8-533: The Wattis Brothers was a 19th-century railway contracting firm operated by three brothers Edmund Orson Wattis Jr. (1855–1934), Warren L. Wattis (1865–1928), and William Henry Wattis (1859–1931). It was founded in the early 1880s by William and Edmund to build railways for the Western expansion of the United States. In 1881, all three brothers operated the railway contracting firm and partnered with, or work for,
16-721: A controversial project that impounds the Tuolumne River in the Hetch Hetchy Valley of California's Sierra Nevada mountains. Success with the O'Shaughnessy Dam convinced the Wattis Brothers to bid on more dam projects. In 1922, Utah Construction Company formed a partnership with the Morrison-Knudsen Company of Boise, Idaho. With Frank Crowe as the chief engineer, the MK UC partnership successfully built dams throughout
24-564: A firm to lay track for the expanding railroads. Wattis Brothers prospered until the Panic of 1893 . While William continued to try to find construction projects, Edmund focused his energies on running a sheep ranch the brothers had established in the Weber Valley . This ranch would later provide the financial strength for the large construction projects to come. In 1900, the Wattis Brothers again tried their hand as partners in contracting. They founded
32-432: A large share of the tunneling, grading, and track projects in the rapidly expanding railroads in the mountain west. Seeing the end of railroad expansion, the Wattis Brothers looked for ways to diversify their construction risks. Edmund Wattis married Martha Ann Bybee on June 25, 1879. They had five daughters and three sons. In 1917, Utah Construction Company was awarded the seven million dollar O'Shaughnessy Dam contract,
40-639: The Corey Brothers in their first construction job, building the Oregon Short Line Railroad lines in Idaho. They then went to Canada to work on the Canadian Pacific Railway , where their horses died of disease and they struggled to work through heavy snows. Wattis Brothers then joined with the Corey Brothers in the Corey Brothers & Company organization to meet the obligations for completing
48-605: The Utah Construction Company. A short four years after its founding, Utah Construction Company was awarded the contract to build the Feather River route between Oakland and Salt Lake City . This $ 60 million contract was challenging, but after five years, very profitable. The Feather River route was complete for the Western Pacific Railroad in 1911. The Utah Construction Company thrived, and soon captured
56-511: The railway line. Wattis Brothers prospered until the Panic of 1893 , a depression that affected the entire country. The company went broke after their bank failed. Wattis Brothers founded the Utah Construction Company in 1900, and Thomas Dee and David Eccles later became significant investors in the railroad construction organization. Edmund Orson Wattis Jr. Edmund Orson Wattis Jr. (March 6, 1855 – February 3, 1934),
64-600: Was oldest of the brothers who founded Wattis Brothers and the Utah Construction Company . Wattis was born on March 6, 1855, at a farm in Uintah , Utah Territory , the second of seven children born to Edmund Orson Wattis and Mary Jane Corey. Edmund was 21 when he left his home in Uinta to start a career in heavy construction, working on bed grading for the Canadian Pacific and Colorado Midlands. With his brother William, he formed
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