Robert Earl Holding (November 29, 1926 – April 19, 2013)
[ was an American businessman who owned Sinclair Oil Corporation, the Grand America Hotels & Resorts, the ]Grand America Hotel
The Grand America Hotel is the largest hotel in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Located at 555 South Main Street, Salt Lake City, 84111, it is one block away from Washington Square in the downtown area. It was commissioned and built in 200 ...
, the Westgate Hotel in San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...
, California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
(directed by Georg Hochfilzer), and two ski resorts
A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area – a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In ...
, Sun Valley in central Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyomi ...
since 1977,Snowbasin
Snowbasin Resort is a ski resort in the western United States, located in Weber County, Utah, northeast of Salt Lake City, on the back (east) side of the Wasatch Range.
Opened in 1939, as part of an effort by the city of Ogden to restore the ...
near Ogden, Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
, since 1984.
Early life and education
Holding, a lifelong member of 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 nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ch ...
, was born and reared in Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...
, Utah, and earned a Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...
degree in civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewa ...
from the University of Utah
The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...
. His parents were apartment caretakers.
Career
In 1952, Holding began work on the first Little America west of Rock Springs, Wyoming
Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...
. In 1965, Holding and his wife, the former Carol Orme, started the Little America in Cheyenne
The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. Their Cheyenne language belongs to the Algonquian language family. Today, the Cheyenne people are split into two federally recognized nations: the Southern Cheyenne, who are enr ...
, Wyoming, and completed construction a year later. For a time they resided in a house on the grounds of this Little America. His son, Stephen, also lived there when he managed the travel plaza. In 2008, the Holdings added a large convention and conference center at Little America.[
Holding owned 400,000 acres (1,600 km2) of working cattle ranch land in northern Wyoming and southern ]Montana
Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...
.
With an estimated net worth of around $3.2 billion at the time of his death, he was ranked on ''Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...
's'' Forbes 400
The ''Forbes'' 400 or 400 Richest Americans is a list published by ''Forbes'' magazine of the wealthiest 400 American citizens who own assets in the U.S., ranked by net worth. The 400 was started by Malcolm Forbes in 1982 and the list is pub ...
list as the 155th-richest person in America.
After suffering a severe stroke in 2002, Holding was partially paralyzed, but made a sufficient recovery to continue the management of his organization until his death in the spring of 2013.
On his death Governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
Matt Mead
Matthew Hansen Mead (born March 11, 1962) is an American attorney, businessman, and politician who served as the 32nd Governor of Wyoming from 2011 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he previously was the United States Attorney for the D ...
of Wyoming said:
The passing of Earl Holding is a sad day for Wyoming. He and his wife, Carol, have lived the story of the American dream. Their accomplishments growing up during the Depression, excelling in business, and giving back to the state and the country epitomize that story.
Earl was not only an icon in business, he was an extraordinary philanthropist. His is a great American success story, because, for him, the two—business achievement and giving back—were inseparable.
Cheyenne Mayor Rick Kaysen said that he could not imagine what Cheyenne might be like if we didn't have the Little America resort. The things that we don't see are the guidance that he provided as a human being, as a businessperson, ndhis relationships with many people in Cheyenne over the many decades. He treated people just like they were longtime friends. He leaves quite a legacy.
Awards and honors
Holding received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement
The American Academy of Achievement, colloquially known as the Academy of Achievement, is a non-profit educational organization that recognizes some of the highest achieving individuals in diverse fields and gives them the opportunity to meet ...
in 1992 and was the Host of the Academy’s 1996 Summit in Sun Valley, Idaho.
Holding was inducted into the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame in 2011.
See also
References
Further reading
*
External links
Forbes 400 list
– 2010, #101 – Robert Earl Holding
U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame and Museum
– Earl Holding – inducted 2010
Sun Valley Mayor thanks Earl Holding
for his 60-year plan/vision for the Sun Valley Resort
"The Valley pays tribute to Earl & Carol Holding"
''Idaho Mountain Express and Guide'', 25 January 2006
excerpt from book about Earl Holding
''Bargaining for Eden: The Fight for the Last Open Spaces in America'', Stephen Trimble (University of California Press, 2008)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holding, Robert
1926 births
2013 deaths
American billionaires
American hoteliers
Latter Day Saints from Utah
Latter Day Saints from Wyoming
People from Cheyenne, Wyoming
Businesspeople from Salt Lake City
Ranchers from Utah
University of Utah alumni
20th-century American businesspeople
20th-century American philanthropists