The History Of Shortridge

Nearly one hundred years ago, my Great-Grandfather Earl Shortridge, bought a vacant piece of property, pitched a tent, and moved his family into it. He quickly proceeded to build a one-room home for his wife and five children, keeping their time in the tent to a minimum. Around that single room home though, Earl continued building, eventually producing a beautiful custom home. He did this several times over as a matter of fact, all throughout the 1920’s, 30’s, and 40’s.

The youngest of his two sons and three daughters was my Grandmother, Frances. These were some of her favorite stories to share with me when I was a child. Telling me of her father’s drive, his hard-work, his ambition, and the quality with which he constructed his homes.

Now three generations separated from my Great-Grandfather, our family has continued to pass down those same important traits of hard-work, ambition, and quality in all that we do.

I am very blessed to be in the possession of my Great-Grandfather’s daily work journals. In their pages I am able to re-live every project he recorded, and learn from his wisdom, and his occasional mistakes. My Great-Grandfather didn’t just build homes though, he helped with larger projects, such as the construction of the Idaho Capitol Building’s main dome, but also spent much of his time doing small handy-man projects for his friends, family, and neighbors.

The quality and integrity with which he completed his projects, large and small, is something I’m very proud to continue pursuing to this day. There’s nearly one hundred years separating me from the work that inspired me to be what we are today, but there’s nothing separating us from putting the same the love and care into every Shortridge project, no matter the size.

I hope that as we continue my Great-Grandfather’s legacy of quality and integrity, that we can also add your family’s project, to our family’s history.

- Samuel Pielage, Founder & CEO