Robert Gilmour "R. G." LeTourneau (; November 30, 1888 – June 1, 1969), born in

Richford, Vermont Richford is a town in Franklin County, Vermont, United States, located along the Canada–United States border. The population was 2,346 at the 2020 census. Richford is the birthplace of R. G. LeTourneau, an industrialist who founded LeTournea ...

, was a prolific inventor of technologies related to earthmoving machinery, and founder of

LeTourneau Technologies LeTourneau Technologies, Inc. was an American manufacturer of heavy construction equipment founded by R. G. LeTourneau. In 2011, the company was acquired by Joy Global. History R. G. LeTourneau founded R.G. LeTourneau, Inc. in California in ...

and

LeTourneau University LeTourneau University (; abbreviated LETU) is a private, interdenominational evangelical Christian university in Longview, Texas. Founded as LeTourneau Technical Institute in February 1946 by R. G. LeTourneau with his wife, Evelyn, the school in ...

. His factories supplied machinery which represented nearly 75 percent of the earthmoving equipment used by the Allied forces during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and more than half of the

Alaska Highway * as well as the concepts related to and used in mobile offshore drilling platforms.

Outside of business

With the help of his wife, the late Evelyn Peterson (1900-1987), he founded

, a private,

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

institution, in Longview,

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. LeTourneau was widely known as a devout

and generous

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

to Christian causes, including the "LeTourneau Christian Center" camp and conference grounds in Rushville, New York, and Georgia Baptist Conference Center in Toccoa, Georgia.

Personal pursuits

As described in his 2007 company biography, " 1917, .G.married Evelyn Peterson, the daughter of a draying company owner from Minnesota." In 1965, International Correspondence Schools awarded LeTourneau his diploma in engineering, 50 years after he studied from their course materials. LeTourneau was 76 at the time and, in accepting the diploma, jovially remarked to executive assistant, Nels Stjernstrom: "So now I've got a diploma. Now I'm educated." The campus archive contact information is accessibl
here
last accessed July 9, 2024. Note, this link only provides information regarding contact with archive; no digital or otherwise viewable version of this document has been identified. LeTourneau held many respected positions throughout his life as a Christian layman, including as a leader in the

Christian & Missionary Alliance The Alliance World Fellowship (or The Alliance, also C&MA and CMA) is an evangelical Christian denomination It includes 6.2 million members throughout 88 countries within 22,000 churches. History The Alliance has its origins in two organization ...

Church, of Christian Business Men's Connection International, (CBMC, then the Christian Business Men's Committee International), and of the

Gideons International Gideons International is an evangelical Christian association for men founded in 1899 in Janesville, Wisconsin, whose primary activity is distributing free copies of the Bible worldwide. It distributes complete Bibles or portions thereof in over ...

. For 30 years he flew thousands of miles each week to maintain Christian speaking engagements around the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and overseas. LeTourneau set aside 90 percent of his salary and company profits for religious donations, living on the other 10 percent. He once stated that "I shovel out the money, and God shovels it back – but God has a bigger shovel". "You have made the word of God a glorious, practical reality," radio program host

Robert Ripley LeRoy Robert Ripley (February 22, 1890 – May 27, 1949) was an American cartoonist, entrepreneur, and amateur anthropologist, who is known for creating the '' Ripley's Believe It or Not!'' newspaper panel series, television show, and radio sho ...

told LeTourneau, then turned to the audience with his own trademark flourish. "And of such is the work of faith...believe it or not." Colegio Robert Letourneau Los Olivos Lima PE

Colegio Robert Letourneau Los Olivos Lima PE

LeTourneau was a firm believer in the effectiveness of practical instruction combined with classroom studies; and, in 1946, he purchased an unused military hospital, accompanying land and buildings in Longview. There he established the LeTourneau Technical Institute at the site of the former Harmon General Hospital to provide sound technical and mechanical training, traditional college courses, and training for

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

technicians, based on the philosophy of combining work, education, and Christian testimony. The LeTourneau Technical Institute became a college in its own right, in 1961, and eventually gained "university" status to become

. In 1953, LeTourneau began a development project in the country of

Liberia Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to Guinea–Liberia border, its north, Ivory Coast to Ivory Coast–Lib ...

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

, with the diverse goals of colonization, land development, agricultural development, livestock introduction, evangelism and philanthropic activities. In 1954, a colonization project with similar objectives to those in Liberia was established in the country of

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

. The project in Peru was called "Tournavista".

Death

In March 1969, LeTourneau suffered a severe stroke from which he never recovered. He died on June 1, 1969, at the age of eighty. He was survived by his wife, Evelyn, and five children: four sons (Richard, Roy, Ted, and Ben), and a daughter, Louise Dick.

Awards, recognition, and legacy

Known throughout the construction world as, "The Dean of Earthmoving," LeTourneau is considered to this day to have been the world's greatest inventor of earthmoving and materials handling equipment. Few manufacturers of that era had such a profound effect upon the art of earthmoving as did LeTourneau. Just two years prior to his death, LeTourneau recorded his thoughts about the future of earthmoving equipment:

Construction machinery will grow bigger and bigger, and more and more powerful. Instead of 'tons' of capacity, they'll be in 'hundreds of tons', and instead of hundreds of horsepower, they'll all be rated in 'thousands of horsepower' ... We're already seeing it in big hauling units in the mines, and believe me, when the contractor and mining companies start looking for bigger and more profitable hauling units and earthmoving equipment, I'm going to be right there, the firstest with the mostest.

LeTourneau was active in his company as president and chairman of the board from 1929 until 1966. He also held the position of chief engineer, personally working alongside his engineers and employees throughout his working life. Having spent his entire life around earthmoving equipment, LeTourneau, by description of those close to him, was just as likely to be seen at the controls of one of his machines as attending to corporate matters; he preferred the former. LeTourneau, as described by the peers at the university he founded, shunned the high life and preferred to spend his time at the drawing board with the engineers designing new machinery or spending time on the factory floor overseeing his employees. LeTourneau Hall at

Toccoa Falls College Toccoa Falls College is a private evangelical Christian college in Toccoa Falls, Georgia, founded in 1907. The campus occupies , bordering the Chattahoochee National Forest and is home to Toccoa Falls, a high waterfall. It is affiliated with ...

was named in his honor. Toccoa Airport, also known as R. G. LeTourneau Field, was built by LeTourneau and named in his honor. Throughout his career, he was the recipient of more than 30 awards and honors related to engineering, manufacturing, and the development of heavy equipment. In 1936, he was presented with the "Appreciation of Service Achievement 1931-1935," by Six Companies Incorporated for supplying earthmoving equipment to the "Boulder Dam" project. He was awarded the Frank P. Brown Medal in 1956. Recognition of service to the earthmoving industry later came from many other contractors in the industry, and, in February 1958, LeTourneau was presented with the "Beavers Award" by the Beavers, an association of leaders in the heavy construction industry. In presenting the award to LeTourneau, Beavers president George H. Atkinson, of the Guy F. Atkinson Company, a San Francisco contractor, said, "There is hardly any place in the vast industry that has not benefited through the products of Mr. LeTourneau's inventive genius."

References

Some of this article was taken fro

LeTourneau Technology Inc's since closed website.

External links

An image from 1942, from The R. G. LeTourneau Archives, of his so-called "land battleship".

Road Building Machinery, Stephens Co. At plant of L.G. LeTourneau, near Toccoa, Georgia, May 1940.
From College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences Photograph Collection, University Archives, Hargrett Library, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia. Web. 4 June 2016.
Road Building Machinery, Stephens Co. At plant of L.G. LeTourneau, near Toccoa, Georgia, May 1940.
From College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences Photograph Collection, University Archives, Hargrett Library, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia. Web. 4 June 2016.
Vanishing Georgia photograph of general office staff of LeTourneau Co. of Georgia, Toccoa, Stephens County, Georgia, ca. 1950-1953
{{DEFAULTSORT:Letourneau, R. G. 1888 births 1969 deaths 20th-century American inventors 20th-century evangelicals American evangelicals American manufacturing businesspeople American philanthropists Inventors from Vermont LeTourneau University Members of the Christian and Missionary Alliance People from Franklin County, Vermont People from Longview, Texas People from Toccoa, Georgia University and college founders