Edward L. ‘Ted’ Baker served Florida Rock Industries in capacities such as CEO and chairman during a career that spanned nearly a half-century.

Baker was the biggest driver behind Florida Rock’s growth, taking an enterprise his father started during the Great Depression and expanding its reach across the Southeast tremendously during the 20th century.

“He was instrumental in taking the company public and instrumental in its growth,” says Ted Baker II, nephew of the Hall of Fame inductee. “He spent his whole career there and grew it from a little company to a pretty large public company when it sold in 2007.”

Vulcan Materials ultimately purchased Florida Rock that year in a deal valued at more than $4 billion, but not before Baker diversified his company and grew it through his own strategic acquisitions over many years. “He’s one of the smartest people I’ve ever met,” says John D. Baker II, the younger brother of the Hall of Fame inductee who at one time served as Florida Rock president. “Intuitively, he had great judgment about making moves. He was an amazing people person. Even when we had 10 or 15 plants, he knew most of the workers in the plant. They all adored him.”