TEMPE — William E. “Hap” Carty, a longtime Tempe resident who helped build the first trailers for U-Haul, became its first employee and was instrumental in turning the Phoenix-based company into a moving-industry powerhouse, has died. He was 95.
Carty spent more than four decades at U-Haul International Inc., whose parent company is Nevada-based Amerco (Nasdaq: UHAL). He served as president and chairman of the board, bringing its network of independent dealerships to more than 15,000 under his leadership at the start of the 1970s — which was a record for more than 30 years, the company said.
He retired in 1988 but remained on Amerco’s board of directors until 2006, continuing to be an involved presence with the company.
Joe Shoen, U-Haul CEO and son of the company's founders L.S. "Sam" and Anna Mary Carty Shoen, highlighted Carty’s importance to the company in a statement announcing his June 24 death.
“U-Haul would not exist today but for Hap,” Shoen said in the statement. “He was a recognized industry innovator who crossed paths with many industry stalwarts including John Rock, Red Pohling, Don Peterson, John DeLorean and Roger Penske.”
