Although he became one of the most powerful industrialists in his era, Stephen Bechtel led his company, the Bechtel Corporation, to expand and build power plants, refineries, and factories all over the world. By the age of 25, he had become vice president of his father’s company after encouraging him to work on expanding the company in the oil industry of the west coast. In total, Stephen Bechtel has been involved, in some way, in the construction of the Hoover Dam, the Oakland Bay Bridge, and Canadian and Alaskan oil pipelines.

Although his father died, Bechtel took over operations and led his company to rapid expansion – and was known as the one who could get even the biggest jobs done on budget. With the onslaught of World War II, the U.S. government needed his expertise to build massive ships, freighters, tankers, and worked on various naval bases in the Pacific Ocean. His company would later manufacture trucks and airplane wings for the Army Corps.

After World War II, he saw the benefits of leaping over into the field of energy, in the electrical, atomic, and oil fed industries. He was noted at claiming that he would build anything, anywhere, anyhow. His growing knowledge in construction meant that he could envision what would realistically work for companies who wanted to build enormous projects.

After securing a contract to run an oil pipeline in Alberta, Canada, he completed the $100- million-dollar project through the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Northwest. Additionally, he began building power plants at home and abroad. His company was responsible for power plants in several western States and even new thermoelectric plants in Asia. He also became a partner in the Nuclear Power Group who would be involved in the construction of nuclear power plants worldwide. His company invested hundreds of millions into researching new, better energies.

Stephen Bechtel’s ability to see an entire situation at its reality meant that he could tackle several projects, in several fields, all at once. His analytical ability and business genius won him several honorary degrees. In the firm’s later years, Stephen Bechtel began constructing oil pipelines that would bring oil into Saudi Arabia from the Red Sea. Bechtel’s company who soon formed Anglo-Iranian Oil also constructed the Aden oil refinery. By 1980, the Bechtel Corporation was responsible for over half of the power plants in the entire world, and was involved in the construction of al-Jubayl, a gargantuan city in Saudi Arabia.

• Robert Goddard
• Leo Baekeland
• Donald Trump
• Amadeo Giannini
• Charles Merrill
• Leo Burnett