HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Wilson McCarthy (24 July 24, 1884 – 1956) was an American attorney,
jurist A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyzes and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal education in law (a law degree) and often a Lawyer, legal prac ...
and railroad executive.


Early life

According to author
Will Bagley William Grant Bagley (May 27, 1950 – September 28, 2021) was a historian specializing in the history of the Western United States and the American Old West. Bagley wrote about the fur trade, overland emigration, American Indians, military histor ...
, McCarthy's grandfather immigrated to the United States from
Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
circa 1847 in the midst of the Great Famine. McCarthy's father Charles, born in
Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...
in 1850, traveled to
Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...
, where he became a
stage coach A stagecoach (also: stage coach, stage, road coach, ) is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by ...
driver. He converted to
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...
when he married Mary Mercer in 1876. Mary Wilson failed to conceive, so Charles took her sister as a second wife, later going to prison as a
polygamist Polygamy (from Late Greek , "state of marriage to many spouses") is the practice of marriage, marrying multiple spouses. When a man is married to more than one wife at the same time, it is called polygyny. When a woman is married to more tha ...
. Ironically, Mary Wilson then gave birth to two sons in quick succession, the second being Warren Wilson McCarthy. McCarthy was born in
American Fork, Utah American Fork is a city in north-central Utah County, Utah, United States, at the foot of Mount Timpanogos in the Wasatch Range, north from Utah Lake. The city is southeast of Salt Lake City and is part of the Provo–Orem metropolitan area, Pr ...
on July 24, 1884. The family emigrated to
Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
, Canada, where McCarthy grew up as a ranch hand and
cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the ''vaquero'' ...
. Boots and western wear became the "standard attire for the rest of his life." Denver novelist Sandra Dallas notes McCarthy was a colorful character in more ways than just his attire. "He accused his predecessor of having 'cracked ice pumping through your veins.' And he apparently was not as strait-laced as his Latter-day Saint upbringing might suggest, because he once invited his son to meet his mistress." Wilson served a mission for
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...
to his family's ancestral land of Ireland. Upon returning to the United States, however, he gave up on his cowboy lifestyle, marrying Minerva Woolley in 1910, moving to
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
and entering law school at
Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
.


Career

After obtaining his law degree, Wilson returned to Utah, where he entered politics in the Democratic Party, worked as a
district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...
, and was ultimately appointed to a judgeship on Utah's Third District Court in 1919. He left the bench in barely a year, going on to earn a sizable fortune in private practice. In 1926 he was elected to the state senate. In the wake of the Wall Street crash of 1929, he was appointed by Republican President
Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was the 31st president of the United States, serving from 1929 to 1933. A wealthy mining engineer before his presidency, Hoover led the wartime Commission for Relief in Belgium and ...
to the
Reconstruction Finance Corporation The Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) was an Independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the United States federal government that served as a lender of last resort to US banks and businesses. Established in ...
in 1932, even though McCarthy was a Democrat. Again, he served scarcely a year, this time leaving politics for a career in banking in
San Francisco, California San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
. In 1934, RFC Chairman Jesse H. Jones asked McCarthy to take control of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad, which had just defaulted on a $10 million loan. The Rio Grande was back in court the following year, petitioning for reorganization under the Federal Bankruptcy Act. U.S. District Court Judge John Foster Symes appointed
Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
's Henry Swan and McCarthy co-trustees. Thus began a two decade odyssey for McCarthy, the ultimate beneficiary being a rehabilitated Rio Grande. Despite its inability to pay interest on $122 million in debt, McCarthy and Swan worked to repair and rebuild the Rio Grande. In 1937 alone the two pumped $18 million into the property. Under McCarthy's administration, the Rio Grande built over 1,130 bridges and laid over two million ties. At one point during the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
, the Rio Grande spent one million dollars a year for five years running. The road also bought its first new motive power in over ten years. By 1940 the McCarthy receivership spent over $20 million upgrading the Rio Grande. By the end of
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 ...
, the Rio Grande's revenues increased from $17 million to $75 million per year. In 1942 alone, revenues increased by a staggering 905 percent. At the same time, the Rio Grande moved to trim or eliminate its fabled
narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge (distance between the rails) narrower than . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with Minimum railw ...
system. In conjunction with the
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwest, Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, CB&Q, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of ...
it built the Dotsero Cut-Off (completed 1935). The Salt Lake and Denver and its vital
Moffat Tunnel The Moffat Tunnel is a railroad and water tunnel that cuts through the Continental Divide in north-central Colorado. Named after Colorado railroad pioneer David Moffat, the tunnel's first official railroad traffic passed through in February 192 ...
line (completed 1927) were absorbed, anchoring the Rio Grande between
Salt Lake City, Utah Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Salt ...
, and Denver, Colorado. This allowed the Rio Grande to cut its freight time between these two points from 54 to under 24 hours. Again working with
Ralph Budd Ralph Budd (August 20, 1879 – February 2, 1962) was an American railroad executive who was the president of the Great Northern Railway from 1919 up until 1932, when he served as president of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad unti ...
of the Burlington, McCarthy, in conjunction with the
Western Pacific Railroad The Western Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1903 as an attempt to break the near-monopoly the Southern Pacific Railroad had on rail service into northern California. WP's Feather River Route dire ...
, began the streamlined ''
California Zephyr The ''California Zephyr'' is a Amtrak Long Distance, long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak between Chicago, Illinois, Chicago and the San Francisco Bay Area (at Emeryville station, Emeryville), via Omaha, Nebraska, Omaha, Denver, Sa ...
'' service between
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
, Illinois, and the Bay Area. During McCarthy's tenure the train's signature vista-dome cars were added. Civically minded, McCarthy worked to help bring Geneva Steel to Utah, promoted stock shows in Colorado, and served on the planning commission celebrating the centennial of the arrival of Mormon pioneers in Salt Lake in 1947. In 1947 the Rio Grande emerged from the co-trusteeship. The
Interstate Commerce Commission The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) was a regulatory agency in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads (and later Trucking industry in the United States, truc ...
approved a reorganization plan. Though opposed to the
U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...
by both the
Missouri Pacific Railroad The Missouri Pacific Railroad , commonly abbreviated as MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers. In 1967, the railroad o ...
and the Western Pacific Railroad, the reorganization committee elected a new board of directors, naming John Evans chairman and McCarthy president. (The MP and WP controlled the Rio Grande for a period beginning October 29, 1924, under the planning of
George J. Gould George Jay Gould I (February 6, 1864 – May 16, 1923) was a financier and the son of Jay Gould. He was himself a railroad executive, leading the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad (DRGW), Western Pacific Railroad (WP), and the Manhatt ...
and Benjamin Franklin Bush.) Though passenger traffic waned in the wake of World War II, McCarthy's efforts to develop agriculture and industry along the Rio Grande's routes paid off in heavier traffic loads and increased receipts. He died in 1956 and was succeeded by
Gale B. Aydelott Gale B. Aydelott (July 22, 1914 – February 16, 1991), better known as "Gus Aydelott," was an American railroad president. He headed the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad for nearly three decades. On the Grande Aydelott became president ...
, president of the Rio Grande through 1977.


Personal life

McCarthy married Minerva Woolley on June 22, 1910. They had five children together. McCarthy suffered a stroke while in
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, and he died at Holy Cross Hospital in 1956. His funeral was presided over by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints President David O. McKay. On the day of his funeral, every Rio Grande train stopped at 11 a.m. and their crews observed two minutes of silence. After his death, the Rio Grande renamed their business car No. 100 as the ''Wilson McCarthy''. (The car was renamed ''Kansas'' when the Rio Grande absorbed the
Southern Pacific The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the names ...
circa January 1986.)


References

* Athearn, Robert G. "Rebel of the Rockies: A History of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad." New Haven
onn. Walmart, Inc., like many large retail and grocery chain stores, uses a brand strategy that offers private brands (private label, store brand) and generic brand merchandise. Apparel brands Major brands In March 2018, to better compete with A ...
Yale University Press, 1962. * Bagley, Will. "Always A Cowboy: Judge Wilson McCarthy and the Rescue of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad." Salt Lake City tah University of Utah Press, 2008. * Library of Colorado July 1996. Accessed December 17, 2011. * The Denver olorado''Post''. Accessed December 17, 2011. * * * * No author. "Business Car Renovated and Redecorated." ''CTC Board''. January 1986, p. 44. (History of Rio Grande Business Car ''Wilson McCarthy'' being rebuilt into the ''Kansas''.) * Tavenner, Charles Blair, editor. ''Who's Who in Railroading in North America''. New York: Simmons-Boardman, 1949, p. 478. {{DEFAULTSORT:McCarthy, Wilson 1884 births 1956 deaths People from American Fork, Utah Columbia Law School alumni American people of Irish descent American emigrants to Canada American Mormon missionaries in Ireland American expatriates in the United Kingdom