Alton V. Phillips (1966) Alton V. Phillips was no stranger to hard work. By the time he joined the AGC in 1947, two years after founding his eponymous company, he had worked several years with lumbering crews in his native Washington. While many colleagues opined that the large association did little for the small [read more...]
Ira H. Hardin (1965) In 1940, Hardin founded the Hardin Construction Group, a powerful, successful firm that can lay claim to several of the Atlanta skyline’s most prominent features. Its work included office buildings, hotels, retail centers, and university and public assembly projects along with a host of others. Heralded in its day as [read more...]
W. Ray Rogers (1964) Born in Oklahoma and raised on farms in both Montana and Washington, Rogers went into the construction business with his brother in 1934, moving to Portland, OR, and building a thriving business. Rogers Construction, Inc. had a phenomenal reputation in road work – building much of the highway system of [read more...]
Charles Keller. Jr. (1963) “The Positive Approach” was the theme of Keller’s presidency, during which an outstanding new safety program was introduced, effectively reducing the number of injuries on the job and rewarding the companies whose efforts helped achieve these goals. Keller and his wife, Rosa, established what was then called the Lincoln Foundation [read more...]
Frank F. Burrows (1962) As one half of the Belmont, CA, firm of Williams & Burrows, Frank F. Burrows helped expand the company from simple frame and concrete work to a thriving business in steel, masonry and concrete that, in its day, emphasized the development and utilization of unique and cutting-edge techniques in engineering [read more...]
M. Clare Miller (1961) Miller, a native of Kansas, took office two months early (his predecessor’s victory in the gubernatorial election necessitated his stepping down from the presidential post) and boasted multiple presidencies on his long resume. He was – simultaneously – the president of two fine Kansas firms: McPherson Builders, Inc. and San [read more...]
John A. Volpe (1960) Volpe’s humble beginnings as the Massachusetts-born son of Italian immigrants – his father, Vito, was in construction, as well – served as a strong foundation for a life of achievement. He attended the Wentworth Institute of Technology, majoring in architectural construction and eventually started his own firm. He later manned [read more...]
James W. Cawdrey (1959) Cawdrey’s presidency came at a tumultuous time for general contractors, a fact he acknowledged in his acceptance address during the association’s 40th annual convention in Miami Beach, but he was stalwart in his belief that as the AGC had before, it would surmount the obstacles the economy had thrown up [read more...]
Fred W. Heldenfels. Jr. (1958) A native of Beehive, TX, Heldenfels graduated from Texas A&M with a B.S. in civil engineering, joining Heldenfels Brothers, the family lumber business, upon graduation. Once ensconced, he grew the firm into one of the largest contractors for construction projects in south Texas, successfully executing projects from military bases [read more...]
Lester C. Rogers (1957) His father, Walter A. Rogers, sat at the AGC helm in 1920. Some 37 years later, he became AGC’s first legacy leader. A native of Elgin, IL, and a civil engineering graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Rogers worked for his father’s business – Bates & Rogers – on projects [read more...]
