The Metropolitan Section quickly grew to a membership of 1,175 by 1932 but the Great Depression dropped that number to 850 in 1935. The numbers steadily grew back, however, to 920 in 1940, 1,100 in 1950, and 2,400 in 1960. A North Jersey Branch was established in 1962 but was transferred when the New Jersey Section was formed in 1974. Consequently, the Metropolitan Section membership dropped to 1,560 in 1975. The Long Island Branch was formed in 1971 and the Lower Hudson Valley Branch was created in 2003. Today there are over 4,100 members of the ASCE Metropolitan Section, which consists of New York City, Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island, and Rockland and Westchester counties in the Lower Hudson Valley.

Dr. Lillian Gilbreth was the featured speaker of the March 17, 1954 ASCE Metropolitan Section dinner meeting at the Hotel Statler in midtown Manhattan.

Very few details are known of the early years of the Section, but a few highlights stand out. The President in 1938-1939 was Rear Admiral Bakenhus who enlivened the Annual Smoker by putting on a fencing display with his teacher. Malcolm Pirnie was President in 1932-1933 and Malcolm Jr. in 1962-1963, the first father and son combination in Met Section history.

For its first forty years the Section held only one meeting per month. In the 1930s the Junior Branch started meetings and held two to four meetings per month. During the 1940s and 1950s the corporate members met monthly in the old Society Headquarters building at 33 West 39th Street. The sessions were followed by a sumptuous catered collation in-situ. The Junior Members met separately twice a month in the Board Room. Technical groups began taking hold in the mid-1960s, running two to four meetings per month and one to two seminars per year.

Much of the work was carried on by standing or special committees. Going back in the Met Section's archives one can find a committee of Public Relations writing the New York State Legislature in regard to the appointment of non-Engineers, writing New York City in regard to a war memorial, taking a stand on High Bridge maintenance, and later entering into the battle of collective bargaining and unionization. There was also a committee working with student chapters, a committee on employment conditions and salary, and a committee working with Juniors and Associates. Education committees have worked with educators in the colleges of the area. Some of the committees also took a very active part in the production and checking of the New York City Building Code.

The ASCE Metropolitan Section formerly published an annual yearbook with a directory of its members.

Originally, the Metropolitan Section's principal officers were the President, two Vice Presidents, two Past Presidents, two Directors, one Secretary, and one Treasurer. The number of Directors was enlarged to six in the early 1930s. Later directors were added from the Associate Member Forum and the branches.

Eight Met Section presidents have gone on to be President of the Society: Robert Ridgway (1925), Arthur S. Tuttle (1935), John P. Hogan (1940), Malcolm Pirnie (1944), Enoch R. Needles (1956), Richard H. Tatlow III (1968), Arthur J. Fox, Jr. (1976), and Joseph S. Ward (1980). Many others became Directors, Treasurers, and Vice Presidents. From the Society's founding in 1852 until 1996, the headquarters of ASCE were located in New York City and the Metropolitan Section was always closely associated with the activities of the national organization.

The secretary of the Section is its Executive Officer. Long terms were served by William Shea (1930-1946), Alfred Hedefine (1946-1952), Brother Austin Barry (1958-1964), M.D. Morris (1964-1970), and Robert Schumacher (1970-1974.) The next most important post is treasurer and long terms were served by Charles E. Trout (1930-1934, 1939-1947), William Shea (1953-1960), Gordon Wallace (1960-1965), Edward Bryant Jr. (1967-1970), and Gordon Shav (1970-1974).

The ASCE Metropolitan Section celebrated its fiftieth anniversary on February 18, 1970 with a formal dinner at the Plaza Hotel in Manhattan. Robert Moses, the "master builder" of New York City's infrastructure during the mid-20th century, was the guest speaker at the event.