Jeremiah Edmund Bowden Jennings

Jeremiah Edmund Bowden Jennings (4 September 1912 – 26 August 1979) was a Professor in the School of Civil Engineering at the University of Witwatersrand (Wits), South Africa and its head of department from 1954 until his retirement in 1976.

In recognition of his contribution to geotechnical practice in South Africa, the South African Institute of Civil Engineering's Geotechnical Division hosts an annual Jennings Lecture. The JE Jennings Award is given annually to the author of a meritorious geotechnical engineering publication by a South African.

Background Jennings was born in Krugersdorp, near Johannesburg in South Africa, on 4 September 1912. At nine he developed asthma which hampered his schooling and followed him for the rest of his life. He was married to Majorie in 1939 and had three daughters and a son. He died on 29 August 1979 after a short period in hospital.

He went to school in Newcastle (Northern Natal), later graduating from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg with a BSc degree in civil engineering in 1933. After graduating, he joined the South African Irrigation Department for a brief period before returning to the University of Witwatersrand as a junior lecturer in the Civil Engineering Department.

Jennings was awarded the degree of DSc in Engineering, Honoris Causa, by the University of Witwatersrand in 1978. In the same year he also received a DSc in Engineering from the University of Natal for a thesis based on his published work. He also contributed significantly to the early understanding of heaving clays, helping to organise the 1st and 2nd International Conference on Expansive Soils in Texas in 1965 and 1969, respectively, and the 3rd in Haifa in 1973.

Jennings was spokesperson for South Africa at the 2nd International Conference on Soil Mechanics Foundation Engineering (ICSMFE) held in Rotterdam in 1948. He was instrumental in forming the Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering Division of SAICE, and is considered one of the founding members of the International Society of Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering (ISSMFE). The 1st African Regional Conference on Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, held in Pretoria in 1953, was organised under his direction. He served as Vice-President for Africa of the ISSMFE from 1957 until 1961. This Act was succeeded by the Engineering Profession Act of 2000 which established the Engineering Council of South Africa.

Awards Jennings’ was elected to Honorary Membership of both the South African Institute of Architects and the South African Chapter of Quantity Surveyors. He was honoured by a dedicated session at the 4th International Conference on Expansive Soils, held in Denver in June, 1980. For his contributions to civil engineering, he was awarded the SAICE Gold in 1963 and elected an Honorary Fellow of SAICE.