The Logan Republican. [volume] (Logan, Utah) 1902-1924, 1913-02-06
HONORS DAVID ECCLES

The American Sugar Industry monthly
magazine of over one hundred pages, well edited
and avishly illustrated devotes a page of its Jan.
uary number to Hon. David Eccles.
1t produces very fine half tone of the great
financier and says
With the death of David Eccles December
8 there passed out of Utah and the West of
the builders of the Inland Empire. Hardly big
enterprise that had as its object the advancement
Of the Northwest, but David Eccles was identified
with 1t. His death means public loss as great
and overwhelming 1t sudden and unexpect-
ed. Empire builder, multimilonare, yet his man.
Of life uniformly and simple and his
bearing quiet and unassuming. His life and achieve
ments emphasize the fact that big. not
necessarily those who wait for opportunity; they
make the opportunity. His was not sudden and
spectacular rise to power and wealth due to any
lucky circumstance combination of circumstan
ces, but rather the resistless, onward sweep Of a
life marked out from the beginning for big things
That he achieved the big things and yet kept his
head is probably due to his hardheaded Scottish
ancestry.
David Eccles was born at Paisley, Scotland
on May H. 1s49, the of William Eccles and
Sarah Hutchinson Ecces. His father a wood
turner by trade. He not a university man.
His only schooling, outside the broad education he
received in LIES school, received in term
at the common schools of early Ogden
In the spring of 1868 the family came to Ameri-
lea, arriving at Ogden, Utah, in October
of that year. Later young Eccles went to Ogden
Valley and became the sole support of the family.
Four years later or in 1867, he decided to go far
Their west, and went into Oregon, locating at Ore.
gon City. His connection with the lumber industry
traces from that year when he to work in
the timber of Oregon and Washington,
ton that he kept up to the day of his death. AZ
ter spending two years in Oregon, young Eccles
returned to Ogden Valley, but still continued to
work in the timber until in 1873, when by thrift
and economy he had managed to save sufficient
money to go into business for himself sawmill
was purchased. Within year partnership
formed between Mr. Eccles and two other men,
the style Of the firm being Gibson, Eccles & Van
Noy and lumber yard opened Incidental.
ly 1t may be remarked that his venture made
upon the very same site of the present great lum-
Der business owned by Mr.. Eccles at the time OF
his death.
Mr.. Ecces has from the beginning been iden.
titled with the lumber industry, and up to the time
of his death heavily in crested in operations
in Oregon. Closely connected with lumber manu-
featuring always have been and probably always
will be the building and operation of railroad lines
1t is, therefore, only natural that among other
things Mr.. Ecces builder of railroads. He
built two lines in Oregon, one, the Sumter Valley
Day country, and the other, the Mount Hood rail
road, running from the town of Hood River toward
Mount Hood, 5sgRs
Among other big things with which the dead
man was identified was the Utah Construction Co.
a gigantic railroad construction corporation, which
built line for the Western Pacific from Utah to
California, which is said to constitute the largest
railroad contract ever let to any one company west
of Chicago. Mr.. Eccles was president of this big
corporation, and the immense undertaking was
made possible largely by his standing and innu.
enCe.
Mr. Eccles connection with the beet sugar in
dustry is so well understood that it would hardly
seem necessary to review 1t in detail this time.
OF course, wherever the name of the Amalgamated
Sugar company is spoken 1t is known that David
Eccles was its president Beet sugar unquestion-
ably is the greatest enterprise in which he ever
embarked He of the promoters Of the
Ogden Sugar factory in 1898 and in the same year
he built the sugar factory at Logan. The consoli.
daton of these two companies was effected in
1902, under the name OF the Amalgamated Sugar
company with Mr.. Ecces as president
Altogether, 1t Is estimated that Mr.. Eccles was
connected with twentyseven companies, being pres
ident OF seventeen OF them among which are banks
interurban lines, railroads, lumber companies and
Of course, his well known connection with the
Utah sugar industry.
Mr.. Eccles death was sudden. Apopexy was
the cause. He was in his usual good health only
few minutes before the fatal stroke came and
in fifteen minutes he had breathed his last So
sudden the end that this man OF affairs sugar
magnate lumber king and banker died In the
emergency hospital OF Salt Lake police station
In the excitement, his identity was not real
lied until he had taken his last breath.
Funeral Rerycea were held NJ Opden on tho