Hoffman, Carl J.

During a 28-year career with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, civil engineer Carl J. Hoffman helped design some of the West's biggest dams and spillways, including the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River and the Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River. He was also noted for his expertise in small-dam design. Additionally, he worked on the Big Thompson diversion project in northern Colorado and authored numerous articles and sections of books on engineering topics.

Born in Michigan in 1908, Hoffman earned a degree in civil engineering in 1932 from Colorado Agricultural College, now Colorado State University. He married Edith Goldfarb in 1934. After working for the Bureau of Reclamation for nearly three decades, Hoffman served as an international engineering consultant with the World Bank and other firms before retiring in 1990. He died in Denver in 2004.