Henry J. Kaiser: Builder in the Modern American West

by Mark S. Foster

In the 1940s Henry J. Kaiser was a household name, as familiar then as Warren Buffett and Donald Trump are now. Like a Horatio Alger hero, Kaiser rose from lower-middle-class origins to become an enormously wealthy entrepreneur, building roads, bridges, dams, and housing. He established giant businesses in cement, aluminum, chemicals, steel, health care, and tourism. During World War II, his companies built cargo planes and Liberty ships. After the war, he manufactured the Kaiser-Frazer automobile. Along the way, he also became a major force in the development of the western United States, including Hawaii. Henry J. Builder in the Modern American West is the first biography of this remarkable man. Drawing on a wealth of archival material never before utilized, Mark Foster paints an evenhanded portrait of a man of driving ambition and integrity, perhaps the ultimate "can-do" capitalist. He covers Kaiser's entire life (1882–1967), emphasizing many business ventures. He demonstrates that Kaiser was the prototypical "frontier" entrepreneur who often used government and union support to tame the "wilderness." Though today the Kaiser industries are no longer under family management, the Kaiser legacy remains great. Kaiser played a major role in building the Hoover, Bonneville, Grand Coulee, and Shasta dams. The Kaiser-Permanente Medical Care Program still provides comprehensive health care for millions of subscribers. Kaiser-planned communities remain in Los Angeles; San Francisco; Portland, Oregon; and Boulder City, Nevada. Kaiser Engineers was actively engaged in hundreds of huge construction jobs across the nation and around the world. U.S. and business historians, scholars of the modern West, and general readers will all find much to absorb them in this well-written biography.

Genres: Biography, Business, History, American History

406 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[Sanford Chee]

Recommended by Collison brothers on All-in Podcast
https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast...

[Pablo Castro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, what a masterpiece of a biography.

All I can say is this book took me around nine months to finish. Between starting and finishing other books, being a dad, and moving offices, it took me a while but every page was worth it.

Henry Kaiser was unequivocally one of the greatest entrepreneurs in history. I could even argue he was more fascinating than Elon Musk. He built businesses across an astonishing range of industries: shipyards, dam construction, road building, automobiles, television, and, later in life, hotels and resorts around the world.

He was a visionary who constantly reinvented himself, and his life offers an incredible number of lessons for entrepreneurs, builders, and leaders. I learned a tremendous amount from this book.

I highly recommend it. It’s extremely detailed and technical at times, but it’s absolutely worth the investment.

[Sy. C · Rating 2 out of 5]

A disappointing work. It is as though someone wrote a book about how Washington works without talking about campaign financing, lobbying, and federal patronage. Henry Kaiser built his empire in public works and construction yet the "pragmatic" aspects of those industries are scarcely discussed.

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was only aware of his contributions to health care, and awestruck at his enterprises, dam building, ship building, automobiles, steel and aluminum. One hell of a bidnessman!

[Billy Groble · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super interesting industrialist. Written well enough. Crazy to see how many industries he broke into. Real rags to riches guy, big gov contract guy

[Nick]

read too much like a straightforward history book and not enough like a business narrative or biography.