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Walter Douglas, General Manager of the Phelps, Dodge & Co. mining interests, was born in Quebec, Canada, 19 December 1870, the son of James Douglas and Naomi Douglas. He received his education at Upper Canada, Morrin, and the Royal Military Colleges, all of Canada, and took a post graduate course in the School of Mines of Columbia University, New York.
In 1890 he moved to Arizona to become Engineer of the Commercial Mining Co. of Prescott; in 1892 he became associated with the Consolidated Kansas City Smelting & Refining Co. as metallurgist, but in 1894 returned to Arizona and worked with Phelps, Dodge & Co., becoming General Manager in 1910. In 1917 he succeeded his father as president of Phelps Dodge.
Being unable to secure proper concessions from the large railroads in the southwest, the interests which he represented, under his direction, built their own lines, the El Paso & Southwestern, the only road of its length that was built without a floating debt. Mr. Douglas was Vice President of this road; President of the El Paso & Southwestern R. R. of Texas, of the Mexico & Colorado R. R., Second Vice President of the El Paso & Northeastern, and was director in a number of enterprises in Arizona and New Mexico.
Douglas was one of the leaders of the 1915 counteroffensive against the progressive coalition dominating Arizona politics at the time. He also led an offensive to rid Arizona of organized labour, culminating in the Bisbee deportation of 1917. For his role in the Deportation, he was indicted by the federal government on charges of conspiracy and kidnapping, but all charges were dropped.
From 1895 to 1899, he worked for the Detroit Copper Company. In 1899, he became
superintendent of the Copper Queen Consolidated Company at Bisbee, then served as
general manager from 1902 to 1910, and then was general manager for Phelps Dodge.
From 1917 to 1930, he was president of Phelps Dodge. He served as chairman of the board
of the Southern Pacific of Mexico railroad company from 1930 to 1940.
He was a member of the American Institute of Mining Engineers, American Academy of Political and Social Science, the National Geographical Society, the Engineers, Rocky Mountain, Columbia University, and Santa Barbara and Warren District Country Clubs.
The Walter Douglas
House, in Bisbee, Arizona, was built for Walter Douglas in 1908, who
was the general manager for the Phelps-Dodge Company. It was the first
house built in what was then Warren, Arizona, which was Arizona's first
planned community, and was the largest home in the community.
In September, 1902, he married Edith Bell, of Ottawa, Canada.
They had three daughters and two sons. His son, Walter, Jr.,
operated Gilpin Airlines in Tucson.
Retiring in 1930 due to poor health, Douglas traveled between homes in Phoenix and New York state. He died in Chauncey, N.Y., in 1946.
Notes:
• Walter Douglas's daughter, Mrs. Dennis Kitchell,
donated a photograph collection, 1897-1898 to the Arizona Historical
Society in 1968.
Extracted from: Who's Who in Arizona, 1913
General Manager of the Phelps, Dodge and Co. mining interests was born in Quebec, Canada December 19, 1870 and is the son of Dr. James S. and Naomi Douglas. He was educated at Upper Canada, Morrin and The Royal Military Colleges, all of Canada before attending post graduate courses at the School of Mines of Columbia University, New York. He came to Arizona in 1890, where he was employed as an Engineer with the Commercial Mining Company of Prescott; in 1892 he became associated with the Consolidated Kansas City Smelting and Refining Co. as a metallurgist, but in 1894 he returned to Arizona and has since been associated with Phelps, Dodge and Co. interests, of which he was made General Manager in 1910. Unable to secure proper concessions from the larger railroads in the southwest, the interests of which he represented, under his direction, built their own lines, the El Paso and Southwestern, the only road of its length that was built without a floating debt. Mr. Douglas is Vice President of this road; President of the El Paso and Southwest R. R. of Texas, of the Mexico and Colorado R. R., Second Vice President of the El Paso and Northeastern, and is the director in a number of enterprises in Arizona and New Mexico. He is a member of the American Institute of Mining Engineers, American Academy of Political and social Science and the National Geographic Society. He’s also a member of the Engineers Rocky Mountain, Columbia University, Santa Barbra and Warren District Country Clubs. Mr. Douglas was married in September, 1902 to Miss Edith Bell of Ottawa, Canada. Their present home is in Warren, Arizona and Santa Barbra, California.
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