportation projects in Duval County. It includes extensive documentation on the development of Jacksonville's road system, circa 1950-1970, consisting chiefly of numerous, albeit irregular, primary reports / studies; beach erosion / bulkhead data; and personal notes on Jacksonville transportation issues from the perspective of a prime participant. Historical source documents include project files relating to plans for Metropolitan Park and the Duval County Courthouse, and correspondence / newspaper clippings relating to the University of North Florida site selection. Few personal items are included.
Dates
- Created: 1927-1984
- Other: Date acquired: 00/00/1984
Creator
- Sollee, Arthur N., 1900-1984 (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research. For additional information and to make an appointment to view the collection, contact 904-620-1533 or e-mail lib-special@unf.edu
Biographical or Historical Information
Arthur Neyle Sollee, Sr. was born near Tifton, Georgia on May 23, 1900. Four years later, his family moved to Jacksonville, Florida where he attended South Jacksonville Elementary School. After distinguishing himself in both academia and athletics, he graduated from Duval High School and served in the United States Army. Upon his discharge in 1918, he enrolled in the engineering program at the University of Florida and received a Bacholor of Science in Civil Engineering degree in 1922, and Civil Engineer degree in 1926.
His first professional position was as a field surveyor with the George B. Hills Company, where he remained from 1922 until 1928. His last assignment for the Hills Company was as Resident Engineer on the initial construction of Port Everglades for the Broward County Port Authority. Upon recognizing the potential challenges of this project, he accepted the position of Port Engineer in 1928, and saw the project to fruition in 1931.
Returning to Jacksonville in 1931, he was appointed Assistant County Engineer for for Duval County and, in 1939, County Engineer. In 1945, he received an additional appointment as the County's first Zoning Director. Notable achievements during his seventeen-year tenure as County Engineer include the preparation of a Duval County topographic map, significant drainage improvements, gasoline tax revenue revision, and numerous right-of-way acquisitions for future highways.
In 1956, he was appointed Executive Director for the Jacksonville Expressway Authority, later renamed the Jacksonville Transportation Authority (1971). As JEA executive director, Mr. Sollee laid out the basic plans for the city's expressway system and supervised the planning and construction of the Mathews and Hart bridges. (The J. T. Butler Boulevard Intracoastal Waterway bridge is named in his honor.)
After retiring in 1972, he worked on completing his memoirs, The Engineer Speaks, which was published in 1982. Mr. Sollee died on November 9, 1984.
Note written by
Extent
17.75 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
As Director of the Jacksonville Expressway Authority during the pivotal transportation years of 1956-1972, Mr. Sollee was a major influence in the development of the Jacksonville, Florida road system in Duval County, Florida in the mid-twentieth century. The collection consists primarily of correspondence, subject files and reports, and newspaper clippings relating to transportation projects in Duval County. It includes extensive documentation on the development of Jacksonville's road system, circa 1950-1970, consisting chiefly of numerous, albeit irregular, primary reports / studies; beach erosion / bulkhead data; and personal notes on Jacksonville transportation issues from the perspective of a prime participant. Historical source documents include project files relating to plans for Metropolitan Park and the Duval County Courthouse, and correspondence / newspaper clippings relating to the University of North Florida site selection. Few personal items are included.
Arrangement Note
Alphabetical by topic; chronological within folder.
Source of Acquisition
Estate of Arthur N. Sollee, Sr., 1984
Method of Acquisition
The materials were acquired by UNF Library Special Collections and University Archives on 00/00/1984.
Other Descriptive Information
Container list available. Additional information may be found at http://www.unf.edu/library/sc/solleecontainer.html
- Correspondence Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Dames Point Bridge (Jacksonville, Fla.) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Duval County (Fla.)--History. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Express highways--Florida--Duval County. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Express highways--Florida--Jacksonville. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Highway engineering--Florida--Duval County. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Highway engineering--Florida--Jacksonville. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Highway planning--Florida--Duval County. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Highway planning--Florida--Jacksonville. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Jacksonville (Fla.)--History. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Jacksonville Expressway Authority.
- Printed materials Subject Source: Local sources
- Sollee, Arthur N., 1900-1984.
- University of North Florida.
- Title
- Arthur N. Sollee Papers
- Author
- Collection Description/Finding Aid prepared by Eileen D. Brady.
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- eng
Repository Details
Part of the UNF Library Special Collections and University Archives Repository