A new statue of David Eccles, namesake of the David Eccles School of Business, will now greet students and visitors outside the Spencer Fox Eccles Business Building. The statue was unveiled on September 4, 2025 by descendants of David Eccles, including his grandson, Spencer Fox Eccles, and great-grandchildren Katie Eccles, Lisa Eccles, Hope Eccles, and Spencer P. Eccles.

The statue depicts David as a young man of 14, around the time he came to the United States from Scotland with his family.

“It is very fitting that this statue depicts David, not at the height of his success, but as a young man, when he was just getting started,” said Kurt Dirks, dean of the David Eccles School of Business, during the unveiling ceremony. “This is where our students are at in life – ready to start their climb. David’s example is a reminder to them of what is possible, regardless of where you start.”

Escaping a life of poverty in Scotland, David’s parents, William and Sarah, brought their family to the United States in search of a better life. William, who was legally blind, skillfully shaped wooden wares including spoons, bowls, and rolling pins on a small lathe and David would walk miles down Ogden Canyon, selling his father’s wares to help support his family.

Undaunted by hard work, David cut cordwood to fuel a woolen mill, cut logs for the sawmill, and worked on the railroad line, eventually saving enough money to buy his own yoke of oxen. This pivotal purchase enabled him to start his first real venture: cutting and hauling logs in Ogden Canyon. His legendary career had begun.

Many aspects of David’s early life and career are depicted on the new statue, including a wooden spoon, a yoke of oxen, and a thistle, the emblem of Scotland.

“With this new statue, now a fixture of our campus, we have a poignant and tangible reminder of the truly remarkable things that can be accomplished with curiosity, grit, creativity, and an entrepreneurial mindset focused on solving some of our most important and pressing issues,” said Taylor Randall, president of the University of Utah.

David Eccles founded dozens of businesses over his lifetime, becoming Utah’s first multi-millionaire. At the time of his death in 1912, he was president of 17 corporations, seven banks, and acting director of 24 other business in various industries.

David’s service to others lives on in the philanthropy of his descendants, and the values he demonstrated live on in the culture of the David Eccles School of Business, which was named for David Eccles in 1991.

“The story and spirit of David Eccles live on at the business school in multiple ways,” Dirks said. “His entrepreneurial spirit, ambition, business acumen, work ethic, and integrity are embedded in our culture. If David were here with us today, I’d like to think he would be proud of this school, and of what getting a degree from the David Eccles School of Business means. Of course, like David, we are also always looking to the next horizon, always aspiring to do more and be better.”