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Show Steadman Family Name Etched In Community by Margaret Van Noy In every city there are names which command immediate recognition and respect: names of civic, and lube busi- ness. Nolan lived at home and worked while he went to college. "Often times the boys took a cot and slept right in the shop where the recapper had to be watched and religious, and business leaders names which are synonymous with success. A roster of such Tooele leaders would most clearly yield the name of Steadman, for the Steadman brothers, Bruce and Nolan have built their bike business into one considered both by customers and the Honda Company alike to be among the top dealerships in the In 1970, Steadmans bought out the Daltons Feed Store. Seed and feed was nothing new to the Steadmans who had both been raised on nursery farms. But a feed store meant heavy work and little money. One day Bruce approached his dad with a new idea: "Why dont we get a fran- But behind every success story chise to sell Trail 80 Hondas? there are hard work, disappointments and frustrations all of which must be weathered or overcome, and the Steadman story is one of hard times, hard decisions and harder work. Much of the respect of the name Steadman was earned by the patriarch of the family, "You will get a franchise over my dead body," A1 told his son. But he could see the writing on the wall. It was at this time that the elder Steadmans were called to fill a mission. "While we were gone, they moved the feed store out and the A1 depression years. Neither motorcycles nor tires were his game in those days. Unable to find another job to support a wife and the expected birth of their first child, Al took a job herding sheep out on the range. Oneda set up housekeeping in a sheep camp. Before the baby came, the Steadmans were able to move to a two room hoouse with no modern conveniences when A1 got a job working first part time and then full time at Deseret Book Store for $55 a month. By the time he left Deseret Book seven years later, World War II was in full swing. The couple had four children, and A1 was ineligible for the draft. He rode his bicycle to the Remington Arms Plant where he worked until it closed. Rubber was then a scarce item on the home front, and the life of worn tires was extended by recapping. A1 had some friends, Carl and Floyd Olsen who were in the business. He asked for a job and was told he could work for a few days. . "Carl did not think I had enough push, he said. But he liked the business and stayed with it. In 1945 when the Olsens could find no one to run their franchise in Tooele. He offered to move to Tooele even though he had a business and a nice home on Redwood Road almost paid for. The room in back of the Paulos garage was only large enough to house one recapper and a welding arm, but it was a start. "Ill always be grateful to Charlie and his boys," A1 said. The couple found a house up on 4th Street. "The only house we could find that had a bedroom big enough for our five kids, Mrs. Steadman said. It was small, only four rooms, and they had to sell much of their furniture from the house on Redwood Road. "Dont bother to put up the curtains, A1 told his wife, "Were not staying. But stay they did, and over the years the home was comfortably enlarged to fit the familys needs and today serves as a favorite meeting spot for children and grandchildren alike. In Tooele A1 soon became known as an honest and dependable businessman, expert in recapping. The business outgrew the one room and hopscotched around Tooele, first to the corner of Vine and Main Street next to the BF Goodrich Store, where it flourished until a fire in an 1985 changed continually. state. Steadman. Steadmans is a second generation business which had its beginnings in a tiny room behind Charlie Paulos garage on Vine Street where A1 opened a tire recapping business forty years ago. Its roots go even deeper, back to A1 Steadman and his new bride Oneda, married during the rock-har- d 7, rigors of a small business in a small town, A1 Steadman has taken an active role in church and family matters. old vault forced another move. The O.K. Tire and Rubber Company them moved in the front of Jack Clarks shop south of the Ritz Theatre. "But recapping took a nose dive after the war when new tires be- came available, A1 said. The Olsens decided to close the shop and the Steadmans thought they were going to have to move back to Salt Lake. We liked it out here, Oneda Steadman said. "Both of us had come from farms out in the southwest part of the Salt Lake Valley and we knew what it was like being bussed to school. If we moved back to Redwood Road, we knew the kids would lose many opportunities. In addition the couple were busily involved in their LDS ward and Oneda Steadman was doing her share to make the name of Steadman admired and respected in the music circles of Tooele valley. A1 bought the franchise for $25 a month.- - -- f' Soon another move was called for, and A1 approached Erb Johnson to sell him some property north of town where he could put up a tire shop. "Everybody told us we were crazy, Oneda Steadman said. Hondas in, A1 said with a proud twinkle in his eyes. It was the right decision. "Bruce and Nolan make a good team, Oneda Steadman pointed out. "Bruce is good at the mechanical end of the business and Nolan has a degree in business adminis- tration. Another brother, Gary, with a degree in engineering also worked there for several years. Today, daughter Elaine Watkins handles the book work. When A1 and Oneda returned from their mission, they turned their business over to their sons. The little business which started with one recapper in Charlie Paulos garage has become known Honda nationwide as a dealership. The name Steadmans now has a national image. top-notc- h It has not been easy. "Seventy-fiv- e percent of our business comes from outside Tooele, A1 said sadly. This means that the Tooele store has to give a better deal to compete with the big-citstores in order to attract customers from outside the area. "The boys have sold bikes as far away as Florida, A1 chuckled. "They have met many fine people this way. "I pick them up at the airport, y he continued, "They finish the paper work and then ride off on their new bikes. "The Honda people have been here many times, too, Oneda Steadman said. "Once during a particularly hard time, they came here to close us down, but when they saw how hard working and "They told us, Out of town; out of sincere the boys were, they extended credit to them. wrong. It proved to be a good move. He built a service station and "Als O.K. Tire Store did well selling times, business. But everyone was tires. Then recapping became strong again. A1 didnt know it, but he had started something big. The Dalton Feed and Grain Store moved next door. It was the beginning of a busy industrial park. A1 Steadman had a good reputation, dependable employees and a good family. Whit Myers was one of those employees. He stuck with us 100 percent, working for us for 22 years. He was our best employee, an outstanding man, the Steadmans said. The Steadman boys started coming down to the shop while they were still very young. They continued to work there right up until they went off to college or on missions for the LDS Church, and then they came back. With the help of the boys, the business began to expand. Because of Bruces schooling and his experience, the Steadmans put up another building and went into the The OK Tire Store and Beeline gas station was one of the first businesses to open on Tooeles North Main. The service station is now closed and used for storage and work area. "It has been touch and go many A1 explained, thinking back over the years, "and we are still struggling. "The boys have had to work hard for their success," Oneda Steadman agreed, "but they were taught by their father. A1 has been loved, she said. "People realize that he is honest. They know they can depend on him. Many have trusted him and have asked for his advice. They know they will get an honest answer. "Some of our best customers are the people of lower income brackets and the minority groups," A1 said. "I am amazed at the number of people who come up to me and throw their arms around me. I've always had a tender spot for common people, he finished. Although Al Steadman is no longer part of the Steadman Corporation, you will still see him down at the business almost every day. "That has been his life," his wife said. "He would rather be Al's tire store has changed many facetf during the past four decades and It now houses hundreds of Honda and Yamuha motorcyles. The Steadman dealership is one of the nations leaders In Honda and Yamaha retail. down there than home. The business still carries his name. It is a name that carries a legacy of hard work and O o o D 0 IPUKISS The recent snow storm added enough weight to collapse the roof of a separate building we've been using But the damage is minor. OUR MAIN SHOP IS IN FULL OPERATION. If you need the best in repair work and very reasonable prices. . . WERE YOUR KIND OF PLACE. r Bobs GARAGE 278 N. Main 882-031- Family lStlSUlCSS The family business, which Al opened when daughter Elaine Watkins and son, Bruce. first married to Oneda, Is now operated by son, Nolan; 3 CALL TODAY FOR AN APPOINTMENT. |