expand in order to better meet not only the needs of the staff but also the public, which 

 used the library as a major resource. Thus, in May 1960, an addition to the BEB office 

 building was completed, just to the west of the 85-foot wave tank.^''^ The library was 

 moved into this new section, and a program was begun to enlarge the collection. The 

 addition also provided a much-needed conference room. 



a. Public Law 645 (1960). In July 1960, Public Law 645, 86th Congress, was passed. 

 Section 103 of this law made several amendments to Section 2 of Public Law 520 passed 

 July 1930, the authorizing legislation for the BEB. First of all, it listed the States of Alaska 

 and Hawaii, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico as being areas where cooperative beach 

 erosion studies and investigations could be made. Prior to this time, these locations had 

 come under the category of "territories and possessions." 



Secondly, the requirements for the non-Corps of Engineers members of the seven-man 

 BEB were changed to read, ". . . and three shaU be civilian engineers selected by the Chief of 

 Engineers with regard to their special fitness in the field of beach erosion and shore 

 protection."^ The original wording had been, "and three shall be selected with regard to 

 their special fitness by the Chief of Engineers from among the State agencies cooperating 

 with the War Department" (in the conduct of beach erosion studies).^ ^^ As these three 

 members no longer had to be associated with a State agency, Public Law 645 also provided 

 for payment to them by the Federal Government, in addition to travel expenses. 



Starting in the late 1950's and extending into the 1960's, there was begun in this country 

 a major Federal program to expand our knowledge of the oceans. The impetus for this 

 program was generated by a report of the National Academy of Sciences.^ *' ^ It was based 

 on the belief that the oceans represented an enormous reserve of both food and natural 

 resources which, up until then, had not received adequate attention. 



Several governmental committees and other investigatory groups were set up to study the 

 situation. One of these was the Interagency Committee on Oceanography, and Joseph M. 

 Caldwell and Thorndike Saville, Jr., of the BEB represented the Corps of Engineers in the 

 workings of this Committee. It was a few years before this oceanographic program was 

 actually put into operation. One result, however, was an augmentation of available research 

 funds for the various Federal agencies engaged in oceanographic -related work. The BEB was 

 one of these agencies. This increasingly favorable financial situation prevailed through the 

 latter half of the 1960's and gave the BEB's successor agency a strong research footing. 



The growing internationalism of coastal engineering during the two preceding decades 

 has been commented upon previously. As the 1950's had progressed, the world's political 

 climate began to change, and this change had direct implications for the BEB. Just as Board 

 members and staff increased their activity in coastal problems abroad, so did more engineers 

 from other nations begin to visit the Board (Figs. 54, 55, and 56). Some came for inspection 

 tours, while others attended weekly training courses in the various aspects of coastal 



20Q 



engineermg. ' 



86 



