born Sept. 24, 1900, Aurora, Ind., U.S.
died March 14, 1989, San Francisco, Calif.
U.S. construction engineer and president (1936–60) of W.A. Bechtel Co. and its successor, Bechtel Corp.
He became a vice president in the San Francisco-based family firm of W.A. Bechtel Co. in 1925. In 1937 he and John McCone formed Bechtel-McCone Corp., a builder of refineries and chemical plants. The companies built ships and made aircraft parts during World War II. After the war, the newly formed Bechtel Corp. became one of the world's largest construction and engineering firms, building pipelines in Canada, the Middle East, and elsewhere and constructing power plants all over the world. The Bechtel companies helped construct the Hoover Dam , the Alaska oil pipeline , and the city of Al-Jubayl in Saudi Arabia. Bechtel retired as its president in 1960 but remained senior director of what became known as the Bechtel Group.