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Kemp maintained a set of facsimile files on historic suspension bridges to conduct further research. The box includes correspondence, handwritten and typed notes, journal articles, newsletters and facsimiles of the following: book excerpts, correspondence, clippings, reports, photographs, and engineering drawings. Subjects include suspension bridges, long span suspension bridges, structural engineering, railroad bridges, structural analysis, stiffening girders for suspension bridges, Faustus Verantius and suspension bridges of China, South America, the Alps Mountains, and the Himalayan Mountains. The following oversize items were moved to Map Cabinet 12, Drawer 9, Folder 4: 3 pages of clippings (1860 and 1984), 18 pages of engineering drawings (undated), 2 sheets of illustrations (1833), and 13 sheets of book excerpts (1855-1856).

Kemp maintained a set of facsimile files on historic suspension bridges to conduct further research. This box contains clippings, articles, books, reports, handwritten notes, photographs, certificates and correspondence. It also includes facsimiles of the following: book excerpts, journal articles, engineering drawings, maps, handwritten notes, lists, dissertations, photographs, drawings, correspondence, and clippings. Subjects include bridges in the United States, the Czech Republic and the British Isles; Montrose Bridge in Montrose, Scotland; Trinity Chain Pier in Edinburgh, Scotland; Brighton Chain Pier (also known as Royal Suspension Chain Pier) in Brighton, England; Findhorn Bridge in Inverness, Scotland; Menai Suspension Bridge in Anglesay, Scotland; the Runcorn Railway Bridge in Cheshire, England; the Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol, England; the Yarmouth Suspension Bridge disaster in Great Yarmouth, England; and the Union Chain Bridge in Horncliffe, England. Other subjects include Davies Gilbert and Thomas Telford. The following oversize items were moved to Box 344: 27 pages of book excerpts (1823-1828) and 1 page of clipping (1992).

Kemp maintained a set of facsimile files on historic suspension bridges to conduct further research. This box includes essays, report drafts, handwritten notes, correspondence, bibliographies and clippings. The box also includes the following facsimile items: book excerpts, articles, handwritten notes, maps, drawings, and engineering drawings. Subjects include chain cable bridges, the strength of bridge materials, girders and suspension chains, English suspension bridges, suspension bridge theories, Sir John Rennie, C.S. Drewry, John Robison, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Robert Stevenson, James Dredge, Charles Blaker Vignoles and William T. Clark. The following oversize items were moved to Box 344: 6 sheets handwritten notes (undated), 14 sheets of engineering drawings (1842), 14 sheets of reports (undated), 21 sheets of an essay (1974), 48 sheets of book excerpts (1847-1857).

Kemp maintained a set of facsimile files on historic suspension bridges to conduct further research. This box also includes materials in preparation for the article "Samuel Brown: Britain's Pioneer Suspension Bridge Builder," later featured in the publication History of Technology, Volume 2. The box includes report drafts, clippings, handwritten notes, typed research notes, brochures and correspondence. The box also includes the following facsimile materials: excerpts, correspondence, journal articles, typed research notes, photographs, drawings, engineering drawings, patents and clippings. Subjects include suspension bridges; Samuel Brown; wire bridges; the Union Suspension Bridge in Horncliffe, England; and other suspension bridges in Germany, Austria, Great Britain, the Czech Republic, and Russia. The following oversize items were moved to Box 344: eight sheets of an article (1985) and one sheet of photos and drawings (undated).

Kemp maintained a set of facsimile files written in French about historic suspension bridges that he used to conduct further research. The box includes correspondence, handwritten notes and lists. The box also includes facsimiles of the following: book excerpts, engineering drawings, handwritten notes and clippings. Subjects include Claude-Louis Navier, suspension bridge, the strength of iron wires in bridges, polygons, Marc Seguin and French research institutions. The following oversize items were moved to Map Cabinet 12, Drawer 10, Folder 1: 1 print (1862), 64 sheets letters (1822-1824), 60 sheets diaries (1822), 10 sheets construction journal (undated), 4 clippings (1821-1825), 59 pages of book excerpts (1826), 30 sheets of reports (1823), 12 sheets of lists (undated), 1 map (undated).

While working for Ove Arup, Kemp researched I.K. Brunel and the construction of the Renkioi Hospital during the Crimean War in Turkey. Brunel also surveyed the Great Western Railway, where he suggested using cable technology to navigate steep passages that the rail cars might not be able to mount unassisted. The cable-based incline technology was fundamental in designing two Pittsburgh inclines. While serving on the ASCE's Committee for the History and Heritage of American Civil Engineering, Kemp deliberated about granting National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark status to the inclines. The box includes materials from both parts of Kemp's career, including handwritten notes, typewritten notes, articles, correspondence, Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks nomination forms, brochures, clippings, records from the state legislature, reports, scholarly journal articles and photographic prints. The box also includes facsimiles of the following: correspondence, scholarly journal articles, clippings, press releases, book excerpts, budget lists, and engineering drawings. Subjects include I.K. Brunel, Renkioi Hospital, canal tunnels, British canals (especially the Huddersfield Narrow Canal), and the Monongahela and Duquesne Inclines in Pittsburgh. The following oversize items were moved to Map Cabinet 12, Drawer 15, Folder 3: 55 sheets of facsimile report (undated), 1 map (undated), 1 clipping (1983), and 1 engineering drawing (1857).

Kemp conducted research on engineers who designed famous suspension bridges in preparation for several publications, including the lecture and article, "James Finley and the Origins of the Modern Suspension Bridge." He also advised Don Sayenga's research and managed applications to the West Virginia Academy of Civil Engineers. The box includes typed and handwritten notes, applications, correspondence and transcripts of handwritten correspondence. The box also includes facsimiles of the following: news clippings, correspondence, and book excerpts. Subjects include James Finley; Charles Ellet Jr.; John A. Roebling; John Templeton; the Wheeling Suspension Bridge in Wheeling, West Virginia; the Niagara Falls Suspension Bridge in Niagara Falls, New York; Jacob's Creek Bridge in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania; Canadian engineers; bridges of Pennsylvania and Western Maryland; and policies across the civil engineering academic community.

The USACE appointed Kemp to document locks and dams along the Kanawha River and nominate them for the NRHP. Kemp's research culminated in the book, The Great Kanawha Navigation. This box contains materials from his research, including facsimile articles, reports, photos, drawings, correspondence, a student thesis, etc. Subjects include movable dams, locks and dams of Pennsylvania and West Virginia, Addison M. Scott, the Kanawha River, Kanawha regional history, Captain F.W. Altstaetter, etc. Highlights include data about coal and coke shipments and NRHP nomination forms for the London Locks and Dam and Gallipolis Locks and Dam. The following items were moved to Map Cabinet 12, Drawer 1, Folder 6: twelve engineering drawings (1909, 1932, undated), and two facsimile photographic prints (undated).

Kemp wrote the article "The Little Kanawha Navigation" for the journal Canal History and Technology Proceedings. This box contains reseasrch materials, including facsimile reports, correspondence, articles, book excerpts, magazines, clippings, bibliographies, photos, handwritten notes, oral history transcriptions, cost sheets, etc. Subjects include the Little Kanawha Navigation, river traffic, boats, shipping, Gilmer County history, Burning Springs, Burnsville Dam, inland waterways, locks, covered bridges, the West Virginia General Assembly, etc. Highlights include 1907 freight ticket and steam vessel inspection application, a 1908 correspondence regarding the steamboat inspection service, and Larry Sypolt's list of Little Kanawha boats. The following items were moved to Map Cabinet 12, Drawer 2, Folder 2-3: thirty-seven facsimile clippings (1860-1930, 1987), nine pages of facsimile steamboat shipping bills (1874-1899, two facsimiles of Hardesty's Encyclopedia entries for Kanawha, Calhoun, and Wirt Counties (1889), four facsimile maps (1937, 2003, undated), facsimile data sheets and inspection certificates (1876), and one brochure (1975).